Marc Letzmann, born on July 16, 1980, in Detroit, Michigan, is a prominent figure in professional wrestling, known by his ring name Excalibur. Currently 45 years old, he serves as a commentator for All Elite Wrestling (AEW). This article delves into his career history, achievements, and contributions to the wrestling world.
Excalibur
Early Career and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG)
Excalibur is one of the six owners of Southern California-based Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG), and is collectively known as one of the "PWG Six", in reference to his partial founding of the company. On PWG's debut show, he defeated Chris Bosh. Soon after, Excalibur became a member of the stable SBS with Super Dragon and Disco Machine.
While with SBS, Excalibur and Super Dragon won the company's Tag Team Championship from Quicksilver and Chris Bosh. Teaming with Super Dragon as part of the stable S.B.S., Excalibur captured the PWG World Tag Team Championship on April 17, 2004, at PWG The Musical in Santa Ana, California, by defeating the reigning champions Quicksilver and Chris Bosh; the duo held the titles for 63 days before dropping them to The X-Foundation (Joey Ryan and Scott Lost) on June 19, 2004.
This reign exemplified PWG's tag division dynamics, where teams defended in high-stakes bouts prioritizing technical skill and risk-taking, such as defenses against challengers like Chris Bosh and Scott Lost.
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Heel Turn and the "New" SBS
At All Nude Revue, someone dressed as Super Dragon attacked the real Super Dragon after a match. On May 13 at Jason Takes PWG!, it was revealed that Excalibur was the mastermind of the attacks on Super Dragon and that Kevin Steen was the attacker, resulting in Excalibur becoming a heel. After subsequently turning on Super Dragon, Excalibur defeated him in a Guerrilla Warfare Match. After the match, Disco Machine made his way to the ring to aid Super Dragon.
On June 11 at Guitarmegeddon, Disco Machine teamed with Super Dragon in a losing effort to Excalibur and Kevin Steen. After the match, Disco turned on Dragon and united with Excalibur and Steen, with the three now calling themselves the "new" SBS. On July 9 at Bicentennial Birthday Extravaganza, the new SBS defeated Dragon, El Generico and Human Tornado in a six-man tag team elimination match.
At part two of the event the following night, Excalibur and Disco were unable to win a number one contender's four-team elimination match after Generico pinned Disco. At Zombies Shouldn't Run on August 10, Excalibur and Disco gained an "apprentice" in Ronin, and stated that he would face a test to see if he would be allowed to join the group.
After the SBS's scheduled opponents, Los Luchas, did not appear, the SBS and Ronin instead competed against and defeated the team of Top Gun Talwar, Hook Bomberry and Mr. Excitement. At the first-ever Battle of Los Angeles event, the SBS and Chris Sabin lost to Talwar, Bomberry and Human Tornado. However, the SBS won at part two of the event the following night, as they and Ronin defeated Sabin, Bomberry and T. J.
Other Promotions
In addition to PWG, Excalibur began competing for various other promotions. In Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW), he began wrestling mostly tag team matches with Super Dragon as his partner before splitting. Excalibur soon joined Beef Wellington and the duo became a comedic, yet popular, tag team dubbed Team Masturbation. While still in CZW, Excalibur had a short feud with Larry Sweeney, which culminated at Cage of Death 7, where they had an "interpromotional match", in which they performed promos back and forth between each other before competing in the actual match.
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In 2005, Excalibur extended his appearances beyond Pro Wrestling Guerrilla to Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW), frequently partnering with Super Dragon in tag team competition to test his masked luchador style against East Coast hardcore and technical wrestlers. Further CZW outings that year reinforced his growing profile in the competitive independent landscape.
In addition to his work in CZW, Excalibur performed at Ring of Honor, where he wrestled Super Dragon at the Do or Die show in 2004, and also Chikara, where he competed until his final match in 2006.
Commentary Career
Excalibur expanded his commentary work to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in late 2018, capitalizing on longstanding ties between PWG and NJPW through shared talent crossovers. On November 28, 2018, NJPW announced his addition to the English-language broadcast team for the final three nights of the World Tag League tournament-December 6, 7, and 9-streaming on NJPW World. He paired with established NJPW English commentators, delivering play-by-play that highlighted junior heavyweight and tag team intricacies, informed by PWG's history of featuring NJPW-affiliated wrestlers like the Dragon Gate and Strong Style talents.
Excalibur was announced as part of the All Elite Wrestling (AEW) announce team during Episode 10 of "The Road to Double or Nothing," which premiered on April 10, 2019. AEW Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes said the first time he saw Excalibur and the mask, "I don't think I really got it, but if you watch All In back, he truly was the anchor of that show. I definitely get it now."
Excalibur was part of the live stream of the Double or Nothing Ticket Announcement Party from Las Vegas, then was part of Double or Nothing starting with the Buy In pre-show, where he did play-by-play. Excalibur, along with Jim Ross and Tony Schiavone, provide play-by-play and color commentary for matches on Dynamite.
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One of the lead announcers for AEW is Excalibur, whose high-energy and trademark mask-wearing has made him a household name each and every week. For me, it’s a real honor to work with J.R. (Jim Ross) and Tony. During the Monday Night Wars, I gravitated towards WCW. They had the luchadores, the Japanese guys, they tended to focus on longer matches for a time. Those were the things that excited me, and Tony Schiavone was the voice of that. So for me, I think this is really the dream - I told this story a bunch of times. I remember my father-in-law asking me if this was my dream job, and I said no because I never dreamed this job would exist. Almost three years later, it still feels that way."
Wholesome Taz and Excalibur commentary
Legacy
Excalibur's high-flying wrestling style, characterized by dives and aerial maneuvers, resulted in a series of debilitating injuries that intensified during his later independent circuit matches in the mid-2000s. He also briefly held the DDT Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship, a novelty 24/7 title defended under comedic, pin-anywhere rules in Dramatic Dream Team (DDT) Pro-Wrestling. Excalibur was inducted in the Indie Hall of Fame in 2023.
Wrestling Style and Persona
As a non-Mexican performer whose masked persona drew from lucha libre aesthetics, Excalibur's engagement with the tradition in PWG's American indie context introduced heightened personal stakes to matches, fostering greater audience engagement through the credible threat of tangible consequences like identity alteration, even if scripted elements like disqualifications mitigated real losses. No other verified Lucha de Apuestas contests appear in Excalibur's record, resulting in a tally of one participation with no forfeits of his mask or hair.
Since 2019, AEW has emerged as one of the top promotions in pro wrestling, mixing established stars and also creating a new home for emerging talent.
Theme Song:“Surprise!
Championships and Accomplishments:
| Championship | Promotion | Date Won |
|---|---|---|
| PWG World Tag Team Championship | Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG) | April 17, 2004 |
| DDT Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship | Dramatic Dream Team (DDT) Pro-Wrestling | N/A |