Greatest pro wrestlers of Alltime
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Bret Hart is one of Canada's most successful wrestlers. He is also recognized as one of the worlds best wrestlers ever. Hart comes from the legendary Hart Family of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. He owns a junior hockey team named after him and has his own column in the Calgary Sun. Bret has held the WWF World Title (5), Intercontinental Title (2), co-held the Tag Team Title (2), the US Heavyweight Title (2) and was the 1993 King of the Ring. He and his brothers and sister hold dual citizenships in both Canada (where he was born) and the US (where his mother was born).- Actor
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Bryan Lloyd Danielson is an American professional wrestler and author currently signed to WWE under ring name Daniel Bryan.
In WWE, Bryan held the WWE Championship three times and WWE's World Heavyweight Championship once, in addition to being a one-time United States Champion, a one-time Intercontinental Champion and a one-time WWE Tag Team Champion as part of Team Hell No (with Kane). He was also the 2011 SmackDown Money in the Bank winner, the 2013 Superstar of the Year Slammy Award winner and the SmackDown General Manager from July 2016 to April 2018. Bryan is the 26th Triple Crown Champion and the 6th Grand Slam Champion in WWE history and headlined several major pay-per-view events, including WrestleMania XXX.
Danielson was previously signed to the WWE, then known as the WWF, for an 18-month period from 2000-2001. Prior to joining WWE for his second stint in 2009, Danielson wrestled for various companies internationally using both his real name and the ring name (and later nickname) American Dragon.
He wrestled for Ring of Honor (ROH) from 2002 to 2009, being recognized as a "Founding Father" of the promotion, where he was a one-time ROH World Champion as well as the final Pure Wrestling Champion (unifying the Pure title with the World title). He was the first winner of ROH's annual Survival of the Fittest tournament in 2004.
Danielson also wrestled extensively in Japan, winning the GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship in Pro Wrestling Noah and the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship (with Curry Man) in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). Between WWE, ROH and Japanese promotions, he held eleven total championships. Danielson also won numerous titles on the independent circuit, including two PWG World Championships, the FIP Heavyweight Championship and the wXw World Heavyweight Championship.- Actor
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Funk has strong wrestling bloodlines. His dad, Dory Funk Sr., was a well-known grappler from the 1940s to the 1970s, and his brother, Dory Funk Jr., wrestled from 1963 until the early 90s, and won the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) world heavyweight championship in 1969. Funk, himself, became NWA champion and thus the Funks have the distinction of being the only brothers to win the NWA championship. Funk made his film debut as (what else?) a wrestler in Sylvester Stallone's (a noted wrestling fan) movie Paradise Alley (1978). Funk then did double-duty as a pro wrestler and actor/stunt man (he was prominent in Patrick Swayze's movie, Road House (1989)). Not technically a great wrestler, Funk was more known for his brawling tactics, and had some great feuds during his career with "Handsome" Harley Race, "Nature Boy" Ric Flair, "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes and others. After maintaining a low profile in wrestling, Funk resurfaced in the 90s in the new Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) series and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), this time in his new persona as "Chainsaw Charlie".- One of the most colorful wrestlers in and out of the ring, Randy "Macho Man" Savage became a larger-than-life pop icon along with other wrestling superstars, such as "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, Hulk Hogan, Jimmy Snuka (aka "Superfly Jimmy Snuka"), Jesse Ventura and Dwayne Johnson (aka "The Rock").
When signed to the WWE (then known as the WWF), Savage immediately became a top heel (bad guy). He was managed by WWE Hall of Fame managers such as Jimmy Hart, Bobby Heenan, Classy Freddie Blassie (Freddie Blassie) and, of course his best known manager--the gorgeous Miss Elizabeth (Elizabeth Hulette). During his time in the WWE Savage went up against other WWE legends in the 1980s, such as Junkyard Dog (Sylvester Ritter), Merced Solis (aka Tito Santana), Bruno Sammartino and George 'The Animal' Steele. He also had a well-known feud going with WWE superstar Hulk Hogan.
While in the WWE Savage won the Heavywieght Title two times, the Intercontinental title once and was the 1989 King of the Ring. He then moved to World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and signed a $6-million contract with them. He won the WCW Heavyweight Title four times,.
To fans, Savage is most notable for having an off- and on-screen relationship with Miss Elizabeth. Their relationship became the most famous love story in WWE history. However, their relationship started to go downhill, and it began to show in his professional life. Soon they split up. After having left the WCW, Savage went to TNA (Total Non-Stop Action) Wrestling.
Randy Savage died of cardiovascular disease on May 20, 2011, in Seminole, FL. - Actor
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One of the great Hispanic wrestlers, Eddie Guerrero grew up part of the famous wrestling family: The Guerreros. His father Gory Guerrero became a star in the U.S., an icon in Texas and a legend in Mexico. Eddie's brothers, Hector, Amadno and Chavo, Sr. also became wrestlers. Both Hector and Amando gain success, but only in the Indie federations, and not much success as their father or other two brothers had gained in the majors. Eddie's nephew, Chavo Guerro, Jr., son of Chavo, Sr., also became a wrestler (Chavo, Jr. was only three years younger than his uncle). Eddie was also uncle of Enrique Llanes and cousin of Javier Llanes, who are popular wrestlers in Mexico.
Eddie had wrestling since the 1989. He really made his name in the now-defunct ECW (Extreme championship Wrestling) by winning the ECW Ecxtreme Championship Wrerstling) TV Title against Dean Simon (aka Dean Malenko). Eddie also made his name later that year in now-defunct WCW (World Championship Wrestling) to win the Cruiserweight Championship by defeating Chris Jericho. Also while in the company, he formed Latino World Order (A playoff to Hulk Hogan's (Hollywood Hogan at the time)stable, New World Order).
The stable included popular Latino wrestler Rey Mysterio, Jr. (Oscar Gutierrez), La Parka (Adolfo Tapia Ibarra), Psychosis (Dionicio Castellanos) and Juventud Guerrera (Eduardo Annibal Gonzalez Hernandez).
When Eddie came to the WWE, he was a heel, and immediately gained fame when he was part of the Radicalz, with Perry Saturn, Dean Malenko and long time friend of fifteen years, Chris Benoit. In recent years, he and and his nephew Chavo, Jr. began a tag team called Los Guerreros and won the WWE Tag Team titles on Smackdown! against Team Angle (Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin). After this stint, Eddie Guerrero went on to win the WWE Championhip (His first and only time) at No Way Out in 2004 against Brock Lesnar. He lost the title to John "Bradshaw" Layfield four months later at the Great American Bash in a Texas Bull Rope Match.
