Christopher Daniels

Daniel Christopher Covell (born March 24, 1970) is an American professional wrestler, best known by his ring name Christopher Daniels. He is currently signed with All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as an on-screen performer and as the head of Talent Relations. He is best known for his work in Ring of Honor (ROH).

Covell has spent the bulk of his career wrestling for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) and ROH, but has also worked extensively in Japan and on the American independent circuit. He has won 20 total championships between TNA, ROH, and New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), with four reigns as TNA X Division Champion, six reigns as NWA World Tag Team Champion, and two reigns as TNA World Tag Team Champion during his time with TNA, one reign as ROH World Television Champion, four reigns as ROH World Tag Team Champion, one reign as ROH World Champion, and one reign as Six-Man Tag Team Champion while wrestling for ROH, and one reign as IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion in NJPW.With his ROH Six-Man title win, he became the first ever Grand Slam winner in company history.

He is known as "The King of Indies" for his work with independent promotions across the world, including Frontier Wrestling Alliance (FWA), International Wrestling Cartel (IWC), and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG).

Covell was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan on March 24, 1970. When Covell was three, his family relocated to Fayetteville, North Carolina, where he became an avid fan of Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling. After he graduated from Methodist College with a degree in theater, Covell and his wife moved to Chicago, Illinois, where he planned to become an actor.

Independent circuit (1993–2002)

After being trained by Sam DeCero, Mike Anthony and Kevin Quinn, Daniels made his debut for Windy City Pro Wrestling in April 1993, losing a tag match with Titan to The Manson Brothers (Ripper and Skull). The following month he defeated Trevor Blanchard for the WCPW Light Heavyweight Championship, and shortly thereafter won the WCPW Tag Team Championship with Kevin Quinn. Daniels subsequently traveled to Puerto Rico to wrestle for the World Wrestling Council, and on October 22, 1995, teamed with Kevin Quinn to defeat Huracán Castillo, Jr. and Invader I for the WWC World Tag Team Championship. They lost the titles a month later to The Canadian Glamour Boys (Val Venis and Shane Sewell). Back in Windy City, Daniels defeated Bret Sanders for the WCPW Middleweight Championship, losing it to Brandon Bishop 17 days later. Around this time, he also wrestled for the Empire Wrestling Federation, where he won the EWF Heavyweight Championship.

Daniels also continued making appearances on the independent circuit during this time, teaming with Kevin Quinn to defeat Danny Dominion and Ace Steele at the NWA's 50th Anniversary show in October 1998 to become the first NWA Midwest Tag Team Champions. He participated in the 3rd Annual ECWA Super 8 Tournament, reaching the finals where he lost to Steve Bradley. After a short stint in Extreme Championship Wrestling he traveled to Japan, where developed his masked persona, Curry Man, and competed in the Masked Man League, finishing third. On December 19, 1999, he defeated Minoru Fujita in Michinoku Pro Wrestling for the British Commonwealth Junior Heavyweight Championship. Back in the U.S., he defeated Michael Modest for the APW Worldwide Internet Championship in All Pro Wrestling and won the 4th Annual ECWA Super 8 Tournament. On January 14, 2000, Daniels received a tryout match with World Championship Wrestling, defeating Mikey Henderson. The original idea was for Daniels to portray Vampiro's dark master, Syndrome, but his WCW debut was continually postponed, and he eventually returned to the independent scene. He then won APW's King of the Indies tournament, the WCPW League Championship, and the UPW Heavyweight Championship.

World Wrestling Federation (1998–2001)

In 1998, Daniels signed a developmental deal with the World Wrestling Federation and trained at Dory Funk, Jr.'s Funkin' Dojo. He made his WWF debut on January 19, 1998, losing a dark match to Mick Tierney, and went on to be used as a jobber on the WWF's B-shows, Sunday Night Heat and WWF Shotgun Saturday Night, throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s.

He also made appearances for ECW, like facing Rhino on the October 2, 1999 edition of Hardcore TV #336.

In 2000, he donned a mask and teamed (as Dos) with Aaron Aguilera (Uno) as Los Conquistadores, as part of The Hardy Boyz' feud with Edge and Christian. He also appeared in WWE as one of the Los Conquistadores alongside Aaron Aguilera where they competed in the APA's bar room brawl.

He made several appearances on WWF Jakked during the spring of 2001, including a singles loss to Jerry Lynn[ and a tag team loss to Kaientai with Scoot Andrews as his partner. Throughout 2001 and 2002, he continued wrestling on the independent circuit, winning multiple titles and tournaments and debuting in Canada and the United Kingdom.

World Championship Wrestling (2000–2001)

On the June 17, 2000 episode of WCW WorldWide, Daniels lost to Chris Candido and on the October 21 episode of WorldWide, Daniels lost to Kwee Wee. On the January 22, 2001 episode of WCW Monday Nitro, Daniels wrestled Michael Modest. During the match, he attempted a springboard moonsault, but his left foot missed the ring rope. Unable to sufficiently push off to complete the rotation, he botched the move and landed on his head, damaging his neck. Though he was able to finish the match, his left arm was impaired throughout it. Afterwards, Daniels and Modest signed 90-day contracts, but Daniels was released before he had another match.

