Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} The Grapple Manual Heroes and Villains from the Golden Age of World Wrestling by Nagasaki International Championship Wrestling. International Championship Wrestling was an independent promotion based in Lexington, Kentucky that operated from 1978 until 1984. It was run by WCW Hall of Famer Angelo Poffo, the father of and "The Genius" . [1] Throughout its history, ICW was considered an "outlaw" promotion, in which International Championship Wrestling was not a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and promoted shows in direct competition against NWA regional territories. [2] Contents. History. The promotion was founded in 1978 as a rival to Ron Fuller's Southeastern Championship Wrestling and Nick Gulas NWA Mid-American territory, extending into Verne Gagne's American Wrestling Association and Dick Afflis' World Wrestling Association territories by 1981. Later on they'd come in direct competition with and 's Continental Wrestling Association [1] as well, operating in their territories and even managed to get several wrestlers to leave Southeastern and the CWA to join ICW. [3] This, among other issues, would result in a series of lawsuits between Poffo and other NWA-affiliated organizations during the late 1970s and early 80s. [4] The main stars of ICW were Poffo's sons Randy (better known as "Macho Man" Randy Savage) and Lanny (better known as "Leaping" Lanny Poffo) who frequently traded the promotion's heavyweight title between each other; [5] in fact only one other man (Paul Christy) held the ICW World Heavyweight Championship in the 6 years the title existed. While Randy and Lanny were the focus of the federation, it did feature many other stars such as Ronnie Garvin, Crusher Broomfield (later known as One Man Gang and Akeem), Bob Orton, Jr., Bob Roop, , "Pistol" Pez Whatley, Ox Baker, George Weingeroff, and the Devil's Duo (Jeff Sword and Doug Vines) with their manager Izzy Slapawitz. Elizabeth Hulette, who would later gain fame in the WWF and WCW as Miss Elizabeth, got her start in professional wrestling as an on-camera host (using the name "Liz Hulette", as she was known to her friends while growing up) of ICW's weekly TV show where she also started her romance with Randy Savage. In 1984 the promotion closed down due to dwindling attendance and its assets were bought by Jerry Jarrett and Jerry Lawler. Due to the fans' knowledge of the extremely bitter rivalry between ICW and CWA, Randy Savage was able to migrate to the CWA and begin a memorable feud with Jerry Lawler that established Randy Savage as a world-class superstar. [1] Same name different promotions. Paul Christy, the wrestler who had ended Randy Savage's final reign as ICW World Champion, started a new ICW when Poffo's promotion folded. He ran the promotion for a few years with little publicity or success before closing it down in the late 1980s. Another promotion called International Championship Wrestling operated out of Boston in the late 1980s, promoted by Angelo and Mario Savoldi, and Mario's son Joe Savoldi. After forming a working agreement with World Class Championship Wrestling, the Boston-based ICW was renamed International World Class Championship Wrestling (IWCCW). It included such stars as: The Russian Brute, Tom Brandi, Mike Kahula, Tony Rumble, and Nikolai Volkoff. International Championship Wrestling (ICW) is also a lesser known promotion based in Cloverdale, BC. Past wrestlers include Buddy Wayne, and Chico Alvarez. [6] [7] International Championship Wrestling. International Championship Wrestling was an independent professional wrestling promotion based in Lexington, Kentucky that operated from 1978 until 1984. It was run by Angelo Poffo, the father of Randy Savage and "The Genius" Lanny Poffo. [1] Throughout its history, ICW was considered an "outlaw" promotion, as it was not a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and promoted shows in direct competition against NWA regional territories. [2] Contents. History Same name different promotions Tournaments ICW Television Championship Tournament (1980) ICW U.S Championship Tournament (1982) Championships Alumni Wrestlers Tag teams Announcers Referees See also References External links. History. The promotion was founded in 1978 as a rival to Ron Fuller's Southeastern Championship Wrestling and Nick Gulas NWA Mid-American territory, extending into Verne Gagne's American Wrestling Association and Dick Afflis' World Wrestling Association territories by 1981. Later on they'd come in direct competition with Jerry Lawler and Jerry Jarrett's Continental Wrestling Association [1] as well, operating in their territories and even managed to get several wrestlers to leave Southeastern and the CWA to join ICW. [3] This, among other issues, would result in a series of lawsuits between Poffo and other NWA-affiliated organizations during the late 1970s and early 80s. [4] The main stars of ICW were Poffo's sons Randy (better known as "Macho Man" Randy Savage) and Lanny (better known as "Leaping" Lanny Poffo) who frequently traded the promotion's heavyweight title between each other; [5] in fact only two other men (Ronnie Garvin and Paul Christy) held the ICW Heavyweight Championship in the 6 years the title existed. While Randy and Lanny were the focus of the federation, it did feature many other stars such as The Original Sheik (Ed Farhat), Ronnie