Altieri trained under Roderick Strong at the NWA Floridaschool.[1] He debuted in NWA Florida on June 20, 2003, as Mikey Batts, wrestling Naphtali.[1] On February 26, 2005, in Brandon, Florida he won a six-way match to become the NWA Florida X Division Champion.
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2004–2005)
Batts debuted in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling as a planted security guard in June 2004. He was signed to a contract that same month and began teaming on a regular basis with fellow NWA Florida performer Jerrelle Clark. Batts and Clark were staples on TNA Impact! throughout 2004 but were not involved in any major angles.[2]
Batts teamed with Simon Diamond on the August 19 episode of Impact!, facing Shocker and Chris Sabin in the first round of the Chris Candido Cup.[6] During the match, commentators Mike Tenay and Don West speculated that Batts was "auditioning" for membership in The Diamonds in the Rough, Diamond's stable of undercard wrestlers. Diamond and Batts lost the match after Sabin pinned Batts; Batts did not join the Diamonds.
In December, 2005, it was announced that Batts had been transferred to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). On January 21, 2006, Batts lost his first match in OVW to Da Beast, with Tytus acting as his manager.[7] Then, on January 27, 2006, Batts lost to Tytus, this time with Da Beast acting as manager.[8] Batts, under his real name, wrestled and lost to WWE Cruiserweight ChampionGregory Helms on the May 6, 2006 episode of Velocity.[9]
On June 14, 2006, Batts was released from his WWE contract.
Retirement
After his release, Batts retired from wrestling to pursue a career in mixed martial arts, which consisted of only three grappling tournaments.
^Johnson, Steven (July 12, 2004). "Impact looks to hook racing fans". SLAM! Sports. Archived from the original on July 28, 2012. Retrieved March 28, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^Clevett, Jason (November 8, 2004). "Victory Road bombs". SLAM! Sports. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved March 29, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^Clevett, Jason (July 19, 2005). "No Surrender a success". SLAM! Sports. Archived from the original on July 20, 2012. Retrieved March 28, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)