Singapore wrestler Sean Tan makes historic US national television debut on WWE's flagship Smackdown programme

SINGAPORE – Wrestler Sean Tan continued to make history as he became the first Singaporean to appear on elite promotion company World Wrestling Entertainment's (WWE) long-running weekly Smackdown show on Friday (23 February).

The 28-year-old, who took on the moniker Dante Chen upon joining WWE, is also the first Singaporean wrestler to appear on a US national television network, with Smackdown being televised live on Fox from Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Tan faced Bron Breakker, a highly-touted American professional wrestling sensation, who was also making his Smackdown debut. Despite landing an acrobatic drop-kick against Breakker early on, Tan was eventually overpowered as his 26-year-old opponent showed off his brute strength, clinching the victory with a devastating spear manoeuvre.

Second time Tan has made WWE history

Despite his loss, Tan called his SmackDown debut a “history-setting moment of my own” in an Instagram post.

This is not the first time that he has made history. In September 2021, he became the first Singaporean wrestler to be on WWE’s NXT show - a weekly programme featuring up-and-coming wrestling stars. He fought against American Trey Baxter on his debut, and won with an inside cradle move in a little over a minute.

Tan started his wrestling career in 2012 with Singapore Pro Wrestling (SPW) under the moniker Trexxxus. He then earned a contract to train at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando through a tryout held in Shanghai in 2019. He was the only Singaporean to succeed at the tryouts and started his training stint in July 2021 before making his NXT debut.

SPW posted a congratulatory tweet following Tan's Smackdown debut, "Your journey from the SPW ring to NXT and now the global stage of SmackDown is nothing short of inspiring. We’re all proud of you! CHEN UP!"

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