Ring of Honor

The Prophecy (2002–2004)

On February 23, 2002, Daniels wrestled in the triple threat main event of Ring of Honor's first show, The Era of Honor Begins, against Low Ki and Bryan Danielson. He lost the match, then refused to shake hands with his opponents, breaking ROH's "Code of Honor", which mandated that all wrestlers shake hands before and after a match. He then took the mic and challenged Low Ki and Danielson to a round robin tournament at ROH's second show, Round Robin Challenge. Daniels defeated Danielson in the first match, then forced him to shake his hand. He next submitted to Low Ki's Dragon Clutch, but again refused to shake hands and said he would have won if he had not already wrestled that night, vowing to not wrestle Low Ki again unless the ROH World Championship was on the line.

At Ring of Honor's third show, A Night of Appreciation, Daniels lost to Donovan Morgan, with both men showing mutual respect. The two men formed a partnership, eventually adding other members and growing into the stable known as The Prophecy. Daniels defeated AJ Styles on June 22, to qualify for the first ROH World Championship match, a one-hour Iron Man match against Spanky, Doug Williams, and Low Ki. In this title match, Daniels scored a pin on the eventual winner, Low Ki, and was the only wrestler to not to lose a fall by pin or submission.

Two months later, Low Ki defended the title against Xavier. During the match, Daniels came to the ring to distract Low Ki, allowing Xavier to attack the champion with a chair and pin him for the title. Xavier was subsequently announced as the newest member of The Prophecy. Later that night, Daniels and Morgan defeated Danielson and Michael Modest to become the inaugural ROH Tag Team Champions, giving The Prophecy possession of all championships in Ring of Honor.

At Glory By Honor, Daniels defeated Doug Williams, who was consequently banned from shaking hands in ROH. The Prophecy recruited the debuting Samoa Joe to take out Low Ki in the first ever Fight Without Honor, a match that does not follow ROH's Code of Honor rules. Low Ki won the match and shook Joe's hand.

On March 13, 2003, A.J. Styles and Amazing Red defeated Daniels and Xavier (substituting for Morgan) for the ROH Tag Team Championship. At the next show, The Prophecy also lost the ROH Championship, when former member Samoa Joe defeated Xavier. On April 26, Daniels won the second Round Robin Challenge by defeating Amazing Red and Paul London in singles matches. On June 14, The Prophecy put their existence in ROH on the line in a six-man tag team match against The Group (Samoa Joe, C.W. Anderson, and Michael Shane). The Prophecy won, and The Group was forced to disband. Daniels defeated the returning Xavier on August 16 to become number one contender for the ROH World Championship, only to be defeated by champion Samoa Joe on September 20.

After CM Punk declined an offer to join The Prophecy, someone assaulted his girlfriend Lucy backstage, forcing her out of ROH. On December 23, 2003, Daniels revealed that B.J. Whitmer, the newest member of The Prophecy, had attacked Lucy, starting a rivalry between The Prophecy and Punk's stable, The Second City Saints. On January 10, 2004, at Battle Lines are Drawn, The Prophecy (Daniels, Whitmer, and Dan Maff) faced The Second City Saints (Punk, Colt Cabana, and Ace Steel) in a six-man tag team main event. The Prophecy was disqualified when Whitmer accidentally hit the referee with a chair. After the match, Punk dropped Daniels from the ropes through a table with the Pepsi Plunge, putting him out of ROH. In reality, Daniels' exit was a result of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) not allowing their contracted wrestlers to work ROH shows, in light of a scandal surrounding ROH promoter Rob Feinstein.

Return to ROH (2005–2007)

In the summer of 2005, Ring of Honor announced that, after a sixteen-month absence, Daniels would return on July 8. However, on June 18, at Death Before Dishonor III, he made a surprise early return, confronting and challenging the new ROH World Champion, CM Punk, who had threatened to leave for World Wrestling Entertainment with the title. Punk refused the challenge and fled the arena. At the next show, Sign of Dishonor, Daniels defeated Punk's stablemate, Colt Cabana, when Punk attempted to hit Daniels with a steel chain, but instead hit Cabana. At Fate of an Angel, Daniels lost to the debuting Matt Hardy after Punk interfered. Later that night, after Punk's successful defense against James Gibson, Daniels stole the belt and was granted a title shot.

On July 23, at The Homecoming, Daniels wrestled Punk to a one-hour time limit draw; the time expired just as Daniels hit his Angel's Wings finisher. At the next show on August 12, Redemption, Daniels, Gibson and Samoa Joe challenged CM Punk for the title in a Four-Way Elimination match. While Joe had Daniels in a submission move, Daniels put his foot on the rope to force a break. Punk knocked it off before the referee noticed, and Daniels submitted. Daniels tried to get revenge, but inadvertently helped Punk eliminate Joe.

Daniels remained a regular member of the ROH roster, while also working other promotions. He made his U.S. debut as Curry Man on August 27, against Shingo Takagi at Dragon Gate Invasion

After defeating Matt Sydal in two singles matches and losing to him in a third, they became tag team partners in the summer of 2006. On August 26, they failed in their first shot at the ROH World Tag Team Championship, against Austin Aries and Roderick Strong. On November 25, they defeated Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli for the title, making Daniels a two-time champion. After defending against CIMA and Shingo, Austin Aries and Roderick Strong and Jack Evans and Shingo, Daniels and Sydal lost the title to The Briscoe Brothers on February 24, 2007.

At Good Times, Great Memories on April 28, Daniels wrestled a fifteen-minute time-limit draw with Erick Stevens. Following the match, Daniels turned heel and quit ROH.

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling

Championship reigns (2002–2007)

Daniels joined the newly founded NWA-TNA in 2002. He was part of Vince Russo's Sports Entertainment Xtreme stable, within which he, Low-Ki and Elix Skipper were put together in a team called Triple X, which won the NWA World Tag Team Championship. Triple X disbanded in June 2003, after Low-Ki began wrestling primarily in Japan and Daniels and Skipper lost a cage match to America's Most Wanted (Chris Harris and James Storm).