Garvin, Crusher Broomfield (later known as One Man Gang and Akeem), Bob Orton, Jr., Bob Roop, Rip Rogers, "Pistol" Pez Whatley, Ox Baker, George Weingeroff, and the Devil's Duo (Jeff Sword and Doug Vines) with their manager Izzy Slapawitz. Elizabeth Hulette, who would later gain fame in the WWF and WCW as Miss Elizabeth, got her start in professional wrestling as an on-camera host (using the name "Liz Hulette", as she was known to her friends while growing up) of ICW's weekly TV show where she also started her romance with Randy Savage. They were later married. In 1984 the promotion closed down due to dwindling attendance and its assets were bought by Jerry Jarrett and Jerry Lawler. Due to the fans' knowledge of the extremely bitter rivalry between ICW and CWA, Randy Savage was able to migrate to the CWA and begin a memorable feud with Jerry Lawler that established Randy Savage as a world-class superstar. [1] Same name different promotions. Paul Christy, the wrestler who had ended Randy Savage's final reign as ICW World Champion, started a new ICW when Poffo's promotion folded. He ran the promotion for a few years with little publicity or success before closing it down in the late 1980s. Another promotion called International Championship Wrestling operated out of Boston in the late 1980s, promoted by Angelo and Mario Savoldi, and Mario's son Joe Savoldi. After forming a working agreement with World Class Championship Wrestling, the Boston-based ICW was renamed International World Class Championship Wrestling (IWCCW). It included such stars as: The Russian Brute, Tom Brandi, Mike Kahula, Tony Rumble, and Nikolai Volkoff. International Championship Wrestling (ICW) is also a lesser known promotion based in Cloverdale, BC. Past wrestlers include Buddy Wayne, and Chico Alvarez. [6] [7] Tournaments. International Championship Wrestling held a variety of professional wrestling tournaments between 1980 and 1982 that were competed for by wrestlers that were a part of their roster. ICW Television Championship Tournament (1980) The ICW Television Championship Tournament was a single-elimination tournament to crown the first-ever ICW Television Champion. It was held in the fall, with the finals occurring on September 9, 1980. [8] ,"params": ,"RD2": ,"RD1-team1": ,"RD1-team2": ,"RD1-score1": ,"RD1-score2": ,"RD1-team3": ,"RD1-team4": ,"RD1-score3": ,"RD1-score4": ,"RD2-team1": ,"RD2-team2": ,"RD2-score1": ,"RD2-score2": >,"i":0>>]>" > Semifinals Final 1 Bob Roop 4 The Best Bob Roop Randy Savage 3 Randy Savage 2 Pez Whatley. ICW U.S Tag Team Championship Tournament (1982) The ICW U.S. Tag Team Championship Tournament was a one-night tag team tournament held in Johnson City, Tennessee on January 5, 1982, for the vacant ICW United States Tag Team Championship. [9] [10] ,"params": ,"RD2": ,"RD3": ,"RD1-team1": ,"RD1-team2": ,"RD1-score1": ,"RD1-score2": ,"RD1-team3": ,"RD1-team4": ,"RD1-score3": ,"RD1- score4": ,"RD1-team5": ,"RD1-team6": ,"RD1-score5": ,"RD1-score6": ,"RD1-team7": ,"RD1-team8": ,"RD1-score7": ,"RD1-score8": ,"RD2- team1": ,"RD2-team2": ,"RD2-score1": ,"RD2-score2": ,"RD2-team3": ,"RD2-team4": ,"RD2-score3": ,"RD2-score4": ,"RD3-team1": ,"RD3- team2": ,"RD3-score1": ,"RD3-score2": >,"i":0>>]>" > Quarterfinals Semifinals Final Rip Rogers and Pez Whatley Apache Lou and Bill Martin Rip Rogers and Pez Whatley Crusher Broomfield and Rick Star Gary Royal and Plowboy Pete Crusher Broomfield and Rick Star Rip Rogers and Pez Whatley Lanny Poffo and Hoot Gibson The Great Tio and Tony Peters Ronnie Garvin and Chief Tapu The Great Tio and Tony Peters Lanny Poffo and Hoot Gibson BYE BYE. Championships. Championship: Last Champion(s): Active From: Active Till: Notes: ICW World Heavyweight Championship Lanny Poffo May 10, 1978 1984 [11] ICW United States Tag Team Championship Bart Batten and Johnny Wilhoit June 14, 1978 1984 [11] ICW United States Heavyweight Championship Paul Christy 1981 1984 [11] ICW Television Championship The Great Tio September 9, 1980 1983 [11] ICW Southeastern Heavyweight Championship Lanny Poffo May 26, 1979 1984 [11] ICW Southeastern Tag Team Championship Bob Roop and Big Boy Williams July 1979 August 1980 [11] Alumni. Wrestlers. Appolo Gold Barry O Bob Orton, Jr. Bob Roop (Also worked as "The Best") Boris Malenko Buddy Landel Chief Tapu Crusher Broomfield Doug Vines Gary Royal George Weingeroff The Great Kabuki The Great Tio Izzy Slapawitz Jeff Sword Lanny Poffo MAX THUNDER Mike Doggendorf Mr. Wrestling I The Miser Ox Baker Paul Christy Pez Whatley Randy Savage Ratamyus "Hustler" Rip Rogers Ron "The One Man Gang" Garvin Ron Wright Super Duper Mario Tony Falk Tony Peters Willie Monroe Jeff Turner Dr. X Sam Diamond (Spiderman) Bill Martin (1981 rookie of the year) Rick Conner Don Wright Hoot Gibson Devay Brunson Terry Gibbs Dennis Condrey Chief Black Eagle Masked Assassin Big Boy Williams Johnny Wilhoit. Pamela Watson Julia "BlackWidow" Hoskins. Tag teams. – (Brad Batten and Bart Batten) The Convertible Blondes - (Pez Whatley, Rip Rogers and Gary Royal) Devil's Duo – (Doug Vines and Jeff Sword) The Samoans - (The Great Tio and Chief Tapu) Announcers. Tim Tyler Edgar Wallace Liz Hulette Robert Phillips Jr. (timekeeper) Referees. Sam Diamond aka Jack Barnett Jim Davis Emmitt Couch George Hill. See also. Related Research Articles. The United States Wrestling Association ( USWA ) was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. The company