Recently, wrestling fans and the people of the WWE mourn of the lost of Eddie when he was found by his nephew, Chavo Jr. (who back then known as Kerwin White) on a Sunday morning in November, 2005. The result of his death was most likely been caused by his problems in the past: Drugs and alcohol.- Actor
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'Stone Cold' Steve Austin was born in Victoria, Texas, as Steven James Anderson, on December 18, 1964, the youngest of five children. His mother, Beverly Jane (Harrison), remarried to Kenneth Williams, and he took his stepfather's surname. He played football at the North Texas State University. He was worthy of achieving a free education because of his football skills in school. Williams then began training at Chris Adams's wrestling school as a rookie near the end of 1988, and made his professional wrestling debut at the end of 1989. He then moved over to minor wrestling companies to wrestle for money, and later entered WCW under the name of 'Stunning Steve Austin'. He didn't make a large name for himself in the company, as he only held an embarrassing two TV titles. Austin was fired by WCW and joined the WWF (now known as WWE) in December 1995. Austin left after a while to go to ECW but only stayed for a couple of weeks before he came back to the WWF as 'Stone Cold Steve Austin'. Austin then disposed of his old finishing move the 'Million Dollar Dream', which was the trademark of 'Million Dollar Man' Ted Dibiase, and began racking up the victories with his Stone Cold Stunner (kick to the gut followed by a jawbreaker).
Austin then had a good winning streak going by 1996 and wrestled to become the 1996 King Of The Ring. Austin cut his lip open during one match, and had to get it stitched up in between matches. In the grand final of the KOTR he defeated Jake 'The Snake' Roberts with a Stone Cold Stunner, and invented his famous motto as 'Austin 3:16'. As 1997 rolled around Austin's career soared to new heights. WCW realized Austin's popularity, and tried to make a 'clone' when they invited 'Bill Goldberg' to compete for them. During that year, Austin won the WWF Intercontinental Championship twice and the Tag Team Championships. When Austin successfully defended the IC title against Rocky Maivia (now known as The Rock, real name Dwayne Johnson) on a taping of RAW, he was ordered to defend it again because he drove his pickup truck to the ring and delivered a Stunner to D'Lo Brown ('A.C. Conner') on the roof, which Vince McMahon saw as weapon usage. Austin refused to defend the title again and dumped the old belt in a river, and therefore McMahon crowned Rocky Maivia as the new champion. However, Austin said he didn't care about that title, and set his sights on the Heavyweight Championship. Although Austin had won the 1997 Royal Rumble to qualify as the Number 1 Contender for the championship at WrestleMania XIII, he didn't get the place because he was eliminated but referees didn't notice, so instead, Austin fought Bret Hart in an Iron Man match which Hart won when Austin passed out from blood loss when he was trapped in a Sharpshooter. However, Austin successfully won the 1998 Royal Rumble when he eliminated Rocky Maivia. A stipulation was made for the main event at WrestleMania XIV (Austin vs. Shawn Michaels): the special guest referee would be Iron Mike Tyson! Austin had made a friendship with Tyson, but all though Tyson betrayed him when he joined DX! However, Tyson shocked the world when Austin hit Michaels with a Stone Cold Stunner and covered him while Tyson made the count, to win his first heavyweight title! Austin then went on to enjoy three months as champion when he lost the title to Kane (Glenn Jacobs)in a First Blood match on June 28, 1998, at King Of The Ring. However, Austin regained the title a day later, and was forced to compete for it in a tournament at the 1998 Survivor Series. He was defeated by Mankind ('Mick Foley'), and later that night, The Rock won the championship and joined the Corporation.
As 1999 came around, Austin became embroiled in a feud with The Rock when Vince McMahon eliminated him from the Royal Rumble while The Rock had him distracted. However, Austin still got the place in the main event at WrestleMania XV, and he won his third championship from The Rock with a Stone Cold Stunner. He retained the title against The Rock in a Boiler Room Brawl at Backlash 1999. Austin lost the title to The Undertaker ('Mark Callaway'), but regained it in July 1999. Later that year, at the 1999 Survivor Series Austin was ran over by a car and had to have spinal surgery, and was out of action for the next 11 months. However, Austin returned to the wrestling scene at Backlash 2000 when he helped The Rock win his fourth WWF Championship from Triple H ('Michael Paul LeVesque'). Austin was then welcomed back to wrestle in October 2000 at No Mercy, when he fought Rikishi ('Solofa Fatu') in a No Holds Barred match which had to be stopped when Austin was about to run Rikishi over but was arrested by the police. The mystery was revealed that it was Triple H who had Rikishi run Austin over, and Austin battled Triple H at Survivor Series 2000, and won the match. Steve had a chance to win the WWF title from Kurt Angle, who was reigning at the time, at Armaggedon 2000, in a Six-Man Hell In A Cell Match, which also had Kurt Angle, The Rock, Triple H, Rikishi, and The Undertaker. Austin had the title in his grasp when he hit The Rock with a Stone Cold Stunner, but Angle snuck up and covered The Rock to retain the title.
Austin's hopes raised yet again when he eliminated Kane from the 2001 Royal Rumble, therefore becoming the first and only ever three-time Royal Rumble winner, and the Number One Contender for the WWF Championship. At No Way Out 2001, Austin lost a 2-Out-Of-3 Falls match to Triple H, when they both knocked each other out, but Triple H fell on top of Austin. Later that night, The Rock defeated Kurt Angle to become the first-ever six-time WWF World Champion, therefore deciding that the main event at WrestleMania X7 would be The Rock vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin. Austin defeated The Rock on April 1, 2001, for his fifth WWF title, but turned heel when he joined forces with Vince McMahon. The Rock was suspended from the WWF for almost four months. Austin's reign as Champion lasted for 5 months and 22 days, which was the longest championship reign in several years. Austin won the Tag Team Championship with Triple H at Backlash 2001, but they lost them again on May 21, on a taping of RAW to Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit. In that same match, Triple H tore his quadricep muscle and had to go to hospital for eight months of surgery. At King Of The Ring 2001 on June 24 Austin retained the title successfully from both Jericho and Benoit in a Triple Threat match.
