Alex Koslov

3.1. Early career (2003-2006)

Alex Sherman began his professional wrestling journey training under the tutelage of Jesse Hernandez. He made his official debut on May 23, 2003, in Covina, California, wrestling under the name "Alex Pincheck." During his initial years, from 2003 to 2006, Sherman primarily competed on the West Coast of the United States. He made appearances for various independent promotions, including Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG), Empire Wrestling Federation (EWF), and local groups affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). Starting in 2005, he expanded his reach, working in Mexico and making appearances across the United States. On June 11, 2006, Koslov achieved his first championship by winning the NWA British Commonwealth Heavyweight Championship from Karl Anderson in Santa Monica, California. However, his reign was short-lived, as he lost the title to Justin White less than a month later.

In 2008, Koslov participated in the annual ECWA Super 8 tournament, a platform for young "high flyers." He notably defeated Shannon Moore in the first round, considered an upset, and then advanced by defeating Chase del Monte in the second round before losing to Aden Chambers in the finals. Despite not winning the tournament, Koslov's performance garnered positive reviews, and he was credited with "stealing the show." Working as a villain, he successfully riled up the crowd to the extent that one audience member reportedly threatened him with a chair.

3.2. Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (2006-2009)

In August 2006, Alex Koslov embarked on a significant phase of his career by joining Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL), a prominent lucha libre promotion in Mexico. He debuted as a villain, or "Rudo," and notably became the first Russian wrestler to compete in Arena Coliseo in its 70-year history. Shortly after signing with CMLL, Koslov participated in the annual Leyenda de Plata tournament but was eliminated by Místico in the quarter-finals. He also entered the 2006 Leyenda de Azul tournament, where he defeated Hirooki Goto in the first round before falling to Dr. Wagner Jr. in the second. In November 2006, Koslov won an 8-man torneo cibernetico to earn a shot at the CMLL World Middleweight Championship, though he was unsuccessful in defeating the reigning champion, Averno. Over the next year, Koslov consistently worked in mid-card to semi-main event matches, primarily in the common six-man tag team matches. In May 2007, he made an unsuccessful challenge for the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship against Atlantis.

By mid-2007, Koslov's character transitioned into a crowd favorite, or "technico." He then formed a group called High Society alongside Marco Corleone, Rey Bucanero, and Shocker, portraying themselves as metrosexuals. However, this stable saw limited success and rarely teamed together by early 2008, eventually dissolving when Rey Bucanero rejoined Los Guerreros de Atlantida. Throughout 2008, Koslov continued to work mid-card matches, with occasional, unsuccessful title challenges, but rarely engaged in significant storylines.

Behind the scenes, Koslov grew dissatisfied with the direction of CMLL. He felt a decline in his match appearances and believed he was being used more as a "jobber," which led to a loss of passion and boredom with the repetitive nature of his work. This discontent prompted him to seek opportunities elsewhere, despite his popularity within CMLL. When he signed with rival promotion AAA, he even spent time traveling abroad to avoid potential backlash from fans, and the media in Mexico sensationally reported his move as a "defection."

3.3. Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2008)

In 2008, Alex Koslov had a brief but notable stint with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), participating in the 2008 World X Cup Tournament held in June and July. He was a member of Team International, alongside Canadian Tyson Dux, Brit Doug Williams, and Iranian American Daivari. Prior to the main tournament, Koslov made a couple of "pre-tournament" appearances, securing a victory over Curry Man but losing to Team USA captain Kaz.

In the tournament itself, Koslov faced and lost to fellow CMLL wrestler Rey Bucanero, who was representing Team Mexico. During the finals, held at the Victory Road Pay-Per-View event, Koslov participated in a four-team triple elimination battle royal. He managed to eliminate another CMLL colleague, Último Guerrero, and Chris Sabin, before being eliminated by Masato Yoshino. Ultimately, Team International finished last in the tournament with only three points.

3.4. Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (2008-2010)

After two years working with CMLL on a handshake agreement, Alex Koslov was approached by the rival promotion AAA with a contract offer. Koslov stated that he accepted the deal due to his dissatisfaction with CMLL's creative direction, feeling mentally "dying" and "bored" by the repetitiveness of his work. His move to AAA was kept a secret, with Koslov covering his face and staying out of sight to prevent the surprise from being spoiled before his debut.

His unexpected debut on October 10, 2008, at an AAA television taping in Querétaro, Mexico, created significant waves in the wrestling world. It became front-page news in Mexican newspapers and wrestling magazines, with some drawing comparisons to the Monday Night Wars in the United States. Following his debut, Koslov helped establish the stable "D-Generation Mex" alongside Sean Waltman and Rocky Romero. This group was a direct parody of the popular WWE stable D-Generation X.