Daniels briefly feuded with Jeff Jarrett in August/September 2003. He then regularly wrestled singles matches in the X Division, before rejoining with Skipper in July 2004. They were forced to disband after losing to America's Most Wanted again, on December 5 at Turning Point.

In 2005, Daniels had a long feud with A.J. Styles over the TNA X Division Championship. He won the title at Destination X in an Ultimate X Challenge with a screwjob ending. Styles had retrieved the belt, but the referee was unconscious. Daniels hit Styles with his Angel's Wings finisher and took the belt when the ref woke. He became the longest-reigning X Division champion, holding the belt for over 150 days. During this run, he defended against Elix Skipper, Shocker, Petey Williams, Matt Bentley, Chris Sabin, and Austin Aries. On September 11, at Unbreakable, he lost the title to Styles in a three-way dance (with Samoa Joe), when Styles reversed an Angels Wings attempt into a pin; This match received a 5-star rating from Dave Meltzer.

On November 13, 2005, at Genesis, Daniels sustained a (storyline) concussion after being attacked by Samoa Joe and taking a Muscle Buster onto a chair, following a tag match together. At Turning Point, when Joe tried to similarly injure A.J. Styles after winning the X Division Championship from him, Daniels returned and attacked Joe, enabling security guards to protect Styles and restrain Joe. At Final Resolution, Daniels lost to Joe when Styles threw in the towel to protect Daniels, badly beaten and defenseless, from further damage. The next week, Daniels accused Styles of doing this to get the number one contendership for the X Division Title. That night, he cost Styles a match against Shannon Moore by throwing in the towel. At Against All Odds, Joe retained the title in a three-way match against Daniels and Styles. Daniels won the title in an Ultimate X match the next month, and lost it to Joe on April 13, after taking a second rope Island Driver.

Daniels was then scheduled to face Jushin Thunder Liger in a cage match at Lockdown, but Liger pulled out of the match. Instead, he faced a mystery opponent, who turned out to be the returning Low Ki (now named Senshi), who defeated him.

Daniels turned face by teaming with A.J. Styles and becoming the number one contender for the NWA Tag Team Championship, held by America's Most Wanted. Daniels and Styles won the title at Slammiversary. They then feuded with The Latin American Xchange (LAX), trading the title back and forth with Homicide and Hernandez.

On November 16, Daniels defeated Styles and Chris Sabin in a three-way match on the primetime debut of TNA Impact! on Spike TV, by pinning Sabin, to win his third TNA X Division Championship. He lost it to Sabin in a three-way bout at Final Resolution, also involving Jerry Lynn.

Daniels then took time off from TNA. He made his return, as a heel, at Destination X, distracting Lynn during his match with Sabin. After the match, the newly bearded Daniels, sporting tribal-styled paint on one side of his face, hit Sabin with the Angel's Wings and Lynn with the X Division title belt. At Lockdown, Daniels pinned Jerry Lynn in a cage match. At Sacrifice, Daniels pinned Rhino after hitting him with a baseball bat.

Daniels then feuded with Sting, costing him a King of the Mountain match qualifier by hitting him with a baseball bat. Sting attacked him the next week on Impact!. On June 17, 2007, at Slammiversary, Sting pinned him after the Scorpion Death Drop. According to Daniels, the feud ended before start because Vince Russo did not know what to do with his Fallen Angel gimmick.

At Victory Road, Daniels won a 10-Man Ultimate X Gauntlet Match to become the number one contender for the X Division Championship. Senshi and Elix Skipper helped Daniels to win the match, resulting in the reunion of Triple X. At Bound for Glory on October 14, Daniels unsuccessfully challenged for Jay Lethal's X Division Championship. On the December 6 episode of TNA Impact!, Daniels beat Senshi in a match for his "Feast or Fired" briefcase, refereed by Elix Skipper. The next week, the briefcase was revealed to contain a pink slip, meaning Daniels was fired from TNA.

Curry Man and Suicide (2008–2009)

One month after Daniels was fired, Covell returned to TNA as the colourful, masked Curry Man, who soon became allied with Shark Boy. Unlike the brooding serious nature of his "Fallen Angel" persona, Curry Man was a dancing, cartoonish comedy act. He and Shark Boy feuded with Team 3D, and won a "Fish Market Street Fight" against them at Destination X. On the March 13, 2008 Impact!, Curry Man beat Petey Williams to qualify for the Xscape match for the X Division Title at Lockdown, along with Jay Lethal, Sonjay Dutt, Shark Boy, Consequences Creed, and Johnny Devine. He eliminated Creed from the match after hitting his Spice Rack finisher, and was eliminated by Devine after the Devine Intervention.

In June, Curry Man represented Team TNA in the 2008 World X Cup. After losing to Team International's Alex Koslov in a preview match, he lost to Team Japan's Milano Collection A.T. in the tournament. At Victory Road, Curry Man wrestled in a four-team, twelve-man elimination tag match; he was eliminated by Team Mexico's Último Guerrero.

Curry Man and Shark Boy then allied with Super Eric to form a comedic superhero-themed stable called The Prince Justice Brotherhood. At Final Resolution, Curry Man was one of the four participants in the "Feast or Fired" match (along with Jay Lethal, Homicide and Hernandez) to retrieve a briefcase. His contained a pink slip, meaning he was fired.