Austin shocked the world by turning heel again on July 22, 2001 when he joined the WCW/ECW Alliance, helping them win the Inaugural Brawl against the WWF, and also invented the catchphrase of 2001, which was "What?". However, Vince McMahon reinstated The Rock on July 30. In August, Kurt Angle started feuding with Austin and was determined to take the championship back from him at Summerslam. Austin disqualified himself to remain the champion, however, Angle won the title back from him at Unforgiven on September 23, 2001. Austin then regained the title from Angle on RAW in October, when William Regal came to his aid. In November, Austin narrowly escaped losing the title to The Rock at Rebellion, with a little help from Kurt Angle. Later that month, The Rock put the WCW/ECW Alliance out of business in the Winner Take All match, which was also Austin's first loss to The Rock. However, Austin returned to the federation, still as the heavyweight champion the night after, but lost it to Chris Jericho on December 9, 2001, when Jericho became the first-ever Undisputed Champion when Austin was defeated in the grand finals. Austin then challenged Jericho for the Undisputed title at No Way Out 2002 in February, and would have won the match, but the nWo interfered and attacked Austin, helping Jericho retain the title. Austin then feuded with the nWo's Scott Hall and faced him in a match at WrestleMania X8, which Austin won, even putting away the difficulty that was made by the constant interfering of Kevin Nash. At Backlash 2002 Austin faced the Undertaker in a Number 1 Contender match for the Undisputed Championship, but Austin was screwed out of the decision when The Undertaker booted a steel chair into his face and covered him for the pinfall. Austin had his foot on the rope, but special referee Ric Flair didn't notice. Austin began feuding with Flair and faced him in a 2-On-1 Handicap match at Judgment Day 2002 - Flair's partner was Big Show Paul Wight. That would be Austin's last PPV match, as early in June, he did not show up for a taping of RAW. Austin has not been seen since. He is 6'2", and when he first entered the federation he weighed 241 pounds, but boosted up to 252 later on in his career. He says that his weight "depends on how much beer I drink".- Actor
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Kurt Angle was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. He won a Olympic Gold Medal in 1996 having notoriously won it with a broken neck. In 1998 he transitioned into professional wrestling where he sky rocked to success after joining the World Wrestling Federation. He later became the first ever wrestler to hold the WCW and WWF Championships during the same calendar year. He also became the second ever TNA Triple Crown Champion in the promotions history and is a overall 13 time World Champion in professional wrestling.- Curt Hennig was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as the son of one of wrestlings all time legends - Larry Hennig - Aka Larry The Ax Hennig. Curtbegan training to follow in his fathers footsteps when he was just 12 years old. Starting off in the AWA - Curt began his career as a tag team wrestler. He won the AWA Tag Team Championship with Scott Hall before concentrating on a singles career in the AWA. He became the AWA Heavyweight Champion in only his second year with the company before capturing the attention of the WWF. The WWF was looking to acquire the services of second generation stars and Curt Hennig fitted the bill perfectly. He made his debut in the WWF in 1988 as "MR.PERFECT". Curt's character was an instant hit with WWF fans and he quickly established himself as a quality technical wrestler. Fellow second generation WWF star and one of Curt's closest friends - Bret Hart aka Bret The Hitman Hart was also making waves in the WWF along the same time. Bret Hart and Curt Hennig began a legendary feud that would end in an Intercontinental Championship match at SummerSlam in 1992. Curt Hennig defended his WWF Intercontinental Title against Bret Hart at SummerSlam to end what had become a captivating feud between two of the best technical wrestlers in WWF history. However, Curt had suffered a serious back injury during a house show just prior to the big event. Against doctors orders, Curt Hennig made his way to the ring as Mr.Perfect and defended his Intercontinental Title at SummerSlam against the Hitman Bret Hart. Bret went on to win the match but was full of praise for his friend and opponent afterwards. Hart called Hennig "the best wrestler and one of the best workers he had ever worked with". Despite being praised for working a high profile match through a serious injury - Curt ended up paying a price. Curt's back injury had been aggravated and that caused him major problems in the future. After taking a few months of to rest his injury, Curt returned to the WWF, however his return was short lived as his back once again flared up in late 1993. As a result, Curt was out of the ring until 1996. During that period, Curt worked as a commentator for the WWF until his contract expired at the end of 1995. By this time, Curt's back had healed enough for him to consider a return to a WWF or WCW ring. Understanding the importance of having an Impact Player like Curt Hennig on their roster, WCW got involved in a bidding war for Mr.Perfect's services. In the end, WCW won and Curt Hennig signed a 4 year contract with WCW. Hennig returned to the ring for the first time in 3 years and in only his second official singles match since his return - Curt won the WCW United States Championship. He held the title on three separate occasions along with the WCW Tag Team Championship. However, his talents were being wasted in WCW and at the end of his contract in 2000, Curt decided against signing an extention with the company and proceeded to take a break from the sport altogether. In 2001, he returned to the ring with XWF and made appearances in Australia with the WWA. While these appearances were good enough as a stop-gap measure, Curt was hoping to make a comeback in the World Wrestling Federation - and sure enough the WWF contacted Curt Hennig to make his return to the WWF as Mr.Perfect in the 2002 Royal Rumble. What was initially billed as a one time arrangement, resulted in Curt Hennig once again re-joining the WWF after signing a long term contract. While Curt may have claimed to be perfect inside the ring, his life outside the ring was anything but perfect. In May 2002,he was fired by Vince McMahon after getting into a fight with Brock Lesnar on a charter flight. On February 10, 2003, he was found dead in a Tampa hotel. He was slated to wrestle on an independent card headed by Jimmy Hart at the Florida State Fair. The cause of death was later found to be acute cocaine intoxication. He left behind his wife of 20 years, Leonice, and four children.
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Michael Francis Foley was born on June 7th, 1965, in Long Island, New York. Nicknamed Mick by his father, a lifelong Yankees and Mickey Mantle fan, he attended college in upstate New York, he hitchhiked to New York City to see a wrestling match between Jimmy Snuka (Jimmy Snuka) and Don Muraco that convinced him he wanted to be a professional wrestler. He trained under the tutelage of Dominic DeNucci, alongside such wrestlers as Shane Douglas, and made his debut in the late 1980's. He wrestled all around the U.S., Europe, Japan and Africa before landing a job in World Championship Wrestling as under the name Cactus Jack. He wrestled in excellent feuds with Sting (Steve Borden), Rick Steiner, Scott Steiner, and most notably Vader (Leon White), against whom he lost an ear mid-match in Germany in 1992. Around this time, he met his future wife, Collette Foley. His tenure with WCW at an end, he wrestled for Extreme Championship Wrestling under Paul Heyman, and in Japan, where he took place in (and won) the now legendary _IWA King of the Death Match (1995) (V)_. This attracted the attention of 'Vince McMahon', who brought Foley in to the World Wrestling Federation, under the name Mankind. Foley's first feud was with The Undertaker, against whom he wrestled several classic matches, most notably _King of the Ring (1998) (V)_, where, in possibly the most famous professional wrestling moment of all time, The Undertaker threw Foley off the top of a 20-foot cage, through a table. Foley's lifelong dream came true on December 28th, 1998, when he defeated The Rock (Dwayne Johnson) to win the WWF World Title. He would hold the belt three times before his career ended at WrestleMania 2000 (2000). Now retired, Foley is a bestselling and critically acclaimed author, having wrote two autobiographies (both of which topped the New York Times bestseller charts), a series of children's books, and a novel.- Actor
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Began his career in Texas. Trained by the legendary Jose Lothario, Shawn Michaels wrestled in Kansas, where he met fellow wrestler, Marty Jannetty. A year later, after sending tapes of his matches to the major wrestling companies at the time, he was contacted by the AWA, who proposed that he team up with Marty Jannetty again. Together, Michaels and Jannetty became known as the Midnight Rockers. The AWA had just received a TV deal with ESPN, which did wonders for his career. The Midnight Rockers had a major feud with "Playboy" Buddy Rose and "Pretty Boy" Doug Somers. Their matches were considered bloodbaths at the time. Eventually the Midnight Rockers came out the victors and were the AWA World Tag Team Champions. The WWF (now WWE) noticed their efforts and signed them to a deal. Both Michaels and Jannetty were soon fired for a incident in a bar, which Michaels claims was a misunderstanding. The duo went back to the AWA for a brief time. After a while, they contacted the WWF, who gave them a second chance and they returned in late 1988. They were known simply as The Rockers. The duo had a great influence on many of the present teams in wrestling. Their trademark was being tag team specialists and using great double team moves on their opponents.
