If pro wrestling had a Craigslist, Action Andretti would be the listing under “Gently Used, Great Shape, Minor Scratches, Must Go Fast.” A Maryland-bred marvel of aerial finesse and gymnastic optimism, Tyler Reber, known to the viewing world as Action Andretti, has had a whirlwind rise from indie obscurity to being the flavor of the week in the AEW cafeteria line.
But before we get to CRU, Lio Rush, and the inevitable tag team implosion that’s likely already penciled in for next year’s All Out pre-show, let’s talk about the origin story—because every masked hero has one, even if this one looks like it was ghostwritten by a Red Bull intern.
FROM SPOT MONKEY TO SPOTLIGHT
Andretti debuted in 2019 under the banner of MCW Pro Wrestling, a promotion known more for breeding future jobbers than actual stars. Trained the old-fashioned way—by getting dumped on your neck in church basements—Andretti soon became known for his breakneck pacing and an attention span that couldn’t sit through a Randy Orton headlock.
He cut his teeth across the American northeast, flipping and bumping his way through Game Changer Wrestling, Combat Zone, and alphabet soup promotions like SWO and PPW. Somewhere in between, he snagged the 2021 Shane Shamrock Memorial Cup—named after a man who tragically never got to experience the indie wrestling merch table. It was around this time that people started whispering: “This kid might be the next big thing, or at least the next GIF.”
In 2022, he reached the apex of any young star’s indie tenure: losing repeatedly on AEW Dark.
FROM JOBBER TO JERICHO SLAYER
Then came Winter Is Coming, and suddenly Andretti wasn’t just another pixelated silhouette on Dark Elevation. On December 14, 2022, in one of the greatest upsets since David hit Goliath with a flip piledriver, Andretti pinned Chris Jericho. Yes, that Chris Jericho—Le Champion, The Demo God, and now, the man who made a career of turning future flops into main eventers… for a month.
Tony Khan, high on seltzer and chaos, handed Andretti a contract on the spot. It was a magical night—like Rocky winning a fight in reverse order: start with Apollo, end with Balboa. The crowd popped. Jericho scowled. Excalibur spat trivia. And AEW had itself a new underdog rocket to strap.
But rockets can only go so far when they’re made of bubblegum and storylines with Ricky Starks.
TEAMING WITH TOP FLIGHT: TURBULENCE GUARANTEED
Soon after, Andretti found himself teamed with Darius and Dante Martin—collectively known as Top Flight, a name derived from their preference for jumping off ropes instead of winning matches. Together, the trio formed a high-flying coalition of aerial artistry and tragic ankle injuries.
They challenged for trios gold. They lost. They wrestled Bullet Club Gold. They lost. They took on Blackpool Combat Club. Guess what? They lost again. But they did it with such breathtaking flips and synchronized athleticism that you almost forgot they were booked like extras in a Jackie Chan movie.
Despite the defeats piling up like receipts at catering, Andretti continued to shine. Well, shimmer. Okay—maybe glisten faintly in good lighting. But it was clear: he had something. Charisma? Not really. But something.
THE CRU SAGA: HEEL TURNS AND HARD LESSONS
December 2024 saw the next great pivot in the Andretti narrative. Out went the squeaky-clean babyface act. In came CRU—Crazy, Ruthless, Unhinged—a tag team with Lio Rush, the only wrestler whose career has more stops than an Amtrak schedule.
After Andretti and Rush eliminated Top Flight from the Dynamite Dozen Battle Royale, the writing was on the wall, in blood-red Comic Sans. They were turning heel. On December 14, they beat their former allies and earned a tag title shot—because betrayal apparently counts as a résumé in AEW.
They failed, of course. This is Action Andretti we’re talking about. But the beatdowns that followed were poetic. CRU unleashed unhinged fury, stomping Top Flight like they were the last bag of Takis at Gorilla Position. They called themselves “crazy.” They called themselves “ruthless.” Mostly, they just called themselves “not Top Flight,” and that seemed to work.
MEXICAN DETOUR: CRU VS LOS INGOBERNABLES
By June 2025, the duo took their chaos south of the border to Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre. In a match with Ángel de Oro and Niebla Roja for the CMLL World Tag Team Championship, CRU fell short again. But hey—it’s not about winning. It’s about reminding the world that you’re here, you flip, and occasionally, you bite someone.
For a man whose finishing move is a running shooting star press, Andretti never seems to land on top when it matters. But there’s a beauty in that. He’s a human firework: bright, explosive, and likely to end in injury.
LEGACY IN THE MAKING OR THE NEXT EVAN BOURNE?
It’s easy to compare Action Andretti to Evan Bourne or early Jeff Hardy, back when Jeff was more interested in ladders than lawsuits. But the truth is: Andretti is carving his own path—awkwardly, erratically, and without GPS.
He may never hold world gold. He may never cut a promo that doesn’t sound like a youth pastor trying to sell NFTs. But the man can go. He flips. He crashes. He burns. And then he does it all again because that’s what wrestlers like him were built to do—be the highlight of the match, even if they’re never the headline.
FINAL VERDICT: SIGHT TO SEE, EVEN IF HE’S NEVER A STAR
If CRU sticks, Andretti may finally get to add “Tag Team Champion” to his résumé. If not, he’ll go back to lighting up Dark with high spots and hollow victories. But for now, he’s found his voice—in screams and stomps.
Action Andretti may not be AEW’s next main event miracle. But he’s damn sure entertaining on the way down. And sometimes, the fall is more fun than the flight.
RATING:
⭐ Flips: 5/5
⭐ Promos: 2/5
⭐ Future: 3.5/5
⭐ Probability he gets booked in a scaffold match with Lio Rush by year’s end: 110%