was founded when the Memphis-based Continental Wrestling Association merged with the Dallas-based World Class Wrestling Association. Randall Mario Poffo , better known by his Randy Savage , was an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper and commentator best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and later World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). His best known nickname was "Macho Man". Angelo John Poffo was an American professional wrestler and wrestling . He ran International Championship Wrestling for a number of years, holding cards in Tennessee, Kentucky and Arkansas. He was the father of "The Genius" Lanny Poffo and "Macho Man" Randy Savage. Lanny Mark Poffo , better known by his ring names "Leaping" Lanny Poffo and The Genius is a Canadian-American professional wrestler, motivational speaker, poet and actor. Poffo was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, to Angelo Poffo, an Italian American Catholic, and Judy, a Jewish-American. He is also the real-life younger brother of "Macho Man" Randy Savage. Poffo grew up in Downers Grove, Illinois and currently makes his residence in Clearwater, Florida. Roger Barnes is a Canadian retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, "Rugged" Ronnie Garvin . He is best known for his appearances with Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation in the late-1980s and early-1990s. Championships held by Garvin over his career include the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. Wallace Stanfield "Stan" Lane is an American retired professional wrestler and color commentator. He is best known for his appearances with the Continental Wrestling Association (CWA), Jim Crockett Promotions and World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in the 1980s. Primarily a tag team wrestler, Lane held championships including the AWA Southern Tag Team Championship, NWA United States Tag Team Championship, NWA World Tag Team Championship, and SMW Tag Team Championship as part of The Fabulous Ones, The Midnight Express, and The Heavenly Bodies. Pezavan Whatley was a professional wrestler in the 1980s up until the mid-1990s. Mark Sciarra is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Rip Rogers . He is currently head trainer for Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). The First Family was the name of two professional wrestling stables led by , first in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the Memphis- based Continental Wrestling Association, then in the late 1990s in World Championship Wrestling. Larry Booker , better known by his ring names Moondog Spot and Larry Latham , was an American professional wrestler. Robert Michael Roop is a retired amateur and professional wrestler, whose career as a wrestler spanned high school, college, the United States Army, amateur and professional wrestling. He was an American heavyweight Greco-Roman wrestler at the 1968 Summer Olympics. The ICW World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship of International Championship Wrestling. Many title defenses featured matches between Randy Savage and his real-life brother Lanny Poffo. After the original ICW shut down in 1984, Paul Christy started his own ICW promotion. The title history in 1979 is not clear. It is possible that Randy Savage won the title in July rather than on March 13. In addition, one source does not recognize the title changes between Savage and Poffo between this reign and 1982, as it claims that Savage won the title in 1979 and held it for over four years before dropping it to Christy. Because the championship is a professional wrestling championship, it is not won or lost competitively but instead by the decision of the bookers of a wrestling promotion. The championship is awarded after the chosen team "wins" a match to maintain the illusion that professional wrestling is a competitive sport. Continental Wrestling Association was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually referred to as Mid-Southern Wrestling or the Memphis territory. This promotion was a chief NWA territory during the 1970s and early 1980s while operating out of Tennessee and Kentucky. The CWA was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance until 1986 and affiliated with the American Wrestling Association until 1989. In 1989, the CWA merged with the World Class Wrestling Association to form the United States Wrestling Association thus ceasing to exist as a separate entity. and Dave Brown were the television commentators and hosts for the Memphis territory, including the Continental Wrestling Association. International World Class Championship Wrestling (IWCCW) was an independent professional wrestling promotion based in Boston, Massachusetts. It was promoted by Angelo Savoldi and his sons Mario, Tom, and Joseph Savoldi. Saul Weingeroff was an American professional wrestling manager, known by his ringname "Gentleman" Saul Weingeroff , who led several tag teams to the NWA World Tag Team Championship during the 1960s and 70s such as The Islanders and Kurt and Karl Von Brauner. Richard Link is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, trainer and promoter. He wrestled throughout Canada and the United States for the National Wrestling Alliance during the 1970s and 80s under a number of ringnames, most notably, as M.E.B. in NWA Central States and as Man Mountain Link in