They had major feuds with The Brain Busters, The Fabulous Rougeaus, The Hart Foundation, The Orient Express, and Power & Glory. At one point the Rockers won the WWF Tag Team Titles. The match was taped before being shown Jim Neidhart of the Hart Foundation was negotiating his release at the time, then eventually came to an agreement to stay. They were stripped of the Tag Team titles which was returned to the Hart Foundation with the explanation that a turnbuckle collapsed which caused the match to go bad for both teams. Sometime after the Rockers were split apart and Shawn Michaels became a singles wrestler, after turning on his partner Marty Jannetty. In a related story, Michaels actually met with Vince McMahon to discuss his character. He told him he worked hard and would like to be pushed as a singles wrestler. He wanted to know what he had to do to convince Vince McMahon to do so. McMahon told him he just did it by coming to him. Michaels defeated Tito Santana in his first WrestleMania as a singles wrestler. He was managed by Sherri Martel, who supposedly had a crush on him. In a major upset, Michaels defeated The British Bulldog on Saturday Night's Main Event. Michaels thus won the Intercontinental Title from the Bulldog. One night on Raw in May 1993, Michaels wrestled former partner Marty Jannetty with the Intercontinental Title on the line. The match became Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Match of the Year. Jannetty won the bout.
The following year, Michaels wrestled Razor Ramon (Scott Hall, who is one of his best friends) in a ladder match at WrestleMania X. This match was voted by Pro Wrestling Illustrated as the Match of the Year and became one of wrestling's most innovative matches. In 1995, Michaels was again voted in Match of the Year by wrestling another great friend, Diesel (Kevin Nash) at WrestleMania XI. Michaels won both the 1995 and 1996 Royal Rumbles, and again was in match of the year when in 1996 he wrestled Bret Hart at WrestleMania XII in a one hour Iron Man Match. Michaels was involved in the big Montreal Screwjob on Bret Hart, that Vince McMahon was behind. The match was stopped and awarded to Shawn Michaels because Vince McMahon was worried that Hart would refuse to lose and take the WWF Title belt to WCW Nitro. This severed a friendship between Michaels and Hart. Michaels originally denied knowing about it in advance. Later on he admitted he knew but wouldn't refuse to do what Vince McMahon wanted him to, since Vince McMahon made his career. Michaels innovated another match against the Undertaker, when he wrestled him in a Hell in the Cell match. After WrestleMania XIV, Michaels didn't wrestle for 4 years due to a back injury, but maintained an on air role on occasion. During his time off, Michaels became a father, and also became a Born again Christian. At SummerSlam 2002, Michaels returned to the ring to face his friend Triple H. The two had a great feud, and Michaels who didn't think he could wrestle as well as he used to, dazzled the audience. He wasn't sure if he would be able to continue his normal wrestling schedule due to the nagging injuries, but after that, he went strong for almost 8 full years. He won his last World Championship from Triple H later that year, which he held for a month.- Actor
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Richard Morgan Fliehr isn't what you'd expect from a professional wrestler. A medical student at Minnesota University (his father was a doctor, his mother an actress), Flair dropped out college to train for the mat wars under legendary former AWA World champ Verne Gagne. He made his professional wrestling debut on December 10, 1972, wrestling "Scrap Iron" George Gadaski (real name: John Kosti) to a ten minute draw in Rice Lake, Wisconsin. After spending the first few months of his career with Gagne's Minneapolis Boxing & Wrestling Club (which used the brand name "American Wrestling Association"), Flair moved on to Charlotte, North Carolina where he became a regular for Jim Crockett Promotions (a member of the worldwide sanctioning body known as the National Wrestling Alliance) under the direction of matchmaker (wrestling terminology for writer) George Scott. In 1981, he captured his first NWA World title (he would hold that belt officially nine other times). Later on, he would work for both World Championship Wrestling (a company formed by Ted Turner after buying the wrestling assets of JCP) and Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Entertainment. He has been officially recognized as a World champion (an honor which generally signifies that a wrestler is the top attraction in any given company) 21 times, garnering recognition from the NWA, WWE, and WCW (as well as the WCW spin-off group WCWI, or World Championship Wrestling International). He is the only man in wrestling history to hold all four versions of the title.- Actor
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Roddy Piper was born Roderick George Toombs on April 17, 1954 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. He was a pro wrestler from 1973-1987 in the NWA, Pacific Northwest, California. He was a longtime mainstay in the WWF, and was one of the biggest "bad guys" in the WWF during the early '80s, before becoming a fan favorite in the late '80s. He became infamous for his mouth as much as his skills in the ring. He hosted Pipers Pit, which saluted the bad guys of professional wrestling, the most famous of which involved him smashing Jimmy Superfly Snuka over the head with a coconut. He was wrestling's most popular villain because of his feud with Hulk Hogan that culminated at Wrestlemania I. He went into semi-retirement after Wrestlemania III, when he beat and shaved the late Adrian Adonis.
He continued to wrestle into the '90s, but spent much of his time doing color commentary for WWF TV. In January 1992, he won the WWF Intercontinental Title from "The Mountie", the only title he would ever hold in his storied WWF career. After losing the title three months later, he left the WWF, and only made the occasional appearance in the ring over the next few years. In 1995, he had a stint as the WWF's interim president. He later resurfaced in WCW during the late '90s to continue his feud with "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan, until the company's demise in 2001.
Roddy Piper appeared in many action films. He died of a heart attack on July 31, 2015, in Hollywood, California.- Actor
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Retired American professional wrestler of Japanese descent as Ricky Steamboat. He trained under Verne Gagne, and first made his name in the old Mid-Atlantic territory in the Carolinas. He had many legendary matches and feuds with Ric Flair, culminating in their epic "Holy Trilogy" of matches at WCW/NWA Chi-Town Rumble (1989), Clash of the Champions VI: Ragin' Cajun (1989) and WCW/NWA WrestleWar (1989). He had a major feud with Randy Savage over the WWE Intercontinental Title, which Steamboat won at WrestleMania III (1987) in what many consider the greatest WrestleMania match of all time. Over the course of his career, he was a 1x NWA World Heavyweight Champion, a 1x WWE Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion, a multiple-time NWA World Tag Team Champion, an NWA United States Heavyweight Champion, a WCW United States Heavyweight Champion and a WCW Television Champion. At different points in his career, he had "retired" so he could spend time with his family and run his gym. He was forced into retirement due to a back injury suffered in a match with "Stunning" Steve Austin at Clash of the Champions XXVIII (1994). He was one of the few wrestlers to work as a babyface (good guy) for his entire career. He was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 1996, the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2002 (charter class), the WWE Hall of Fame in 2009 and the NWA Hall of Fame in 2012.