On March 20, 2009, Koslov participated in a "Dome of Death" cage match involving thirteen wrestlers, which served as a qualifier for the inaugural AAA Cruiserweight Championship tournament. He successfully qualified and advanced to the tournament. In the first round on April 17, 2009, Koslov defeated his D-Generation Mex stablemate, Rocky Romero, with the two sharing a hug post-match, indicating no animosity. He then advanced to the semi-final, where he defeated Nicho el Millonario. On May 21, Koslov made history by defeating Extreme Tiger and Alan Stone to become the first-ever AAA Cruiserweight Champion. However, his initial reign was brief, lasting only 23 days, as he lost the title back to Extreme Tiger at Triplemania XVII on June 13, 2009.

Following this title loss, Koslov turned back into a "Rudo," attacking his D-Generation Mex partners after a match. On August 21, 2009, he regained the Cruiserweight Championship, securing his second reign, by winning a five-way elimination match at the 2009 Verano de Escándalo, defeating Extreme Tiger, Jack Evans, Teddy Hart, and Rocky Romero. Shortly after, on August 30, Koslov lost a six-man steel cage match, which resulted in his storyline expulsion from AAA. He confirmed his departure from the company on his Twitter page, and AAA subsequently vacated his Cruiserweight Championship.

Despite his departure, Koslov made a dramatic return. On September 26, 2009, at Heroes Inmortales III, Konnan storyline-kidnapped AAA owner Dorian Roldán. During an October 17 taping of AAA's television show, Konnan offered to release Roldán if his father, Joaquín Roldán, reinstated Alex Koslov. Later that evening, during a match, a masked man intervened and attacked Marco Corleone. The man was unmasked to reveal Koslov, whom Konnan then protected by threatening Dorian. After his reinstatement, Koslov joined Konnan's La Legión Extranjera. At Rey de Reyes in 2010, he unsuccessfully challenged Extreme Tiger for the AAA Cruiserweight Championship once more.

On June 2, 2010, Koslov teamed with fellow La Legión Extranjera member Christina Von Eerie to defeat Aero Star and Faby Apache, winning the AAA World Mixed Tag Team Championship. Their reign concluded on October 1 at Héroes Inmortales IV, where they lost the titles to Faby Apache and Pimpinela Escarlata. Following this match, Koslov announced that Héroes Inmortales IV had been his final night with AAA, as he was departing to join WWE.

3.5. Ring of Honor (2009, 2010, 2013)

Alex Koslov made several appearances for Ring of Honor (ROH) throughout his career. In April 2009, during ROH events in Houston, Texas, he wrestled in two singles matches: losing to Bryan Danielson at Supercard of Honor IV on April 3, and then to Roderick Strong at the Take No Prisoners pay-per-view tapings the following day.

He returned to ROH in December 2009, participating in a six-man tag team match on the 18th, where he teamed with Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards but lost to The Briscoe Brothers and Rocky Romero. The next day, at Final Battle 2009, ROH's first live pay-per-view, Koslov faced and lost to Rocky Romero in a singles match. Due to controversy surrounding the Final Battle 2009 match, a rematch was booked for March 26, 2010, in Phoenix, Arizona, which Koslov won.

On March 2, 2013, Koslov and Rocky Romero, now officially functioning as a tag team called the Forever Hooligans, returned to ROH for the ROH 11th Anniversary Show. They were defeated by The American Wolves (Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards). The very next day, they challenged reDRagon (Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly) for the ROH World Tag Team Championship but were unsuccessful. However, the Forever Hooligans found success on July 27, when they returned to ROH and defeated reDRagon in a rematch to become the new ROH World Tag Team Champions. Their title reign was short-lived, as they lost the championship to The American Wolves in their first defense on August 3. On September 20, at Death Before Dishonor XI, Koslov and Romero successfully defended their IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship against The American Wolves. The following day, at the tapings for Ring of Honor Wrestling, they again unsuccessfully challenged reDRagon for the ROH World Tag Team Championship in a three-way match that also included C&C Wrestle Factory (Caprice Coleman and Cedric Alexander).

3.6. World Wrestling Entertainment / WWE (2010-2012)

On the August 27, 2010, episode of World Wrestling Entertainment's SmackDown, Alex Koslov made an appearance under the ring name Cárlos Sanchez, competing in a match against Alberto Del Rio. Despite being used in a "jobber" role (designed to lose), his prior recognition in other promotions led to a positive crowd reaction. It was subsequently reported that Koslov had signed a developmental contract with WWE and would report to their developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW), in October 2010, once his contract with AAA expired.

Sherman, wrestling under his real name initially, made his FCW debut on November 20, 2010, at a house show in Punta Gorda, Florida, in a losing effort against Bo Rotundo. His televised debut for FCW occurred on November 28, where he wrestled under the new ring name Peter Orlov. In that match, he and AJ were defeated by Lucky Cannon and Naomi. Despite his appearances in televised FCW shows, Sherman did not secure a promotion to the main WWE roster. Consequently, on February 3, 2012, it was reported that Sherman had been released from his FCW contract.

3.7. Independent Circuit and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (2012-2015)

Following his release from WWE in February 2012, Alex Sherman quickly returned to the independent circuit, once again using his Alex Koslov ring name. His first post-WWE appearance was on March 4, 2012, where he defeated SoCal Crazy at an Empire Wrestling Federation event in Covina, California. On March 17, Koslov also made a return to Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG), where he lost to Kyle O'Reilly.

