1. How did you get the name Derek?

Derek was a nickname that I earned my first year in college. I can’t actually remember how I got it, but it just stuck and I’ve been using it ever since. Thank god I wasn’t the kid who got stuck with “Stitch Dick”.

2. How did you become a model?

I got into modeling by accident. It all started with a picture on myspace, a photographer saw it, dug it and asked me to pose nude for him. For the next 3 years I worked exclusively for him, then a producer friend of mine told me that I should to a convention here in Florida, and so I did. The rest is history.

3. How did you get into wrestling?

Well, my father and both of my uncles were wrestlers. My father got a wrestling scholarship to go to college, and he met my mother there – she was coaching the wrestling team. I was the only child in our family for quite some time, so my uncle and my father were always wrestling around with me. The simple answer to this question is that I’ve always wrestled for as long as I can remember, it’s just that I’m now putting the practice to use.

4. Are you a full time model and wrestler?

Yes I am.

5. What did you do prior to modeling?

I worked a multitude of jobs, ranging from customer service to provider relations for a worker’s comp. company. The last job I had before I went full time was working as a loan processor/collections agent at a car financing company.

6. What do you do in your spare time?

Honestly, I don’t really have a lot of spare time. I am constantly traveling and working – and if I’m not doing that, I’m booking work. But in the odd event that I do have some down time, I read and write A LOT. Most if not all of my down time is spent reading and writing. I’m also heavily involved in music (I sing, play guitar and bass, and write music), I shoot photos for a producer friend of mine in Florida and get the occasional game of World of Warcraft in.

7. What is your favorite thing about your job?

I’ve always had a travel bug, so now I get to travel on a constant basis. I also get to meet tons of new people, which is something I like. I also love the freedom of it. I don’t really have to wake up at a certain time if I’m not working and I don’t have to punch a clock – GOD THAT’S AMAZING!

8. What’s the worst part of your job?

Leaving my puppy home! Don’t worry, my mother takes care of him, but I sure to miss him when it’s time to go to bed.

9. Does your family know what you do for a living?

Yes, my entire family knows what I do for a living! Everyone has been incredibly supportive and accepting of it. My father thinks that it’s great, my grand parents think it’s funny, my younger brother brags to his friends, and my mother is happy that I’ve found something that I love so much.

10. Where is your favorite place to be?

That really is a toss up between New York, which is my home, and California which is amazing and beautiful.