Was given the name "Ricky Steamboat" by wrestling promoter Eddie Graham due to his strong resemblance to wrestling legend Sammy Steamboat. Sammy even endorsed the name change and allowed them to bill the "Ricky Steamboat" character as his nephew. Ricky and Sammy remained friends until Sammy's death.
Played an on-air executive role in the early days of NWA TNA.
He was the "Inside Wrestling" Rookie of the Year for 1977.
Received the 1995 PWI Editor's Award.
After he won the Intercontinental Championship, he asked Vince McMahon for some time off to be with his wife who was expecting the birth of their son Richard Blood Jr. This did not sit well with WWF management and shortly after he was forced to drop the belt to the Honkytonk Man (Wayne Farris). Still bitter, the WWE did not push him or give him any meaningful matches upon his return. He left for WCW shortly after.- Director
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Japan's Antonio Inoki is a "living" legend in Asia. The greatest wrestler ever to step in the ring in Asia, he just may be the greatest wrestler of all times. One of the first great wrestlers to compete in "real" fights. Inoki has some of the most impressive fight stats in mat history. His professional wrestling record for single match competition was 611-41-50. His record for tag team matches was 1,466-105-130. His record for mixed martial arts fights was 30-2-3 with 9 knockouts. His overall fighting record was an amazing 2,107 victories, only 148 defeats, and 183 draws. His record in "real" fights is one of the most impressive in the sport's history; a 15 round draw with World's Heavyweight Champion Muhammad Ali, a submission win over former-heavyweight king Leon Spinks on Oct. 9, 1986, a knockout over World Lightheavyweight Kickboxing Champion Everett "Man Monster" Eddie in 7 rounds on June 7, 1978, a submission over former European Heavyweight Boxing Champ Karl Mildenberger on Nov. 11, 1978, a decision victory over heavyweight boxing contender Chuck Wepner, a submission over Thai-Boxing World Heavyweight King Chota Chochoshvili on Sept. 5, 1989, a choke out over Gerard Gordeau World Heavyweight Savate Champion, submission victories over former world wrestling heavyweight champions Sting and Rick Flair, and a submission victor over former UFC World Heavyweight king Don Frye. Inoki announced his retirement from the ring on April 4, 1998.- Actor
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"The American Dream" has been one of the most popular and colorful professional wrestlers in history. Rhodes began wrestling in the 1960s and gained a reputation as a fast-talking, hard-rocking wrestler. He teamed early in his career with fellow Texan, the late Dick Murdoch, and, for more than 20 years, they wreaked havoc in on- and off-again tag team appearances. Rhodes, always a tough brawler with a few "scientific" moves, finally won his first NWA World heavyweight championship by beating "Handsome" Harley Race in 1979. Although his first title reign would last less than a week, Rhodes managed to capture the NWA title on two more occasions. Today, Rhodes runs a small promotion called "Turnbuckle Championship Wrestling" and continues to wrestle. His son, Dustin Rhodes, appears as "Golddust" on Spike TV's WWE Raw (1993) series.- Bruno Leopoldo Francesco Sammartino was an Italian-born American professional wrestler, best known for his work with the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF, now WWE). There, he held the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship (WWWF Heavyweight Championship during his second reign) for more than 11 years (4,040 days) across two reigns, the first of which is the longest single reign in the promotion's history at 2,803 days. He is overall a two-time world champion in professional wrestling.
Dubbed "The Italian Strongman" and "The Strongest Man in the World" early in his career, Sammartino later earned the title "The Living Legend". Known for his powerful bear-hug finishing move, he is widely regarded as the greatest professional wrestler of all time. Sammartino became a vocal critic of the drug use and raunchier story-lines that became prevalent in the professional wrestling industry after his retirement but he reconciled with WWE in 2013 and headlined their Hall of Fame ceremony that year. Terry Funk commented that Sammartino "was bigger than wrestling itself". - Actor
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Phillip Jack Brooks, better known by the ring name CM Punk, is an American Professional wrestler, comic book writer and former mixed martial artist.
Punk began his professional wrestling career on the American independent circuit, primarily with Ring of Honor (ROH) until 2005, when he signed with the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). He went on to become world champion throughout multiple organizations. Punk won the WWE Championship twice, WWE's World Heavyweight Championship three times and the ECW and ROH World Championships once each. In WWE, he was also a one-time World Tag Team Champion (with Kofi Kingston) and one-time Intercontinental Champion, making him the 19th Triple Crown Champion and the fastest man in WWE history to achieve this feat, doing so in 203 days. In addition, he was the 2011 WWE Superstar of the Year and the first two-time Money in the Bank winner. During the peak of his career, Punk was considered by many as the best professional wrestler in the world. Pro Wrestling Illustrated named him Wrestler of the Year in both 2011 and 2012 during which he had one of the longest WWE Championship title reigns in history at 434 days.
Brooks used the CM Punk moniker his entire career in every organization he worked. Punk consistently portrayed the character of an outspoken, sharp-tongued, anti-establishment, straight edge iconoclast. Most of the straight edge principles he portrayed, such as not drinking alcohol or not taking recreational drugs, are his real life views. Depending on his alignment as a hero or villain, he emphasized different aspects of the straight edge culture to garner the desired audience reaction.
After becoming disgruntled in WWE, Punk retired from professional wrestling in 2014. He then pursued a career in mixed martial arts (MMA) and was signed by the UFC in December of that year. On August 20, Punk made his debut for AEW at The First Dance event on Rampage, marking his return to professional wrestling after a seven-year retirement. On May 29th, 2022 Punk won AEW World title which makes him the first man in history to hold the WWE, AEW and Ring of Honor World Championships.- Colby Daniel Lopez is an American professional wrestler and actor currently signed to WWE under the ring name Seth Rollins. Prior to signing with WWE, Lopez wrestled as Tyler Black for Ring of Honor (ROH), where he held the ROH World Championship once and the ROH World Tag Team Championship twice (with Jimmy Jacobs), as well as the winner of the 2009 Survival of the Fittest tournament. He also wrestled for various independent promotions including Full Impact Pro (FIP), where he was a one-time FIP World Heavyweight Champion, as well as Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG), where he was a one-time PWG World Tag Team Champion (also with Jacobs).
After signing with WWE in 2010, he was sent to its developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) where he was the first FCW Grand Slam Champion. After WWE rebranded FCW into NXT, he became the inaugural NXT Champion. Rollins debuted on WWE's main roster in 2012 alongside Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns as The Shield. Rollins won his first main roster championship while with the group, the WWE Tag Team Championship, with Reigns. Following The Shield's first breakup in June 2014, Rollins has gone on to become a two-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion, one-time Intercontinental Champion, a one-time United States Champion, a three-time WWE/Raw Tag Team Champion (with Reigns, Ambrose and Jason Jordan, respectively), the 2014 Money in the Bank winner and the 2015 Superstar of the Year. Upon winning the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 34, Rollins became the twenty-ninth Triple Crown Champion and the eighteenth Grand Slam Champion.
