Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 8, 2026

John Cone

John Cone is an American professional wrestling referee. He is signed to WWE as a referee, and appears on the Raw brand. Cone also works in the corporate role of vice president of talent relations for WWE.

Last revised
Jul 8, 2026
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John Cone
Cone in 2013
Personal information
Born (1974-11-16) November 16, 1974
Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.
SpouseLauren Cone
Children2 (Nicholas and Thomas)
Professional wrestling career
Ring nameJohn Cone
Billed height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)1
Billed weight174 lb (79 kg)1
DebutAugust 19951

John Cone (born November 16, 1974) is an American professional wrestling referee. He is signed to WWE as a referee, and appears on the Raw brand.12 Cone also works in the corporate role of vice president of talent relations for WWE.3

Professional wrestling career

WWE (2006–2022)

Cone started refereeing independent wrestling matches in August 1996.4

Cone debuted as a referee for WWE in 2006, he refereed his last WWE match in 2022.

Vice President of Talent Relations (2022-Present)

Midway through 2022 Cone transitioned from in ring duties to taking on more backstage responsibilities. By the end of 2022 Cone had pretty much retired from being a referee and was promoted to Vice President of Talent Relations. A position he still holds to this day.

Video games

Cone's likeness appears as a referee in 2K Sports WWE 2K24.

Personal life

Cone was born in Kansas City, Missouri where he and his wife are owners of a Donut King.1

At WrestleMania 34, Cone's 10-year-old son, Nicholas, was “chosen” out of the audience by Braun Strowman to be his tag-team partner to challenge for the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship in a match refereed by Cone.56 They won their match against The Bar, making Nicholas the youngest champion in any category in WWE history, but they relinquished the title the following night on Raw.7 In 2019, it was claimed that Nicholas held a red belt in karate.8

Filmography

Web series

Year Title Role Notes
2017 Southpaw Regional Wrestling9 Chip Henderson Referee
2020 UpUpDownDown'4 Himself Referee (Playing UNO with Xavier Woods)
References

References

  1. "John Cone Profile". WWE. Archived from the original on January 4, 2012. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  2. "WWE referee John Cone makes his dollars in doughnuts and pro wrestling". Archived from the original on 2016-03-12. Retrieved 2014-09-04.
  3. "WWE Releases Staff in Their Talent Relations Department". 22 April 2021.
  4. John Cone UpUpDownDown Superstar Savepoint. UpUpDownDown, Xavier Woods. 4 January 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  5. "IDENTITY OF NICOLAS THE NEW RAW TAG TEAM CHAMPION | PWInsider.com". www.pwinsider.com. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  6. "Braun Strowman's tag team partner is a WWE ref's son". SI.com. Retrieved 2018-04-10.
  7. Keller, Wade (April 9, 2018). "KELLER'S WWE RAW REPORT 4/9: The Day After WrestleMania 34 Edition with Reigns-Lesnar and Rousey fallout". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved April 9, 2018.
  8. John’s second son Thomas was born in 2015. WWE (2019-03-28), Nicholas: Where Are They Now?, archived from the original on 2021-12-15, retrieved 2019-03-29
  9. "Southpaw Regional Wrestling: Who's Who In WWE's Comedy Special". 17 March 2017.
External links