In April 2012, Koslov's career took a significant turn when he was announced as a participant in New Japan Pro-Wrestling's (NJPW) prestigious 2012 Best of the Super Juniors tournament. The tournament ran from May 27 to June 9, and Koslov performed commendably, winning five of his eight matches in the round-robin stage. However, a loss to Low Ki in his final match prevented him from narrowly advancing to the semifinals.

Koslov returned to New Japan on July 7, 2012, and this time, he joined the promotion's prominent villainous stable, Chaos. As a member of Chaos, he reunited with his former AAA partner, Rocky Romero, and together they formed the popular tag team known as the "Forever Hooligans". During his time in Chaos, Koslov was part of a roster that included prominent wrestlers such as its leader Shinsuke Nakamura, Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, and Toru Yano. On July 22, the Forever Hooligans achieved a major milestone by defeating Jyushin Thunder Liger and Tiger Mask to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. They successfully defended their titles on August 26 at a Sacramento Wrestling Federation (SWF) event in Gridley, California, against A.J. Kirsch and Alex Shelley. Their second successful defense came on October 8 at King of Pro-Wrestling, where they defeated the Time Splitters (Alex Shelley and Kushida).

On October 21, 2012, Forever Hooligans entered the 2012 Super Jr. Tag Tournament, defeating Jyushin Thunder Liger and Tiger Mask in their first-round match. However, their tournament run ended in the semifinals on November 2, where they were eliminated by Apollo 55 (Prince Devitt and Ryusuke Taguchi). Their IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship reign concluded on November 11 at Power Struggle, when they lost the titles to the Super Jr. Tag Tournament winners, the Time Splitters, after a 112-day reign.

Koslov returned to New Japan in early 2013, and on February 10 at The New Beginning, he and Romero unsuccessfully challenged the Time Splitters for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. Despite this setback, on May 3 at Wrestling Dontaku 2013, the Forever Hooligans regained the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship from the Time Splitters, marking their second reign. From late May to early June, Koslov participated in the 2013 Best of the Super Juniors. He secured four wins out of eight matches, but a loss to Brian Kendrick in his final round-robin match on June 6 cost him a spot in the semifinals.

The Forever Hooligans made their first successful defense of their second IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship reign on June 22 at Dominion 6.22 in a rematch against the Time Splitters. They then became involved in Chaos's rivalry with the Suzuki-gun stable, leading to their second successful title defense on July 20 against Taichi and Taka Michinoku. However, they lost the title to Taichi and Michinoku in a rematch on October 14 at King of Pro-Wrestling.

In the first half of 2014, the Forever Hooligans received several opportunities to reclaim the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, which was then held by The Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson). However, they were defeated in each attempt, including a three-way match on May 10 at Global Wars-a special event co-produced by NJPW and ROH in Toronto-which also involved the Time Splitters. Later that month, Koslov was scheduled to compete in the 2014 Best of the Super Juniors, but he was forced to withdraw from the tournament after dislocating his left shoulder in his very first match.

On January 4, 2015, at Wrestle Kingdom 9 in Tokyo Dome, the Forever Hooligans challenged for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship in a four-way match, which also included the defending champions reDRagon, the Time Splitters, and The Young Bucks. They were ultimately defeated by reDRagon. The day after, following a non-title loss to reDRagon, Koslov took a victory lap around the ring and publicly thanked Romero for their decade-long partnership. On January 9, Koslov officially announced that he would be taking an "indefinite sabbatical" from professional wrestling, indicating a return was not expected until 2022. Sources close to Koslov later revealed that his initial retirement was due to an internal organ disease, with medication side effects contributing to his poor health. His last match in New Japan Pro-Wrestling was confirmed to be the January 5, 2015, event at Korakuen Hall. His final wrestling match before his initial retirement occurred on January 25, 2015, when he and Romero lost to PPRay (Peter Avalon and Ray Rosas) at a co-promoted event by Alternative Wrestling Show (AWS) and Wrestling Cares Association (WCA). Following this match, Sherman stated that it was "absolutely necessary" for him to step away from professional wrestling and expressed uncertainty about a future return to the ring.

3.8. Return as Commentator and One-Night Return Match (2020-present)

After a five-year hiatus from professional wrestling, Alex Koslov made his return to New Japan Pro-Wrestling on August 7, 2020. He joined Kevin Kelly as a color commentator for the New Japan Cup USA tournament. Following this, Koslov became a regular commentator for NJPW, providing color commentary alongside Kelly for the weekly series NJPW Strong.

On October 28, 2022, Koslov briefly came out of retirement for a special one-night wrestling match during NJPW's Rumble on 44th Street event. He reunited with his long-time tag team partner, Rocky Romero, in a short-lived reunion of the Forever Hooligans. In this return match, they faced and were defeated by the team of The DKC and Kevin Knight.