Rollins has headlined numerous major pay-per-view events for WWE, including WrestleMania 31. Industry veteran Sting, who wrestled his final match against Rollins at Night of Champions on September 20, 2015, described him as the most talented professional wrestler he has ever seen or worked with. - Windham Rotunda was born on 23 May 1987 in Brooksville, Florida, USA. He was an actor, known for WWE Smackdown! (1999), WWE NXT (2010) and SummerSlam (2013). He was married to Samantha Krieger. He died on 24 August 2023 in Clermont, Florida, USA.
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American-born, Canadian-raised professional wrestler, rock singer, actor and author. Debuted in 1990 in Calgary after training in the Hart Family Dungeon. He competed for Stampede Wrestling, for the Canadian National Wrestling Alliance (no connection to the National Wrestling Alliance) and West Fours Wrestling Alliance before jumping to Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling in Japan. He also wrestled for Canadian Rocky Mountain Wrestling, CMLL, UWA and AAA in Mexico, and WAR in Japan before arriving in the U.S. as part of the team the Thrillseekers (renamed from Sudden Impact) with Lance Storm in James E. Cornette's Smoky Mountain Wrestling promotion. He arrived in ECW in February 1996 and feuded with Pit Bull #2 (Anthony Durante) over the ECW World Television Title. Arrived in WCW in August 1996 and eventually made his home in the Cruiserweight Division, winning the title five times. Turned heel at the end of 1997, essentially solidifying his persona for years to come. Went to WWE in 1999, and would become one of the most decorated wrestlers in the company's history. Outside of wrestling, he has been leading his heavy metal band Fozzy since 1999, published three autobiographies (2007's "A Lion's Tale: Around the World in Spandex" [covering his career right up to his WWE debut]; 2011's "Undisputed: How to Become the World Champion in 1,372 Easy Steps"; and 2014's "Best In The World...At What I Have No Idea."), and has done stage acting and hosted a radio show as well as other pursuits. Among his in-ring achievements, he is a former WWE World Heavyweight Champion, an 8x WWE Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion, a former 5x WWE World Tag Team Champion, a former 2x WWE Tag Team Champion, a former WWE European Heavyweight Champion, a former WWE Hardcore Champion, a former ECW World Television Champion, a former WCW World Television Champion, and was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 2010.- Aurelian Smith Jr. better known by the ring name Jake "The Snake" Roberts, is an American professional wrestler and actor signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) where he performs as manager to Lance Archer. He is best known for his two stints in the World Wrestling Federation (later called WWE); the first between 1986 and 1992, and the second between 1996 and 1997. He wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance in 1983, World Championship Wrestling in 1992, and the Mexico-based Asistencia Asesoría y Administración between 1993 and 1994 and again in 1997. He appeared in Extreme Championship Wrestling during the summer of 1997 and made appearances for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling from 2006 through 2008.
Throughout his career, Roberts was known for his intense and cerebral promos, dark charisma, extensive use of psychology in his matches, and innovative use of the DDT finishing move (which was later named the "coolest" maneuver of all time by WWE). He often brought snakes into the ring, most famously a python. He was one of the subjects of the 1999 documentary film Beyond the Mat. In 2012, he moved in with fellow wrestler Diamond Dallas Page to seek help in getting his life back on track following years of alcohol and drug addiction, a period covered in the 2015 documentary The Resurrection of Jake the Snake. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on April 5, 2014, and the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in 2020. - Actor
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Born on March 24, 1965. Best known as "The Undertaker" from World Wrestling Entertainment. He first came to the WWF in 1990 as Ted DiBiase's mystery partner at The Survivor Series (1990). At first, he was a heel, but later turned face, around WrestleMania VIII (1992). He has held the WWF World Title on four separate occasions, first at the Survivor Series (1991) (dubbed "Hulk Hogan's Gravest Challenge"), from then champion, Hulk Hogan. Hogan won the title back shortly thereafter, only to be stripped of the title due to the circumstances by which he won the match. Undertaker next won the title at WrestleMania 13 (1997) from Sycho Sid. Taker defeated Stone Cold Steve Austin to win his third WWF Title at WWF Over the Edge (1999). His fourth and final WWE title reign was won at WWE Judgment Day (2002), coming full circle, by defeating Hulk Hogan once again.- Actor
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Dustin Rhodes was born on 11 April 1969 in Austin, Texas, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Copper Bill (2020), Meet Me There (2014) and Scooby-Doo! and WWE: Curse of the Speed Demon (2016). He has been married to Ta-rel Marie Runnels since 22 June 2012. He was previously married to Milena Martelloni and Terri Runnels.- Actor
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Cody Rhodes was born on 30 June 1985 in Marietta, Georgia, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Arrow (2012), Warehouse 13 (2009) and WWE Smackdown! (1999). He has been married to Brandi Rhodes since 12 September 2013. They have one child.- Harley Race is one of the foremost legends of professional wrestling. He is an 8-time NWA Heavyweight Champion and has held numerous other titles over his career that has spanned four decades.
Harley won his first NWA World Title in Kansas City in 1973 when he defeated Dory Funk Jr. Harley feels that this was the best match of his whole career as Funk had held the title for more that four years, so winning it made the moment all the more special.
In addition to bloody rivalries with both Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk, Harley has worked great programs with other wrestling legends as Dusty Rhodes, Bruiser Brody, Dick the Bruiser and Ric Flair. Like how Harley had wrestled long time champion Dory Funk Jr. to his first heavyweight title, it was Ric Flair who defeated long time champion Harley to win his first heavyweight title.
Race reportedly has wrestled in every country in the world, with the exceptions of Russia and Communist China. Race is particularly revered in Japan, having made over 60 trips there during his career.
Towards the end of his in-ring wrestling career, Harley went to work for the WWF (now WWE) and became know as "The King" Harley Race. Harley feuded with "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan and Hulk Hogan, but one of his most memorable matches as against the late Junk Yard Dog at Wrestlemania III in front of over 90,000 people. Harley also once won one of the WWF's first King of the Ring tournaments. During his time in the WWF, Harley was managed by "The Brain" Bobby Heenan.
Harley left the WWF and went back to the NWA, which was now known as WCW. He had retired from the ring and had now begun managing. He managed the Kolassal Kongs, The Super Invader, Yoshi Kwan, Vinnie Vegas (Kevin Nash), Mr. Hughes and he managed both Lex Luger and Big Van Vader to the WCW World Heavyweight championship.
