Kevin Thorn

Kevin Matthew Fertig (born January 17, 1977) is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for working with WWE under the ring names Mordecai and Kevin Thorn.

Fertig made his professional wrestling debut in 2000, and quickly began working for the Memphis Championship Wrestling promotion in his hometown, under the ring name Seven. There he won the Hardcore, Southern Tag Team and Southern Heavyweight Championships. He signed a contract with WWE in April 2002, and was assigned to their developmental territory, Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). He competed in OVW for two years, winning the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship with Travis Bane, before being called up to the SmackDown brand as Mordecai, a religious zealot. The character only lasted a few months, and he returned to OVW before being released in mid-2005.

He competed on the independent circuit for the next year, before returning to WWE to wrestle on its ECW brand as Kevin Thorn, a vampire character. He gained Ariel as a valet, and later joined the New Breed faction in early 2007. After Ariel was released in mid-2007, Thorn continued to wrestle on ECW, but was sent to OVW in late 2007, after undergoing an image change. He wrestled in both OVW and WWE's other developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling, until January 2009, when he was released from his contract. He then returned to the independent circuit, and also wrestled in Europe as Seven Thorn.

Fertig first got involved in professional wrestling by working out with wrestler Sid Vicious in Gold's Gym in Memphis. Beginning his career in 2000, Fertig quickly began wrestling as Seven in Memphis Championship Wrestling and some other independent promotions. Seven was a gimmick based on the seven deadly sins. He won the MCW Southern Heavyweight Championship on July 7, 2001. He also won the MCW Southern Tag Team Championship with Thrash, and held the MCW Hardcore Championship.

In April 2002, Fertig signed a developmental deal with World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and was assigned to their development territory Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), where he continued to use the Seven gimmick. After wrestling sporadically in OVW throughout 2002 and 2003, against wrestlers including Chris Cage and Johnny Jeter, he joined the Disciples of Synn stable. Along with stable-mate Travis Bane, he won the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship on March 5, 2003, by defeating Lance Cade and René Duprée. After holding the championship for just over a month, they were forced to vacate it on April 10, when Bane suffered an injury. In late 2003 and early 2004, Seven and Bane began competing in dark matches prior to the Raw television show, using their real names of Kevin Fertig and Travis Tomko respectively.

In 2004, Fertig pitched the idea of a religious character named Mordecai to Vince McMahon. In late April 2004, Fertig was called up to the SmackDown! brand with vignettes playing on the show announcing his new character, Mordecai, a religious Zealot-type character, which was partially based on his previous Seven gimmick. During numerous promos, Mordecai claimed to be on a crusade to rid the world of sin. He consistently wore white and had blonde hair and a beard as a sign of his purity. Mordecai debuted in-ring for the SmackDown! brand on May 16, 2004, during the Judgment Day pay-per-view, defeating Scotty 2 Hotty. In later appearances, Mordecai condemned the audience for their sins, and led them in prayer. At The Great American Bash, Mordecai defeated Hardcore Holly. On the July 1 episode of Smackdown, Mordecai lost to Rey Mysterio. In early July, however, the gimmick was dropped and Fertig was sent back to OVW for more training.

Fertig's return to OVW was also due to his involvement in a bar fight, and subsequent impending lawsuits meant that WWE decided to take Fertig off television. Fertig returned to OVW, wrestling under a mask as Vengeance, and competed only sporadically against wrestlers including Elijah Burke, Mark Henry, Johnny Jeter, and Matt Cappotelli. He was soon released in July 2005.

Following his WWE release, Fertig began using the Mordecai name again while working on the independent circuit. He wrestled for Memphis Wrestling, where he won the Southern Title in March 2005. He went on to retain the championship in a match against Garrison Cade on April 16. He also worked for UCW, and wrestled against competitors including Marty Jannetty and Shayne Maddox.