the Continental Wrestling Association where he was among the "monster heels" who challenged AWA Southern Heavyweight Champion Jerry "The King" Lawler and was involved in the ongoing feud between Lawler and Andy Kaufman. Other promotions Link competed in included Georgia Championship Wrestling, International Championship Wrestling, the International Wrestling Association, Jim Crockett Promotions, and . He was also part of the NWA's 1983 visit to New Zealand, frequently appearing on the country's long-running wrestling programme , and remained undefeated throughout the tour. Edward Marlin was an American promoter and professional wrestler. He was the father-in-law of promoter and professional wrestler Jerry Jarrett and the grandfather of professional wrestler and promoter Jeff Jarrett. The Batten Twins were a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of twin brothers Bart and Brad Batten. They performed under the "Batten Twins" name in Central States Wrestling, Continental Wrestling Association, International Championship Wrestling, Jim Crockett Promotions, Southern Championship Wrestling, Texas All-Star Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Council, and the name U.S. Express in World Class Championship Wrestling. The team also appeared in various independent promotions during the 1990s including, most notably, Atlantic Coast Championship Wrestling, IWA Mid-South, Smoky Mountain Wrestling and Southern States Wrestling. Jeff Smith , better known as Izzy Slapawitz , was an American professional wrestler, manager and color commentator, best known for his time with International Championship Wrestling. All-Star Championship Wrestling ( ASCW ) was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Knoxville, Tennessee by Ron Wright, Ronnie Garvin, Bob Roop, Bob Orton, Jr. and Boris Malenko in 1979. The group broke away from Southeastern Championship Wrestling (SECW) and fought a six-month war against National Wrestling Alliance promoter Ron Fuller over control of the NWA's Knoxville territory. Although the "outlaw" group was successful in its efforts to oust Fuller, the promotional war is blamed for "killing" pro wrestling in Knoxville for several years during the 1980s wrestling boom. Dave Finlay. David John " Dave " Finlay, Jr. (born 31 January [4] 1958) [5] is a Northern Irish trainer, producer and retired professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he works backstage under the ring name Fit Finlay . [6] [3] He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling (WCW). He has held over 20 championships around the world throughout his career, including the WCW World Television Championship and the WWE United States Championship. Contents. Professional wrestling career [ edit | edit source ] Early career [ edit | edit source ] Finlay's first match was for his father's promotion in Glynn in 1974, when he filled in for a wrestler who no-showed. [7] He began wrestling on a full-time basis in Carrickfergus and throughout Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland for the next four years before moving to England in 1978. [3] [7] In England, he wrestled for various companies under the Joint Promotions banner. [8] Finlay defeated Alan Kilby on 9 June 1982 to win his first title, the Joint Promotions British Heavy Middleweight Championship. [9] At this time, Finlay's then-wife, Princess Paula became his manager. [10] He then won a tournament to crown a new British Light Heavyweight champion and fill the vacant position, defeating Ringo Rigby in the finals. [8] Finlay soon lost the championship, but later pinned to win the World Mid-Heavyweight Championship. [8] He traded it back and forth with Jones for over two years before losing it a final time to Jones via disqualification. He defeated Jones to win Joint Promotions' British Light Heavyweight Championship. In the second half of the 1980s, he defeated Frank 'Chic' Cullen on television for the British Heavy- Middleweight championship, but later lost it to Danny Collins. [11] In 1995 he became a champion at the top of the weight range when he won All-Star's British Heavyweight Championship. Finlay often competed on ITV's World of Sport programme as David "Fit" Finlay and had many matches against "The American Dream" Steve Adonis. During this time, Finlay also began to wrestle in , then in Germany and Austria for the European promotion Catch Wrestling Association. [3] [7] While holding the All-Star championship, he teamed with Jones to win the CWA tag title from Tony St. Clair and Miles Zrno. [8] After losing the All-Star championship to , Finlay began to focus more on the CWA, winning many of their championships. [8] Finlay appeared at a WWF event, as they continued with their national expansion in late 1989 at a dark match, teaming with , and Skull Murphy, to defeat the team of Al Perez, Dusty Wolfe, and . This appearance was far away from the time in which Finlay would sign a full-time contract with the promotion in 2005. [12] (2011–2012) [ edit | edit source ] On 28 October 2011, Finlay's debut for Yoshihiro Tajiri's promotion was announced, when he was revealed as the mysterious "King of Terror", Michael Kovac had promised to bring to the promotion and named first ever SMASH Champion StarBuck's first challenger for the title. [13] On 24 November at Smash.23 , Finlay defeated StarBuck to become the new Smash Champion. [14] On 19 February, Finlay made his