In early 2009, Covell began playing the role of the masked Suicide, while Frankie Kazarian (the original Suicide) recovered from injury. As Suicide, he won the X Division Championship in an Ultimate X match at Destination X.

Various feuds (2009–2010)

Christopher Daniels returned to TNA TV as a face, under his "Fallen Angel" gimmick (his name shortened to just Daniels afterwards) on the April 16 TNA Impact!. He defeated Kurt Angle to give Jeff Jarrett's team the first-man advantage in Lethal Lockdown, at Lockdown. He was then announced as a member of Team Jarrett. The win was overturned by Jeff Jarrett, after he noticed Angle's shoulder was up during the pinfall and Daniels' shoulders were down. At Lockdown, Team Jarrett defeated Team Angle.

Daniels then feuded with Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin (The Motor City Machine Guns), who, on the April 30 Impact!, accused him of being Suicide. On the May 7 Impact!, Jay Lethal and Consequences Creed echoed the accusations. On the May 14 Impact!, Daniels helped Suicide clear the ring of Shelley, Sabin, Lethal, and Creed after they attempted to unmask him. At Sacrifice, Daniels defeated Suicide to win the TNA X Division Championship. After the match, Daniels saw a replay of the finish, involving Alex Shelley's interference. He said he didn't want to win the belt like that and asked for five extra minutes. The five minutes expired in a draw, and Suicide kept the title.

At Slammiversary, Daniels pinned Shane Douglas in a match with Daniels' job on the line, after hitting the Best Moonsault Ever.

At Victory Road, Wrestling Observer's Worst Show of the Year, Daniels lost to Matt Morgan.

At Hard Justice, Daniels won the Steel Asylum match to become the number one contender for the X Division Championship, reigniting his feud with champion Samoa Joe. Daniels lost to Joe at No Surrender, then lost a three-way match (also involving Homicide) to him on the following Impact.

At Bound for Glory, Daniels wrestled a six-man Ultimate X match for the X Division Championship, also featuring Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin, Suicide, Homicide and successfully defending champion, Amazing Red.

On the November 5 Impact!, Daniels confronted the TNA World Heavyweight Champion, A.J. Styles, and claiming he was just as good a wrestler as Styles, but was not given the same breaks by TNA, which he said was pampering, coddling and spoiling Styles. At Turning Point, Styles retained his title in a three-way match against Daniels and Samoa Joe by pinning Joe. On the November 19 Impact!, Daniels completed his heel turn and teamed with Desmond Wolfe against Styles and Kurt Angle, pinning Styles. At Final Resolution, Daniels unsuccessfully challenged Styles for the World Heavyweight Championship.

The following month at Genesis, Daniels lost to Sean Morley in Morley's TNA debut.

On the March 8 Impact!, Daniels vowed to re-ignite the flame of the X Division. That night, he was pinned by X Division Champion Doug Williams in a three-way title match, also involving Kazarian.

At Destination X, Daniels competed in a four-way ladder match for the number one contendership for the X Division title, and was defeated by Kazarian. Two days later, Daniels defeated Kazuchika Okada in a dark match at the Impact! taping.

Covell was released from his TNA contract on March 31, 2010, after nearly eight years with the company.

Second return to ROH (2010–2011)

Daniels returned to Ring of Honor on April 3, 2010, at its second live pay-per-view, The Big Bang!, challenging Davey Richards to a match. On May 7, at Civil Warfare, Daniels defeated Kevin Steen in his return match and so took his #2 spot in the Pick 6 standings. The following day, at Supercard Of Honor V, Daniels defeated ROH World Television Champion and Richards' tag team partner, Eddie Edwards, in a non-title match. On May 21, Daniels participated in his first Ring of Honor Wrestling taping, teaming with Roderick Strong in a losing effort against The American Wolves (Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards).

On June 19, Daniels made his ROH pay-per-view wrestling debut at Death Before Dishonor VIII, successfully defending his #2 Pick 6 spot against Kenny Omega and rupturing an eardrum in the process. At the next PPV, Glory By Honor IX, Daniels defeated Austin Aries. On October 16, Daniels finally received his match with Davey Richards, but lost via submission. Three days later Ring of Honor announced that Daniels had officially signed a contract with the promotion. On November 13, Daniels received a shot at the ROH World Championship, but lost to the champion, Roderick Strong.

At the December 10 taping of Ring of Honor Wrestling in Louisville, Kentucky, Daniels beat Eddie Edwards for the ROH World Television Championship. Eight days later, at Final Battle 2010, Daniels lost to Homicide in a non–title number one contender's match. At the net pay-per-view, 9th Anniversary Show, on February 26, 2011, Daniels wrestled Eddie Edwards to a thirty-minute time limit draw in a Two Out of Three Falls rematch for the Television title. Afterwards, it was announced that Daniels would challenge for the ROH World Championship at the following pay-per-view on April 1. On March 18, Daniels successfully defended the Television title against Mike Bennett.

In preparation for his World Championship match against Roderick Strong, Daniels stole "The Book of Truth" from Strong's manager, Truth Martini, to learn his match strategy. He was forced to shift his focus when, on March 19, Strong lost the title to Eddie Edwards. On April 1, at Honor Takes Center Stage, Daniels unsuccessfully challenged Edwards for the World Championship, and afterwards teased a heel turn by refusing to shake his hand. The next day (the second of the Honor Takes Center Stage weekend), Daniels completed his heel turn by attacking El Generico with "The Book of Truth" and aligning himself with Truth Martini, Roderick Strong and Michael Elgin, a stable called The House of Truth.

On June 26, at Best in the World 2011, Daniels lost the Television title to El Generico. This was his last appearance in ROH before rejoining TNA full-time.

