Niko Vance
| Niko Vance | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Skylor Clinton |
| Born | January 15, 1999 Prescott, Arizona, United States |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Billed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Billed weight | 240 lb (110 kg) |
| Billed from | Prescott, Arizona |
| Trained by | WWE Performance Center |
| Debut | May 13, 2023 |
Skylor Clinton (born January 15, 1999) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, performing on the NXT brand under the ring name Niko Vance and is a member of The Culling stable.
Early life
Skylor Clinton was born on January 15, 1999, in Prescott, Arizona. He attended Prescott High School, where he excelled in football as a running back. During his senior year, Clinton rushed for 1,440 yards and 21 touchdowns on 188 carries and also threw four touchdown passes. His outstanding performance earned him All-Division III Honorable Mention and First Team All-Division III Section IV honors. Notably, he became the first player from Prescott to earn an FBS scholarship.[1]
University of Wyoming (2015)
Clinton joined the Wyoming Cowboys as a defensive end but did not record any playing time.[2]
Mesa Community College (2016)
Clinton would then transfer to Mesa Community College where he transitioned to wide receiver, catching 23 passes for 441 yards and four touchdowns. He notably had a three-catch, 100-yard game in the season finale, the Valley of the Sun Bowl against Lackawanna College.[3]
University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) (2017–2019)
Clinton would then spend three seasons with the UAB Blazers football team, appearing in nine games across the 2018 and 2019 seasons.[4]
Northern Arizona University (2020)
Clinton would then play as a tight end for Northern Arizona University, appearing in five games during the season.[1]
Throughout his academic career, Clinton was recognised as a Golden Eagle Scholar-Athlete Award recipient in 2021.[5]
Professional wrestling career
WWE (2023–present)
Clinton signed a trainee deal with WWE in late 2022.[6] He made his in-ring debut at an NXT live event on May 13, 2023, teaming with Kale Dixon in a losing effort against Boa and Dante Chen.[7] He made his televised debut on the September 5, 2024, episode of Main Event under his real name, facing Dante Chen in a losing effort.[8] Shortly after, he began appearing on NXT Level Up, debuting on the September 13, 2024, episode against Luca Crusifino.[9]
On November 12, 2024, Clinton, under the ring name Niko Vance, made his debut on NXT aligning himself with Shawn Spears and Brooks Jensen, establishing himself as a heel in the process.[10] Vance would have his first bout in NXT on January 21, 2025, teaming with Jensen to defeat The D'Angelo Family (Luca Crusifino and Channing "Stacks" Lorenzo).[11] On the July 22 episode of NXT, The Culling (Spears, Vance, Izzi Dame and Tatum Paxley) defeated NXT Tag Team Champions Hank and Tank (Hank Walker and Tank Ledger), Zaria, and WWE Speed Women's and NXT Women's North American Champion Sol Ruca in a eight-person mixed tag team match in The Culling's first match as a whole stable.[12]
References
- ^ a b "Skylor Clinton - Football". Northern Arizona University Athletics.
- ^ "Wyoming 2015 Quarterback Prospects". 247Sports.
- ^ "Aguirre grabs Valley of the Sun Bowl game-winner; Mesa defeats Lackawanna 48-42 in Double-Overtime". December 3, 2016 – via mesatbirdsports.com.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ "Skylor Clinton - Football". UAB Athletics.
- ^ "Full List of 2020-21 Golden Eagle Scholar-Athletes". Northern Arizona University Athletics.
- ^ Dhakite, Akash (November 11, 2022). "WWE signs 15 new athletes following tryouts during SummerSlam". www.sportskeeda.com.
- ^ "WWE NXT Live Event Results from Sebring, FL (5/13/23)". May 13, 2023.
- ^ "WWE MAIN EVENT TV RESULTS (9/4): Dante Chen vs. Stylor Clinton ends with a dual chop to the chest, Malik Blade vs. Riley Osborne with acrobatics and flips".
- ^ "411MANIA". Leighty’s NXT Level Up Review 9.13.24.
- ^ Tessier, Colin (November 13, 2024). "Niko Vance Debuts On 11/12 WWE NXT".
- ^ "Niko Vance Competes In First Televised Match On WWE NXT | Fightful News". www.fightful.com.
- ^ Moore, John (July 22, 2025). "NXT TV results (7/22): Moore's review of Oba Femi vs. Yoshiki Inamura vs. Josh Briggs for the NXT Championship, Undertaker's appearance, Ricky Saints vs. Jasper Troy, Blake Monroe vs. Wren Sinclair". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 23, 2025.