first successful defense of the Smash Championship, defeating TAJIRI. Prior to the event, Smash had announced that it would cease its operations on 14 March, which led to Finlay vacating the Smash Championship after the title defense. [15] On 24 May, Finlay made his debut for Wrestling New Classic (WNC), the follow-up promotion to Smash, defeating Akira in the main event. [16] Two days later, Finlay defeated Zeus in the main event of another WNC event. [17] Finlay's first tour of WNC concluded on 27 May, when he, Akira and Syuri defeated Kana, Mikey Whipwreck and Tajiri in a six-person main event. [18] Finlay returned to WNC on 20 September, when he defeated Mendoza, Jr. in the main event at Korakuen Hall. [19] Following the match, Finlay announced that he was done with WNC for the time being due to re-signing with WWE. [20] Despite no longer scheduled to make appearances for WNC, Finlay was named the head of the WNC Championship Committee. [21] Personal life [ edit | edit source ] Both Finlay's father, David Finlay Sr. and his grandfathers were professional wrestlers, and his sister was a referee. [7] His brother, Albert, was a goalkeeper for Glentoran FC in the 1960s and 1970s. Finlay was previously married to his former manager, Princess Paula. [6] He is currently married to a German woman named Mel and has three children, the eldest of which, David Finlay Jr. was born in Hanover, Germany. [3] [7] His children are all amateur wrestlers; David is now wrestling for New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) and made his professional debut on 22 December 2012. [22] and his daughter has won the Georgia State championship. [23] The family resides in Atlanta, Georgia. [7] Dave Finlay. David John "Fit" Finlay, Jr [ 5 ] (born October 20, 1958) is an Irish semi-retired professional wrestler and road agent working for the WWE (formerly known as World Wrestling Federation) backstage. [ 3 ] [ 4 ] He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling (WCW). Finlay has held over twenty championships around the world throughout his career, including the WCW World Television Championship and the WWE United States Championship. Contents. Professional wrestling career. Early career. Finlay's first match was for his father's promotion in Glynn in 1974, when he filled in for a wrestler who no-showed. [ 6 ] He began wrestling on a full-time basis in Carrickfergus and throughout Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland for the next four years before moving to England in 1978. [ 4 ] [ 6 ] In England, he wrestled for various companies under the Joint Promotions banner. [ 7 ] Finlay defeated Alan Kilby on June 9, 1982 to win his first title, the Joint Promotions British Heavy Middleweight Championship. [ 8 ] At this time, Finlay's then-wife, Princess Paula became his manager. [ 9 ] He then won a tournament to crown a new British Light Heavyweight champion and fill the vacant position, defeating Ringo Rigby in the finals. [ 7 ] Finlay soon lost the championship, but later pinned Marty Jones to win the World Mid-Heavyweight Championship. [ 7 ] He traded it back and forth with Jones for over two years before losing it a final time to Jones via disqualification. He defeated Jones to win Joint Promotions' British Light Heavyweight Championship. In the second half of the 1980s, he defeated Frank 'Chic' Cullen on television for the British Heavy- Middleweight championship, but later lost it to Danny Collins. [ 10 ] In 1995 he became a champion at the top of the weight range when he won All-Star's British Heavyweight Championship. Finlay often competed on ITV's World of Sport programme as David "Fit" Finlay and had many matches against "The American Dream" Steve Adonis. During this time, Finlay also began to wrestle in Japan, then in Germany and Austria for the European promotion Catch Wrestling Association. [ 4 ] [ 6 ] While holding the All-Star championship, he teamed with Jones to win the CWA tag title from Tony St. Clair and Miles Zrno. [ 7 ] After losing the All-Star championship to Dave Taylor, Finlay began to focus more on the CWA, winning many of their championships. [ 7 ] World Championship Wrestling (1995–2000) Finlay debuted in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1995 as the Belfast Bruiser, [ 8 ] [ 11 ] a nickname he had previously used while in the UK. He feuded with Lord Steven Regal in 1996, including a parking lot brawl on Monday Nitro . During the feud, the Bruiser's matches were often interrupted by The Blue Bloods. At Uncensored, Bruiser won a stiff encounter with Regal by disqualification when the Blue Bloods again rushed the ring and assaulted him; Regal suffered a broken nose during the match. [ 12 ] The feud died down thereafter and the Bruiser disappeared into the midcard. After a hiatus off WCW television, he abandoned the Belfast Bruiser persona and returned under the ring name Fit Finlay while sporting a short, bleached-blond haircut. He was given a push upon his return, which culminated in his winning the World Television Championship on May 4, 1998 after pinning on Nitro , thus setting off a three-way feud with Booker and , who was also vying for the title. [ 8 ] After Finlay lost the belt to Booker at The Great American Bash on June 14, he fell out of the TV title picture. He then entered a feud with Alex Wright, who was angry at Finlay for having ended the wrestling career of his father, Steve