Chikara (2010)

Curry Man replaced the injured Cassandro to team with Los Ice Creams (El Hijo del Ice Cream and Ice Cream, Jr.) in Chikara's 2010 King of Trios tournament, which started on April 23, 2010. The trio lost in the first round to Team Perros del Mal (El Alebrije, Cuije and El Oriental). The following day, Christopher Daniels defeated Hallowicked in a singles match. On the third night of the event, Daniels lost to Eddie Kingston.

AAA (2010)

On April 30, 2010, Christopher Daniels debuted for the major Mexican promotion, AAA, as a surprise member of the rudo La Legión Extranjera (Foreign Legion) stable. In a six-man tag match, he, Alex Koslov and Joe Lider defeated Extreme Tiger, Jack Evans and Rocky Romero when Daniels pinned the AAA Cruiserweight Champion, Extreme Tiger.

On June 6, at Triplemanía XVIII, Daniels lost to Jack Evans in a four-way elimination match for the Cruiserweight Championship, along with Extreme Tiger and Nosawa.

Return to TNA

Fortune (2011–2012)

Covell returned to TNA at the January 31, 2011, taping of Xplosion, as Suicide. Still contracted to Ring of Honor, he received the promotion's blessing for the return, provided he not work as Christopher Daniels until the contract expired. On February 10, Suicide returned to Impact!, losing a three–way X Division number one contender's tournament match, also involving Brian Kendrick, to Robbie E.

On March 16, at the tapings of the March 31 Impact!, Covell made his TNA return under the Christopher Daniels character, saving Fortune members James Storm, Kazarian and Robert Roode from a four–on–three beatdown inside a steel cage at the hands of Immortal, in the process establishing himself as a face. In his return Daniels targeted especially Bully Ray, who had sidelined Fortune leader A.J. Styles with an injury two weeks earlier. On the April 7 Impact!, Daniels proclaimed his loyalty to Styles and announced that he would be taking his place alongside Kazarian, Roode and Storm in the Lethal Lockdown match at Lockdown, where they will face Immortal representatives Abyss, Bully Ray, Matt Hardy and Ric Flair. Later that same evening Daniels wrestled his TNA return match, losing to Bully Ray in a Lumberjack match, where Fortune and Immortal worked as lumberjacks, after Immortal leader Hulk Hogan interfered and hit him with a chain. Despite his return as Daniels, Covell also kept performing as Suicide and on the same April 7 Impact!, teamed with Brian Kendrick and Chris Sabin in a six-man tag team match, where they defeated Generation Me and Robbie E . Soon after this Suicide's profile was removed from TNA's roster page. On April 17 at Lockdown, Daniels and Fortune defeated Immortal in a Lethal Lockdown match. On the next Impact!, Daniels was officially named a member of Fortune. On the May 26 Impact Wrestling, Daniels and Styles defeated Bully Ray and his new partner, Tommy Dreamer, in a No Disqualification Street Fight.

On July 10 at Destination X, TNA's first ever all X Division pay-per-view, Daniels faced fellow Fortune member A.J. Styles in the main event of the evening in a losing effort. During the event Daniels also made a brief appearance as Curry Man, in a segment where Eric Young was looking for a tag team partner to face Generation Me. After weeks of Daniels asking for a rematch, Styles finally granted him one on the September 1 Impact Wrestling, which Daniels won. After the match, Daniels refused to shake hands with Styles. On the September 22 episode, Daniels refused to return the favor and give Styles a rematch, which led to them brawling. When they were separated by Kazarian, Daniels kicked Styles in the groin, completing his heel turn and signifying his departure from Fortune. At Daniels' request, he faced Styles at Bound for Glory on October 16 in an "I Quit" match; Daniels lost the match after being threatened with a screwdriver, but continued the feud by attacking Styles after the match.

On the October 27 Impact Wrestling, Daniels lost to Rob Van Dam by disqualification after hitting him with a toolbox. On the November 10 Impact Wrestling, Daniels was defeated by A.J. Styles, after Van Dam prevented Daniels from using a screwdriver. On November 13 at Turning Point, Daniels lost to Van Dam in a No Disqualification match. In retaliation, Daniels interfered and cost Van Dam his match for the TNA Television Championship on the December 1 Impact Wrestling. This led to a singles match on December 11 at Final Resolution on December 11, where Van Dam was victorious.

Bad Influence (2012–2014)

Daniels then returned to his rivalry with A.J. Styles, managing to convince Kazarian to turn on him on the January 5, 2012 Impact Wrestling. On the February 9 Impact Wrestling, Daniels defeated Styles in a singles match with help from Kazarian, who was now showing signs that Daniels was holding something over his head and had forced him to turn on Styles against his will. On March 18 at Victory Road, Daniels and Kazarian were defeated in a tag team match by Styles and Mr. Anderson. The rivalry continued on April 15 at Lockdown, where the two duos were on opposing teams in the annual Lethal Lockdown match. Styles' and Anderson's team, led by Garett Bischoff, ended up defeating Daniels' and Kazarian's team, led by Eric Bischoff.

