Montel Vontavious Porter

Hassan Hamin Assad (born Alvin Antonio Burke Jr.; October 28, 1973) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs under the ring name MVP (standing for Montel Vontavious Porter) and is also the manager of Omos. He is also known for his tenures in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). Between the three promotions, he is a two-time WWE United States Champion, one-time WWE Tag Team Champion (with Matt Hardy), and was the inaugural IWGP Intercontinental Champion. He was trained by Soulman Alex G and Norman Smiley. Following the completion of his training, he began wrestling for numerous independent promotions, including a stint in TNA. During his time in these promotions, he won various championships in singles competition. He signed with WWE in 2005 and was assigned to Deep South Wrestling (DSW), one of the company's developmental territories. After being promoted to the SmackDown brand, he made his WWE wrestling debut in October 2006. Following his departure from WWE in 2010, he joined New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in February 2011. He spent the next two years with the promotion, then left NJPW in 2013. Since then, he has returned to the independent circuit and made appearances in Impact Wrestling and Ring of Honor (ROH). He returned to WWE in January 2020. Early life Hassan Hamin Assad was born Alvin Antonio Burke Jr. in the Liberty City neighborhood of Miami, Florida, on October 28, 1973. He grew up in Opa-locka, Florida. His father was a police officer. He joined a gang when he was 12, describing it as a "graffiti gang" which later turned into a street gang. He spent six months in a juvenile detention center after a robbery. He later completed nine and a half years of an 18.5-year prison sentence for armed robbery and kidnapping, which he started at the age of 16. He converted to Islam while in prison and changed his name, though he is now an atheist. Due to his criminal record, his visits to other countries on international tours are subject to permits and background checks for recent behavior. Unrelated to his record, Assad also doesn't attend WWE's shows in Saudi Arabia, as his status as a former Muslim is considered a punishable offense in the Kingdom. Professional wrestling career