Wright. The feud led to a matchup at Halloween Havoc, where Finlay was pinned by Wright. [ 13 ] Near the end of his WCW run, he won the "Hardcore Junkyard Invitational" at Bash at the Beach, winning a "hardcore trophy". He legitimately suffered a badly lacerated nerve in his leg during a hardcore match at a house show in Jackson, Mississippi in July 1999, which nearly cost him use of the leg. [ 8 ] [ 6 ] As he was wrestling Brian Knobbs, he was thrown into a table in the corner of the ring, causing it to shatter and the shards to cut his leg. [ 6 ] He managed to regain use of the limb and came back later in the year, but by that point, all momentum he had from the Junkyard Invitational win was lost. [ 7 ] In 2000, Finlay formed a trio of "Hardcore Soldiers" with Brian Knobbs and Al Green. They feuded with ; the feud included a match between Finlay and Vampiro at Uncensored, which marked Finlay's last appearance on a WCW pay-per-view. [ 14 ] His final match in WCW was at a German house show in November 2000, losing to Norman Smiley in a hardcore match. World Wrestling Entertainment / WWE. Trainer (2001–2005) When WCW was purchased by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), Finlay began working for the company as a trainer for new wrestlers and was eventually put in charge of training the WWE Divas for their matches. [ 6 ] [ 7 ] He is credited with having enabled the transition of the company's presentation of the WWE Divas from bra and panties-style gimmick matches to critically acclaimed traditional wrestling. [ 15 ] United States Champion (2005–2007) Finlay began working on a comeback in 2004, even wrestling in a match against Jamie Noble at a house show in Glasgow, Scotland, and promos began airing for his impending in-ring return in December 2005. His gimmick is that of a proud native Irishman who loves to fight. At the age of 48 Finlay made his first televised WWE match on the January 20, 2006 airing of SmackDown! against , which ended in a disqualification loss for Finlay. After the match, Finlay dragged Hardy to the steel ring steps and smashed Hardy's face into them with his boot, quickly establishing himself as a villain. [ 16 ] This helped to give him the nickname, "The Fighting Irish Bastard". Finlay continued to establish himself on the SmackDown! roster. During February and March 2006, Finlay was involved in a feud with Bobby Lashley which began when Finlay cost Lashley his unbeaten streak by interfering in Lashley's match with JBL at . [ 17 ] This feud would see the pair brawl on many occasions, including a parking lot segment in which Lashley tried to overturn a car onto Finlay. Later, the pair competed in a Money in the Bank qualifier Lumberjack match that Finlay won. During this time, Finlay began to wield a shillelagh as a weapon. On April 2, Finlay competed at his first WrestleMania, WrestleMania 22. He faced five other WWE Superstars, from both the Raw and SmackDown! brands in a Money in the Bank which also included Lashley, who won a last chance battle royal. This match was eventually won by Rob Van Dam. [ 18 ] Finlay next entered the King of the Ring tournament on SmackDown! , defeating his first round opponent Chris Benoit [ 19 ] before being beaten by his rival Lashley, who advanced to the finals at Judgment Day. [ 20 ] Finlay helped the other finalist, Booker T, defeat Lashley in the King of the Ring finals. [ 21 ] At the same pay-per-view, Finlay lost to Chris Benoit. [ 22 ] Beginning on the May 26 episode of SmackDown! , Finlay was joined by The Little Bastard, who came out from under the ring to attack Finlay's opponents. [ 23 ] Finlay then joined forces with as loyal subjects of the newly renamed King Booker and his Court. [ 24 ] Both men were later "knighted" by the King, and Finlay briefly used the name Sir Finlay . During his time as part of the court, Finlay picked up a win against World Heavyweight Champion Rey Mysterio in a non-title match before defeating the court's main foe Bobby Lashley to take Lashley's United States Championship. [ 25 ] Finlay defended the championship on several occasions, often with help from Little Bastard, and even defended it against fellow court member William Regal at The Great American Bash. [ 26 ] He lost the title to Mr. Kennedy on the September 1 edition of SmackDown! in a triple threat match that also involved Bobby Lashley. [ 27 ] After the title loss, Finlay continued to attack and wrestle threats to court leader Booker and his newly won World Heavyweight Championship, including Lashley and Batista. Finlay defeated Booker in a non-title singles match and lost in a four way match at for the title. [ 28 ] After leaving the court, Finlay continued to feud with Batista. On the November 10 edition of SmackDown! , he returned to fight Batista in a singles match which he lost after Batista pinned him following a spinebuster. [ 29 ] At , Finlay and King Booker faced Batista and his partner, the WWE Champion John Cena from Raw, but were defeated. [ 30 ] Alliance with Hornswoggle (2007–2008) Shortly after the Royal Rumble, Finlay began a feud with . At No Way Out, he and Little hornswoggle defeated The Boogeyman and The Little Boogeyman. [ 31 ] Finlay earned a place in the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 23; however, Mr. Kennedy won the match. [ 32 ] Following this loss, he would feud with Kennedy, after an attack on Little Bastard (now known as Hornswoggle) during