Ricky Martin, a semi-professional wrestler from Portsmouth was hired by Lord Sugar to become his business partner in The Apprentice 2012.

After twelve long weeks, Martin secured the £250,000 investment from Lord Sugar to put into his recruitment business.

Ricky battled it out in a four-way final against 23-year-old wine investor Tom Gearing, 29-year-old business development manager Jade Nash and 25-year-old technology entrepreneur Nick Holzherr. With Jade and Nick fired first, Ricky went up against Tom in the last two.

As Lord Sugar debated his final decision, Karren Brady advised: “ Ricky has got great credibility in the field. He’s the one that has changed the most over the process.”

Despite branding him an “arrogant fool”, Claude Littner also said: “I’ve got to say, I’m mesmerized by the guy.”

In the nail-biting final boardroom scene, faced with a tough decision, Lord Sugar concluded” “It’s a very very difficult moment for me right now.

“You’re both credible people to invest money in so is it the devil or is it the safety. And I should keep to my ethos of keeping it simple, keeping it straightforward. So Ricky you’re going to be my business partner. Ricky, you’re hired.”

After the news, Ricky said” “Lord Sugar and I are going to be a powerful force to reckon with. I can’t say I’ve digested it yet. I’m ecstatic. Genuine shock, I’m so so pleased. Tom is incredible at what he does, great competition but I believed in myself, I thought I always I had it in me and I proved it.”

Runner up Tom Gearing added: “If I was going to lose to anyone I was happy it was Ricky. He was such a strong and credible candidate. We had some amazing experiences, I met some really good people, it was fantastic, and I have no regrets about it at all.”

With the appointment of Ricky Martin, Lord Sugar’s search for his business partner has come to an end for another year.