In 1994, Harley retired from the ring, and came back home to Kansas City. In the summer of 1999, Harley Race founded World League Wrestling. Harley was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on March 13, 2004 and to the Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame on May 15, 2004. - André René Roussimoff was born in a small farming community in Grenoble, France to Boris and Marian Rouismoff. His parents and four siblings were all of normal size, but André suffered from acromegaly, a hormonal disorder that results when the pituitary gland produces excess growth hormone. As the Giant grew up (very quickly, as he reached the height of 6' 3" by the age of 12) he began to often disagree with his parents. He left home at 14 and obtained a job with a furniture-moving firm and began to play rugby. At 17 he was seen training at a gym by several professional wrestlers. Impressed by his size, they taught him some basic wrestling skills and built a friendship with him. Later, when one of the wrestlers was injured, André stepped in for him. He would wrestle for nearly thirty more years. By his early 20s André had wrestled in Algeria, South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, England, Scotland, and most of non-Communist Europe but had not found fame. In 1971 he came to North America under the name Jean Ferre and was mildly popular in Canada. Then he met a New York based booker by the name of Vincent J. McMahon (often incorrectly referred to as "Vince McMahon Sr") who renamed him "Andre the Giant," and billed him as 7' 4" (Andre was really closer to 7'). Soon Andre the Giant became a national sensation and was a much sought after wrestler. In addition he participated in television, movies, and commercials. With his wealth the Giant bought a ranch in Ellerbe, North Carolina where he would live during his rare time off and after he retired from wrestling in 1990. He died while in France after attending his father's funeral. André was cremated and his ashes were spread across his ranch. He is survived by his one daughter.
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Atsushi Ohnita was born on 25 October 1957 in Nagasaki, Japan. He is an actor and director, known for Rebirth of Mothra III (1998), DAN-GAN (1995) and Hideyoshi (1996).- Frank Goodish was born on 18 June 1946 in Detroit, Michigan, USA. He was an actor, known for WWF Championship Wrestling (1972), WCW Worldwide (1975) and WWF World Championship Wrestling (1972). He was married to Barbara Goodish and Nola Marie Neece. He died on 17 July 1988 in Bayamón, Puerto Rico.
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Allen Neal Jones best known by the ring name AJ Styles is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE. Long regarded as one of the best wrestlers in the world, Styles has headlined numerous pay-per-view events internationally.
Styles debuted in 1998 and competed for various independent promotions, before gaining his first mainstream exposure in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 2001. He became widely known for his tenure in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) from 2002-2013, where he was dubbed "Mr. TNA". While in TNA, Styles held the NWA World Heavyweight Championship three times and the TNA World Heavyweight Championship twice. He was also the inaugural titleholder of the X Division Championship, which he won six times. Styles is the first professional wrestler ever to complete the TNA Triple Crown (five times) and the TNA Grand Slam (two times).
In 2010, Styles became the first ever TNA-contracted wrestler to be ranked number one on the annual Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) PWI 500 list. He simultaneously appeared in Ring of Honor (ROH) from 2002-2006, where he became the first ROH Pure Champion. In 2014, Styles signed with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and won his first of two IWGP Heavyweight Championships in his debut match, later becoming the third leader of the Bullet Club. Styles has also won various titles on international independent circuits, including the PWG World Championship.
Styles first appeared in WWE (then the World Wrestling Federation, or the WWF) in 2002, but turned down a developmental contract he was offered with the company. He signed a multi-year contract with WWE fourteen years later in January 2016, making his re-debut that month and going on to win the WWE Championship in September. Both PWI and the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (WON) voted him Wrestler of the Year for 2016. With his second WWE Championship victory in Manchester, England in November 2017, Styles was recognized by WWE as the first wrestler to win the title outside of North America. Also that year, he was inducted into the WON Hall of Fame.- Actor
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Shinsuke Nakamura was born on 24 February 1980 in Mineyama, Kyoto, Japan. He is an actor, known for WWE Smackdown! (1999), WWE NXT (2010) and TNA Xplosion (2002). He has been married to Harumi Maekawa since September 2007.- Mil Máscaras was born on 15 July 1942 in San Luis Potosi, San Luis Potosi, Mexico. He is an actor and writer, known for El robo de las momias de Guanajuato (1972), The Mummies of San Angel (1975) and Los canallas (1968). He has been married to Linda Bello since 11 December 2006. He was previously married to Mara Davis, Ariel Roderick and Anita Sanchez.
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Retired American professional wrestler best known for his work for ECW and WCW during the 1990s. He is the son of the late wrestling legend Boris Malenko. He debuted in Florida in 1979 and proceeded to work all over the world, particularly in Japan. He teamed with his brother Joe for years. He also worked as a referee, including on the January 4, 1986 (taped December 19, 1985) "WWF Saturday Night's Main Event." While wrestling in the Junior Heavyweight division for New Japan Pro Wrestling, became part of the "Holy Trinity" or "New Japan 3" with Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero and they would go on to have numerous matches for several promotions either as teammates or as opponents. Malenko arrived in ECW in 1994 as a heel. He defeated 2 Cold Scorpio (Charles Scaggs) for the ECW World Television Title in November and held it until Scorpio regained it in March 1995. Malenko defeated Eddie Guerrero for the belt and held it for a week in July 1995. Malenko, Benoit and Shane Douglas formed the Triple Threat at the start of 1995. Malenko and Benoit defeated Sabu (Terry Brunk) and the Tazmaniac (Peter Senerchia) for the ECW World Tag Team Titles in February 1995 at "ECW Return of the Funker" and held them until the Public Enemy (Johnny Grunge (Mike Durham) and Flyboy Rocco Rock (Ted Petty) defeated them and the Tazmaniac and Rick Steiner (substituting for Sabu, who had left the company) at "ECW The Three Way Dance" on April 8th. Malenko, Guerrero and Benoit left for WCW in September 1995, with ECW announcer Joey Styles explaining that it was due to something in their contracts with New Japan, which had a working relationship with WCW. He made his home in the Cruiserweight Division, and became known as "The Man of a 1000 Holds" and "The Iceman" for his stoic nature. At "WCW Uncensored" in March 1997, he defeated Guerrero for the WCW United States Heavyweight Title and held it until Jeff Jarrett defeated him in June. At "WCW Uncensored" in March 1998, WCW World Cruiserweight Champion Chris Jericho defeated Malenko. Mean Gene Okerlund asked Malenko what he was going to do, and he said he was going "home." Malenko promptly disappeared from TV with no word being given as to where he was and what he was doing. This led to a series of hilarious promos by Chris Jericho, including the "1004 Holds" one. At "WCW Slamboree" in May 1998, there was a Cruiserweight battle royal where the winner would get a shot at Jericho's title. The match came down to Juventud Guerrera (Eduardo Hernández) and Ciclope, which was surprising since Ciclope was one of WCW's less successful luchadores. Ciclope and Juvi shook hands, and Juvi promptly eliminated himself. "Ciclope" unmasked to reveal Malenko. Malenko proceeded to defeat Jericho for the title. Later that summer, Malenko started asking Arn Anderson about reforming the Four Horsemen, who had been disbanded since the NWO (Kevin Nash/Syxx (Sean Waltman)/Buff Bagwell (Marcus Bagwell)/Konnan (Charles Ashenoff)) had defeated them in the War Games