During Styles' absence from Impact Wrestling, Daniels and Kazarian set their sights on the TNA World Tag Team Championship, attacking champions Magnus and Samoa Joe on the April 26 episode. On the May 10 Impact Wrestling, Kazarian revealed that he originally aligned himself with Daniels to keep him from revealing Styles' secret, but changed his mind after learning what the secret was. Daniels then revealed the secret, a series of photographs insinuating a relationship between Styles and TNA president Dixie Carter. Three days later at Sacrifice, Daniels and Kazarian defeated Magnus and Samoa Joe to win the TNA World Tag Team Championship for the first time. Later in the event, Daniels and Kazarian cost A.J. Styles his match with Kurt Angle, who afterwards turned on the two, saving Styles from a beatdown. On May 31, Daniels main evented a live episode of Impact Wrestling, losing to A.J. Styles in a singles grudge match. After the match, Daniels and Kazarian attacked both Styles and Angle, who attempted to make the save, before rolling an audio of a phone conversation to prove an affair between Styles and Carter. The tape was abruptly cut short by Carter ending the show. On June 10 at Slammiversary, Daniels and Kazarian lost the TNA World Tag Team Championship to Styles and Angle. On the next Impact Wrestling, Daniels entered the 2012 Bound for Glory Series, taking part in the opening gauntlet match, from which he eliminated both Styles and Angle, before being eliminated himself by James Storm.

On the June 21 Impact Wrestling, Styles and Carter proved that Daniels and Kazarian had been lying about their relationship by producing a pregnant woman named Claire, whom they had been helping overcome her addictions. The following week, Kazarian teased dissension with Daniels, claiming that he had been lied to. However, in the main event of the evening, Kazarian revealed that he was still on Daniels' side, when the two defeated Styles and Angle, after Kazarian hit Styles with a steel chair, to regain the TNA World Tag Team Championship. Following the win, Daniels admitted that Styles and Carter had told the truth about Claire, but claimed that they had left out the part about Styles being the father of her unborn baby. On July 8 at Destination X, Daniels was defeated by Styles in a Last Man Standing match. On the August 8 Impact Wrestling, Daniels and Kazarian, billing themselves as "The World Tag Team Champions of the World", made their first televised defense of the TNA World Tag Team Championship, defeating Devon and Garett Bischoff. Daniels' participation in the 2012 Bound for Glory Series ended on the following Impact Wrestling with a loss against A.J. Styles, leaving him outside a spot in the semifinals. As a result of the win, Styles also earned a paternity test, which revealed that Claire was not pregnant at all. The storyline ended with Claire, through her attorney, revealing Daniels' and Kazarian's plot to blackmail Styles with her fake pregnancy. On September 6 as part of the first "Championship Thursday", Daniels and Kazarian successfully defended the TNA World Tag Team Championship against Chavo Guerrero, Jr. and Hernandez. Three days later at No Surrender, Daniels and Kazarian made another successful title defense against previous champions, A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle. On October 14 at Bound for Glory, Daniels and Kazarian lost the TNA World Tag Team Championship to Chavo Guerrero, Jr. and Hernandez in a three-way match, which also included A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle. Daniels and Kazarian received their rematch on November 11 at Turning Point, but were again defeated by Guerrero and Hernandez.

On December 9 at Final Resolution, Daniels defeated A.J. Styles in what was billed as their "final match", after hitting Styles with his own Styles Clash finisher. Following this, Daniels and Kazarian dubbed their tag team Bad Influence, and Daniels tweaked his "Fallen Angel" character into that of a vice-ridden heel to fit his new "Ring General" nickname for the team's new name. Bad Influence then began a rivalry with James Storm after he defeated Kazarian at Final Resolution, and again on the January 3, 2013 Impact Wrestling. On January 13 at Genesis, Daniels defeated Storm in a number one contenders match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Daniels received his title shot on the January 24 Impact Wrestling, but was defeated by defending champion Jeff Hardy. On March 10 at Lockdown, Bad Influence unsuccessfully challenged Austin Aries and Bobby Roode for the TNA World Tag Team Championship in a three-way match, also involving Chavo Guerrero, Jr. and Hernandez. In April, Daniels and Kazarian began teasing a Fortune reunion to battle the Aces & Eights stable, however, this plan was foiled by A.J. Styles and Bobby Roode both turning down offers to join them. Bad Influence faced Austin Aries and Bobby Roode in a number one contenders match on the May 9 Impact Wrestling, however, the match ended in a no contest after special guest referee James Storm superkicked Daniels and Aries and walked out on the match. On June 2 at Slammiversary XI, Bad Influence failed to capture the TNA World Tag Team Championship from Chavo Guerrero, Jr. and Hernandez in an fatal four-way elimination match, which also included Austin Aries and Bobby Roode and was won by Gunner and James Storm. On the June 13 Impact Wrestling, Daniels and Kazarian defeated Gunner and Storm in a non-title match to qualify for the 2013 Bound for Glory Series. The following week, Daniels defeated Hernandez in his first BFG series match via pinfall to earn seven points in the tournament. On the August 8 Impact Wrestling, Daniels and Kazarian faced off in a BFG series match. Despite teasing tension earlier in the night, they both intentionally got counted out to gain two points each. Afterward, they allied with Bobby Roode, in hopes it would help one of them win the tournament.

At Bound for Glory, Bad Influence were defeated by Eric Young and Joseph Park in a Gauntlet match. After being eliminated, both attacked Park and made him bleed. The same night, Abyss appeared and attacked Bad Influence. On December 12, 2013, Bad Influence were defeated by Parks and Eric Young when Young made Park bleed. On December 26, 2013, Bad Influence were defeated again by Park in a Monster's Ball match. On March 2, 2014, Bad Influence were part of a group of TNA wrestlers that took part in Wrestle-1's Kaisen: Outbreak event in Tokyo, Japan, defeating Junior Stars (Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka) in a tag team match. On April 23, 2014, Daniels announced his departure from TNA.