the Money in the Bank match, and Jamie Noble for assaulting Hornswoggle after he won the Cruiserweight Championship. Finlay's feud, however, would quickly redirect to after Finlay spilled coffee on him. The two also became involved with Batista and The Great Khali. At Saturday Night's Main Event , he and Khali lost to Batista and Kane. [ 33 ] Kane beat him at SummerSlam. [ 34 ] Finlay defeated Kane in a Belfast Brawl rematch a few weeks later. [ 35 ] Finlay and Hornswoggle briefly separated when Hornswoggle was stripped of the Cruiserweight Title, [ 36 ] and briefly moving to Raw with his "illegitimate father". Finlay then feuded with Rey Mysterio by attacking him during a confrontational interview with John "Bradshaw" Layfield. [ 37 ] At No Mercy, Finlay faked an injury after taking a bump to the outside. Once placed on a stretcher, Finlay suddenly rose and attacked Mysterio, forcing Rey to be carried out on a stretcher. [ 38 ] The feud continued at Cyber Sunday, where fans voted for the two to face-off in a Stretcher match. Mysterio came out on top, [ 39 ] but Finlay retaliated with a victory on the November 9 edition of SmackDown! [ 40 ] The feud intensified further when the two faced on opposite teams at Survivor Series. [ 41 ] Finlay reunited with Hornswoggle by coming to rescue him in a match against The Great Khali, effectively becoming a fan favorite. [ 42 ] At Armageddon, Finlay was placed in a match with Khali. Finlay scored an upset win after Hornswoggle interfered by hitting Khali in the groin with a shillelagh. [ 43 ] Still battling Khali and his translator, Ranjin Singh, with Hornswoggle, he qualified for the Royal Rumble. He drew number 27, but was immediately disqualified when he entered before his time to save Hornswoggle. Hornswoggle, who was also a competitor in the Rumble, was disqualified as well. [ 44 ] Finlay fought in the Elimination Chamber match at No Way Out, ultimately being pinned after a chokeslam on the steel floor by . [ 45 ] Finlay then began making occasional appearances on Raw to protect Hornswoggle from Mr. McMahon, who had been showing him "tough love". After Hornswoggle was injured in a Steel Cage match by John "Bradshaw" Layfield, [ 46 ] Layfield revealed that Finlay was Hornswoggle's father, and not McMahon. [ 47 ] A week after, on March 3, Finlay admitted to this fact. [ 48 ] At WrestleMania XXIV he was defeated by Layfield in a Belfast Brawl, where Hornswoggle also reappeared. [ 49 ] Brand switches (2008–2011) As part of the 2008 WWE Supplemental Draft, Finlay was drafted to the ECW brand. [ 50 ] He and Hornswoggle challenged The Miz and John Morrison for the WWE Tag Team Championship at Night of Champions, but lost. Throughout the rest of 2008, Finlay challenged for the ECW Championship. He, along with Matt Hardy, Chavo Guerreo, The Miz and ECW Champion Mark Henry participated in the first ever Championship Scramble match at Unforgiven which Matt Hardy won. [ 51 ] He defeated Mark Henry on an episode of ECW to earn an opportunity for the ECW championship, but was defeated by the champion Matt Hardy. Then he started a feud with Henry, and the feud ended when Finlay defeated Henry in a Belfast Brawl match at Armageddon. [ 52 ] Finlay became the first person to defeat ECW Champion Jack Swagger on the February 3, 2009, edition of ECW , and, as a result, became the number one contender and challenged Swagger at No Way Out, but was unsuccessful. [ 53 ] [ 54 ] In the 2009 Supplemental Draft, Finlay and Hornswoggle were separated when Hornswoggle was drafted to Raw. [ 55 ] In late May 2009, Finlay suffered a legitimate eye injury, sidelining him temporarily. [ 56 ] He returned on June 16, attacking ECW Champion Tommy Dreamer, Christian, and Jack Swagger. At The Bash, he participated in a Championship Scramble match for the ECW Championship, which also included Christian, Jack Swagger and Mark Henry, however the defending champion Tommy Dreamer retained. Finlay did not return to ECW after that. He was traded to the SmackDown brand on June 29, 2009. [ 57 ] His first match returning to the brand was against Ricky Ortiz, which Finlay won. He went on to form part of John Morrison's team at Survivor Series, but he was eliminated by Sheamus. In late 2009, he began pursuing the Intercontinental Championship by feuding with Drew McIntyre. In 2010, Finlay became a full-time trainer and agent. Finlay was released in March 2011 after authorizing the interruption of the American national anthem by The Miz during a house show, drawing ire from the National Guard members in attendance. [ 15 ] Finlay stated that his intention was to intensify the audience's dislike of The Miz in preparation for the latter's WrestleMania XXVII main event appearance but accepted full responsibility for his dismissal. [ 15 ] Return (2012-present) Following a stint in the indy circuit and a year after the house show incident, Finlay returned on July 11, 2012 as a backstage producer. The two sides had been negotiating since WrestleMania XXVII, but there were situations that delayed the deal being finalized. [ 58 ] Independent circuit (2011–2012) After being released from WWE, Finlay was contacted by TNA Wrestling several times but was unable to agree upon contractual terms. [ 59 ] He began to wrestle again on the independent circuit, making his first appearance on July 26, 2011, defeating Sami Callihan at Evolve 9. [ 60 ] On August 20, 2011, Finlay