match at "WCW Fall Brawl 1997: War Games" via Curt Hennig turning heel and slamming the cage door on Ric Flair's head while Benoit and Steve "Mongo" McMichael (Steve McMichael) were handcuffed to the cage. This was during the time that Flair was off of TV due to WCW boss Eric Bischoff suing him. On the September 14, 1998 "WCW Monday Nitro," the Four Horsemen returned. Arn Anderson and former Horsemen manager James J. Dillon brought out Benoit, Malenko, McMichael and the returning Flair to the ring. This led to another feud with the NWO. At "WCW Uncensored" in March 1999, Benoit and Malenko defeated Curt Hennig and Barry Windham for the WCW World Tag Team Titles. They held the belts for two weeks, losing them to Rey Misterio Jr. and Billy Kidman on the March 29, 1999 "WCW Monday Nitro." The Horsemen broke up once and for all in the Spring. Benoit, Malenko, Perry Saturn and Shane Douglas, making his surprise return to WCW after six years, formed the Revolution out of frustration with how they were treated by the company and how the older main eventers (Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Randy Savage, etc.) got everything they wanted. The group ended at "WCW Souled Out 2000," as Benoit, Malenko, Saturn and Guerrero left for WWE. Their group was named the Radicals. Malenko defeated Essa Rios (Jose Seldano) for the WWF World Light Heavyweight Title on the March 13, 2000 "WWF Monday Night Raw" and held it until Scotty 2 Hotty (Scott Taylor) defeated him on the April 17th "Raw." Malenko regained the title on the April 27th "WWF SmackDown!" and held it until losing it to Crash Holly (Michael Lockwood) on the March 13, 2001 "WWF Sunday Night Heat." On the May 22, 2000 "Raw," the Radicals (Dean Malenko and Perry Saturn) faced the Godfather (Charles Wright) and Essa Rios. During the Godfather's usual pre-match spiel, he mentioned Dean being "the Man of 1000 Holds" and that his hos knew "1000 positions" and that Dean could have any two hos he wanted. This led to Malenko adopting a new gimmick as a James Bond-styled ladies' man. This led to Malenko pursuing Lita (Amy Dumas), and a feud between the Radicals and Team Xtreme (The Hardy Boyz (Matt Hardy) and Jeff Hardy) and Lita), which would be Malenko's last feud before he retired in 2001. He has worked as a road agent for WWE ever since.- Few antagonists in the history of sports-entertainment have stirred as much controversy in the squared circle as the man from The Bowery called Raven. The grungy sociopath terrorized opponents and fans alike in major wrestling organizations including TNA, WWE, WCW, ROH and the original incarnation of ECW.
Raven had the brains to become one of the ring's most influential leaders. He became a villainous idol in Philadelphia's original ECW by employing a mesmerizing blend of an indomitable demeanor and glib prose. His signature sign off became Edgar Allen Poe's elegant line, "Quoth the Raven, 'Nevermore.' "
In his career, Raven captured the most prestigious title in professional wrestling history the NWA World Heavyweight Championship during his time in TNA. He has also appeared in films such as Death Racers and Sleeper as well as writing comics for Marvel, the man known as Raven laid the groundwork for a legendary career performing for every major company in the industry. - Actor
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Brian Pillman makes the list of a long line of tragic deaths in wrestling. He had endured 36 throat operations as a child. Pillman played football in the NFL for the Cincinnati Bengals in 1984 and in the CFL for the Calgary Stampeders. It was in Calgary where he met Owen Hart (who also died at a relatively early age) and started his wrestling career for Stampede Wrestling. Pillman's major titles include the Tag Team Championship, the US Tag Team Championship, and the Light Heavyweight Championship. Pillman also suffered a terrible broken leg that deeply hurt his career. He died at the age of 35 while still being an active wrestler in the World Wrestling Federation.- Actor
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Rey Mysterio was a professional wrestler for WCW who made his wrestling debut in Mexico. He dropped out of school to become a pro wrestler in Mexico. He is the nephew of wrestler Rey Misterio. He had a brief role (unmasked) as himself in Ready 2 Rumble. Came to WCW from ECW In 1996 after he debuted against Dean Malenko and lost in a stellar match. Like many luchadores (Latin wrestlers), he wore a mask until 1999 when he lost it to The Outsiders. Rey held multiple WCW Titles (8 different reigns in the cruiserweight, tag team & cruiserweight tag team divisions). He now resides in San Diego, California.- Ricky Morton is a professional wrestler, most notably as one half of the tag team The Rock & Roll Express, with Robert Gibson who held the NWA Tag Team Titles 8 times and were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2017. He was trained by his father, referee, Paul Morton and Ken Lucas. He continues to wrestle today, working the independent circuit and has appeared on AEW Dynamite. He also owns and operates the School of Morton wrestling school in Chuckey, Tennessee.
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Kenny Omega was born on 16 October 1983 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. He is an actor and executive, known for Deep South Wrestling (2006), Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix (2023) and AEW Games 2.Show (2021).- Owen Hart was one of twelve children from a legendary Canadian wrestling family. His brother Bret is also one of the most well known wrestlers of all time. Owen was one of the best wrestlers in the business and his major accomplishments include being the 1994 King of the Ring, former Intercontinental Champion(2), former European Champion, and co-holder of the Tag Team Championship (4). Sadly, Hart plunged to his death on May 23, 1999 during a PPV when he was performing a spectacular entrance. Hart was only 34 and is survived by his wife Martha, his son Oje and his daughter Athena.
- Christopher Michael Benoit is a Canadian wrestler who was born in Montreal, Quebec, the son of Michael and Margaret Benoit. He grew up in Edmonton, Alberta, from where he was billed throughout the bulk of his career. He had a sister living near Edmonton.
During his 22-year career, Benoit worked for numerous promotions including the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment (WWF/WWE), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). Industry historian Dave Meltzer considered him "one of the top 10, maybe even the top 5, all-time greats".
Benoit held 22 championships between WWF/WWE, WCW, NJPW, and ECW. He was a two-time world champion, having been a one-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, and a one-time World Heavyweight Champion in WWE; he was booked to win a third world championship at a WWE event on the night of his death. Benoit was the twelfth WWE Triple Crown Champion and sixth WCW Triple Crown Champion, and the second of five men in history to achieve both the WWE and WCW Triple Crown Championships. He was also the 2004 Royal Rumble winner, joining Shawn Michaels as the only two men to win a Royal Rumble as the number one entrant. Benoit headlined multiple pay-per-views for WWE, including a victory in the World Heavyweight Championship main event match of WrestleMania XX in 2004.
Benoit murdered his wife and son on June 22, 2007, and hanged himself two days later. Research suggests depression and brain damage from numerous concussions are likely contributing factors leading to the crime. - Actor
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Martin Anthony Lunde , better known by the ring name Arn Anderson, is an American professional wrestling road agent, author, and retired professional wrestler. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a manager. Although he is widely regarded as one of the finest tag team wrestlers in history, he also had a successful singles career and became a four-time NWA/WCW World Television Champion, which he often called his "World Title".
Anderson's career has been highlighted by his alliances with Ric Flair and various members of the wrestling stable The Four Horsemen in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW). After his retirement, he worked as a producer for WWE until 2019, when he joined AEW. On March 31, 2012, Anderson was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as a member of the Four Horsemen.