Before his All Elite Wrestling debut, Orange Cassidy's slacker-esque gimmick and lack of urgency in the ring commanded the attention of many wrestling fans and the independent wrestling industry. He seemed to come out of nowhere, but now Orange Cassidy is everywhere thanks to his electric personality.
Now with his first highly anticipated match at AEW Revolution complete, it looks as though Orange is freshly poised to becoming wrestling's next big thing.
Orange Cassidy, born James Cipperly, wrestled for over ten years within the independent wrestling circuit. Debuting in 2004, Cassidy trained with WWE's Kassius Ohno (then known as Chris Hero), CHIKARA Pro's Mike Quackenbush and Brian Wenzel. Over the years, Cassidy honed his athletic talents and gimmick in independent wrestling working for a handful of promotions, becoming a one-time A1 Zero Gravity champion, a two-time Ground Breaking Wrestling tag team champion and a two-time Independent Wrestling TV champion.
Cassidy fine-tuned his look over the years, with his signature denim jacket, blue jeans, sunglasses and a t-shirt with his likeness on the front. Both Cassidy's style and unconcerned attitude caught the interest of wrestling fans well before his signing with AEW. While other wrestlers aimed to impress audiences with eye-catching gear and impressive moves, Cassidy kept his hands in his pockets for as long as he was able, shrugging his shoulders and slowly around the ring. His popularity as a freshly picked wrestler for AEW continued to rise without ever wrestling in a match, but his star burned even brighter after his first match with PAC at AEW Revolution. Orange lost the match but has since gained much praise from wrestling pundits, fans and fellow wrestlers alike.
Cassidy has made it big in the industry in a short time, with wrestlers like Joey Janela singing his praises. Even ESPN host Katie Nolan advocated for the freshly squeezed one, citing him as her new king, a comment Cassidy approved of in his own tweets. But he's not won everyone over, most notably Jim Cornette. Cornette, a former manager in WCW and WWF, has become notable in recent months for slamming AEW on any number of criteria, most notably the size of their wrestlers. Cornette has been outspoken on Cassidy, referring to him as "My Little Dog Pockets" because of his gimmick of keeping his hands in his pockets during matches.
"I've said so many good things about Cody," Cornette said on his podcast, Jim Cornette's Drive-Thru, "but unless this is some type of angle...I can't imagine why it would be that he could say with a straight face that My Little Dog Pockets should in any way be on a wrestling program or on television or in any way is a positive thing."
While it's unlikely that Cornette will come around on Cassidy, it's certainly encouraging that influential names both in and outside of the wrestling world have started to take notice. It looks as if Orange Cassidy is destined for big things, be it in AEW or beyond.