Return to the independent circuit (2013–present)

While Bad Influence were in TNA, they appeared in other promotions. On January 24, 2014, Bad Influences appeared at Big Time Wrestling's Battle Royal, where they defeated The Ballard Brothers (Shane & Shannon). On April 5, Bad Influences appeared in two events. First, they defeated The Bravado Brothers (Harlem Bravado & Lancelot Bravado) at Dragon Gate USA's Mercury Rising. After, they defeated The Irish Airborne (Dave Crist & Jake Crist) at WrestleCon. On June 6, 2014, Bad Influence made their debuts in Tommy Dreamer's House of Hardcore, defeating Outlaw Inc. (Eddie Kingston and Homicide).On June 7, 2014, Bad Influence returned to House of Hardcore at HOH 5, defeating Petey Williams and Tony Nese. on July 4, 2014 at a WrestleCentre Voltage TV taping, Daniels defeated Titus to win the Vacant IFWA Heavyweight Championship. Daniels went on to hold the title for over year, defeating Lance Storm, AJ Styles, JP Simms, Riddick Stone, and Samoa Joe. He would lose the IFWA Title on July 3, 2015 to Simms, who was a replacement for an injured Julien Young. In November and December 2015, The Addiction took part in New Japan Pro Wrestling's 2015 World Tag League, where they finished with a record of three wins and three losses, failing to advance from their block.

On March 20, 2017 at WCPW Bulletproof: Championship Showdown Daniels successfully defended the ROH Championship against Adam Cole and Zack Sabre Jr. in a triple threat match. On March 21, 2017 at WCPW Pro Wrestling World Cup Daniels successfully defended the ROH Championship against El Ligero in a singles match.

Third return to ROH (2014–2019)

On May 17, 2014, Daniels made an appearance at War of the Worlds, announcing his return to ROH at Best in the World 2014 on June 22. Frankie Kazarian subsequently joined the company as well, with the duo continuing to team under the name of The Addiction.

At Supercard of Honor IX Daniels was defeated by Roderick Strong. On April 4, 2015, during the Ring of Honor Wrestling tapings, Daniels and Kazarian defeated reDRagon (Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish) to become ROH World Tag Team Champions. It was also revealed that fellow TNA alum Chris Sabin had joined Daniels and Kazarian to form a new stable called KRD. Daniels and Kazarian held the ROH Tag Team Championships until All Star Extravaganza VII on September 18, 2015, when they were defeated by The Kingdom in a match also involving The Young Bucks. At Field of Honor Daniels was defeated by Adam Cole.

At Survival of the Fittest Daniels defeated Mark Briscoe, Hanson and Kenny King in a Survival of the Fittest tournament match. The next night Daniels was involved in the Survival of the Fittest tournament final where the winner faces the ROH World Championship where he eliminated ACH after Daniels was eliminated by Jay Briscoe. At ROH 14th Anniversary Show Daniels was defeated by Alex Shelley. On May 9, 2016, at War of the Worlds, The Addiction defeated War Machine to win the ROH World Tag Team Championship for the second time. On September 30 at All Star Extravaganza VIII, The Addiction lost the ROH World Tag Team Championship to The Young Bucks in a three-way ladder match, which also included The Motor City Machine Guns.

In early 2017, Daniels began feuding with Bullet Club, turning face in the process. On January 14, 2017, Daniels defeated Jay Briscoe in the finals of the Decade of Excellence tournament to become the number one contender for the ROH World Championship at the 15th Anniversary Show. On February 11, Kazarian turned on Daniels, joined Bullet Club and disbanded The Addiction. On March 10 at ROH's 15th Anniversary Show, Daniels defeated Adam Cole with help from Frankie Kazarian, whose heel turn was actually a ruse to dupe Cole, to become ROH World Champion for the first time.The victory made Daniels the fourth Triple Crown Champion in ROH. On April 1, at Supercard of Honor XI Daniels defeated Dalton Castle for the ROH World Championship, after the match Daniels was attacked by Cody. On May 10 at ROH/NJPW War of the Worlds Daniels retained the ROH World Championship against Jay Lethal and Cody. On June 23 at Best in the World, he lost the title to Cody.

On March 9, 2018, at the ROH 16th Anniversary Show, SoCal Uncensored defeated The Young Bucks to win the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship. As a result of the win, Daniels became the first ROH Grand Slam champion in company history. At War of the Worlds: Lowell, they lost the Six-Man Tag Team Title to The Kingdom. The day after Final Batte, SoCal Uncensored left ROH.

On the first Ring of Honor Wrestling episode of 2019, Daniels was shown being offered a new contract with ROH before being attacked by Shane Taylor, who ultimately ripped up the contract.

México (2018)

On August 4, 2018, in the promotion Pura Raza Daniels unsuccessfully challenged Hechicero of Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre for the NWA World Historic Light Heavyweight Champion.

All Elite Wrestling (2019–present)

In January 2019 it was revealed that Daniels, alongside Sky and Kazarian, would be one of the first signees to All Elite Wrestling, a new wrestling promotion started by wrestlers Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks. It was later revealed on Being the Elite that Daniels will also serve as head of Talent Relations for AEW. At AEW's inaugural pay-per-view event Double or Nothing on May 25, SoCal Uncensored defeated Strong Hearts (Cima, T-Hawk, and El Lindaman). The following month at Fyter Fest, Daniels faced Cima in a losing effort. SoCal Uncensored then went onto defeat the Jurassic Express (Jungle Boy, Luchasaurus and Marko Stunt) at All Out on August 31.

He appeared in the video game TNA Impact! as Christopher Daniels and Curry Man as a downloadable character.

Covell appeared in two episodes of Distraction as Curry Man, with fellow wrestlers Frankie Kazarian and Samoa Joe. He made a Chef Boyardee commercial with Jeff and Matt Hardy and a guest appearance on Numb3rs with mixed martial artist Tito Ortiz.

He competed on the January 18, 2008, episode of Merv Griffin's Crosswords, coming in at the beginning of the second round as a "Spoiler". He made it to the front row once, temporarily winning a trip to Reno, Nevada, but ended the show back as a Spoiler, therefore leaving with only the consolation prize.

He appeared on the NBC late night talk show Later circa 1998 in the episode with Bret Hart. He would be introduced as "Fallen Angel", to help Hart demonstrate wrestling moves, including taking a clothesline from host Rita Sever.

He appears uncredited in the 1999 documentary film, Beyond the Mat.

He appeared wearing part of his Curryman outfit in episode 5 Debbie Does Something of the Netflix original series GLOW with fellow wrestler Frankie Kazarian

He also appeared uncredited in the 2013 parody film, 30 Nights of Paranormal Activity with the Devil Inside the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo as Bane.

Covell appeared in the episode "Deadpool Vs. The Punisher" of the stop-motion animated web series Marvel Superheroes: What the--?! as the Punisher.

Covell married his college sweetheart, a substitute teacher named Lisa, in June 1993. They have two children.

Covell earned a degree in theater from Methodist College in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Covell is a comic book fan, having read Marvel Comics since he was a child, and his favorite character is Wolverine. He trades comics with other wrestlers, including Samoa Joe, Alex Shelley, and Homicide. Covell has also co-written a comic book based on his wrestling persona which was published by Aw Yeah Comics on April 23, 2014.

• All Action Wrestling
  • AAW Championship (1 time)
• All Pro Wrestling
  • APW Worldwide Internet Championship (1 time)
  • King of the Indies (2000)
• Ballpark Brawl
  • Natural Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Bar Wrestling
  • Trios Tournament (2019) - with Frankie Kazarian & Scorpio Sky
• DDT Pro-Wrestling
  • Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship (1 time) – with Frankie Kazarian
• East Coast Wrestling Association
  • ECWA Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
  • Super 8 Tournament (2000, 2004)
  • ECWA Hall of Fame (Class of 2001)
• Empire Wrestling Federation
  • EWF Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Frontier Wrestling Alliance
  • FWA British Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• German Stampede Wrestling
  • Battlefield (2008)
• Impact Championship Wrestling
  • ICW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Xavier
  • Impact Cup (2010) – with Xavier
• Michinoku Pro Wrestling
  • British Commonwealth Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
  • Futaritabi Tag Team League (2002) – with Super Rice Boy
• Midwest Championship Wrestling
  • MCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Reign
• New Japan Pro Wrestling
  • IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with American Dragon
• NWA Florida
  • NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• NWA Midwest
  • NWA Midwest Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Kevin Quinn
• New Age Wrestling Federation
  • CT Cup (1 time)
• Premier Wrestling Federation
  • PWF United States Championship (1 time)
  • 2nd Shinya Hashimoto Legacy Cup (2002)
• Pro-Pain Pro Wrestling
  • 3PW World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI Tag Team of the Year (2006)
  • PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year (2017)
  • PWI ranked him #15 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the year in the PWI 500 in 2006
• Pro Wrestling Zero1-Max
  • Zero1-Max United States Openweight Championship (1 time)
• Remix Pro Wrestling
  • Remix Pro Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• Ring of Honor
  • ROH World Championship (1 time)
  • ROH World Television Championship (1 time)
  • ROH World Tag Team Championship (Inaugural, 4 times) – with Donovan Morgan (1),Matt Sydal (1), and Frankie Kazarian (2)
  • ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Scorpio Sky and Frankie Kazarian
  • ROH Decade of Excellence Tournament (2017)
  • ROH Tag Team Championship Tournament (2002) – with Donovan Morgan
  • ROH Round Robin Challenge II
  • Fourth Triple Crown Champion
  • First Grand Slam Champion
• SoCal Uncensored
  • Match of the Year (2000)
  • Wrestler of the Year (2000)
• Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
  • TNA X Division Championship (4 times)
  • TNA World Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Kazarian
  • NWA World Tag Team Championship (6 times) – with Low Ki and Elix Skipper as Triple X (3), James Storm (1) and A.J. Styles (2)
  • Feast or Fired (2007 –Pink Slip)
  • Feast or Fired (2008 – Pink Slip)
  • TNA World Cup of Wrestling (2013) – with James Storm, Kazarian, Kenny King and Mickie James
  • World X Cup (2004) – with Jerry Lynn, Chris Sabin, and Elix Skipper
  • Feud of the Year (2005)
  • Match of the Year (2004)
  • Match of the Year (2006)
  • Tag Team of the Year (2006)
• Ultimate Pro Wrestling
  • UPW Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
• Windy City Pro Wrestling
  • WCPW League Championship (1 time)
  • WCPW Lightweight Championship (1 time)
  • WCPW Middleweight Championship (1 time)
  • WCPW Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Kevin Quinn (1), Mike Anthony (1)
• World Power Wrestling
  • WPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• World Wrestling Council
  • WWC World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Kevin Quinn
• WrestleCentre
  • IFWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
• WrestleCrap
  • Gooker Award (2012) – "Claire Lynch"feud with Kazarian against AJ Styles
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
  • Tag Team of the Year (2012)
  • Worst Worked Match of the Year (2006)