made his debut for Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, taking part in the 2011 Battle of Los Angeles tournament. He was eliminated from the tournament in the first round by PWG World Champion Kevin Steen. [ 61 ] On October 28, 2011, Finlay's debut for Yoshihiro Tajiri's Smash promotion was announced, when he was revealed as the mysterious "King of Terror", Michael Kovac had promised to bring to the promotion and named first ever Smash Champion StarBuck's first challenger for the title. [ 62 ] [ 63 ] On November 24 at Smash.23 , Finlay defeated StarBuck to become the new Smash Champion. [ 64 ] On February 19, Finlay made his first successful defense of the Smash Championship, defeating TAJIRI. Prior to the event, Smash had announced that it would cease its operations on March 14, which led to Finlay vacating the Smash Championship after the title defense. [ 65 ] On November 6, 2011, Finlay wrestled in the main event of a Stampede Wrestling show in Barrie, Ontario [ 66 ] in a losing effort against Harry Smith. [ 67 ] . On May 12, 2012, at Border Wars, Finlay made his debut for Ring of Honor (ROH), unsuccessfully challenging Roderick Strong for the ROH World Television Championship. [ 68 ] On May 24, Finlay made his debut for Wrestling New Classic (WNC), the follow-up promotion to Smash, defeating Akira in the main event. [ 69 ] Two days later, Finlay defeated Zeus in the main event of another WNC event. [ 70 ] Finlay's first tour of WNC concluded on May 27, when he, Akira and Syuri defeated Kana, Mikey Whipwreck and Tajiri in a six person main event. [ 71 ] On June 24 at ROH's Best in the World 2012 iPPV, Finlay was defeated by Michael Elgin. [ 72 ] During a radio interview with HU2 Wrestling, Finlay announced he'd be on the 1000th episode of WWE Monday Night Raw . Personal life. Finlay was previously married to his former manager, Princess Paula. [ 3 ] Finlay is currently married to a German woman and has three children, the eldest of which, David, was born in Germany. [ 4 ] [ 6 ] His children are all amateur wrestlers; his eldest son has received an offer to train in the New Japan Pro Wrestling dojo and his daughter has won the Georgia State championship. [ 59 ] The family reside in southern Georgia, United States. [ 6 ] Both Finlay's father and his grandfathers were professional wrestlers, and his sister was a referee. [ 6 ] The Grapple Manual: Heroes and Villains from the Golden Age of World Wrestling by . ( A small section of the Authors personal collection of books on wrestling and physical culture) If you are a collector or just interested in wrestling, you will discover that currently there is a plethora of books about and “written” by wrestlers. The reason for this flood of publications may well be as a result of the popularity of American wrestling “Entertainment” with its over-hyped heroes often going further into other means of show business, for example, Dw ayne Johnson and . I openly admit I am not a fan of such imported “wrestling” still longing for the days before the camera came in so close and the ridiculous poorly executed holds and moves so easily discovered, kills the credibility of the sport. With balsa wood chairs and thin tin tables to “batter” their opponents, along with double packed mattress canvas along with hidden sound effects, little wonder the old timers must shrug their shoulders and say, “it wasn’t like that in our day” and they have the hip and knee replacements to prove it. The good news is that the style and content of wrestling that we once knew, is slowly and steadily making a comeback, thanks to British input. Fans need wrestlers, wrestlers require fans. Books, magazines and videos/CDs,DVD's et al, all encourage and inspire many readers to take up the wrestling game. The best way to learn the tips and tricks of wrestling is of course personal tuition. The best apprenticeship for a wanna- be Pro wrestler is first to join an amateur wrestling club. An alternative is to pick up the many moves and holds from BOOKS. Wrestling books come in several divisions. There is the pure “how to” type of book or magazine teaching in detail the locks, throws and holds. There are also books to inspire, historical facts books and the many biographies. Some of the latter are actually written by the wrestler him/her self, although most use ghost writers and nearly all are interesting. The earliest recorded wrestling match I read somewhere was first reported back in 32bc in Japan. I wouldn’t like to bet on it being the first. Explorers have reportedly discovered hieroglyphics in ancient Egyptian tombs and indeed in ancient places around the globe. Wrestling is both the oldest and also the most world -wide popular sport in human history. Let us return to the books. So you want to be a wrestler, need to learn self defence moves, or simply wish to improve your knowledge? To attempt to interest all, without even trying to produce a bibliography of all books on wrestling or , there now follows just some of a huge range of titles. Possibly the earliest instructional publication I can find is The Inn Play or Cornish Hugg Wrestler , “ which teaches to break all holds and throws plus most falls mathematically” . The first edition is 1713 by Sir Thomas Parkyns . It was republished in 1800. The Complete book of Boxing and Wrestling With full and simple instructions on acquiring those useful, invigorating and health giving arts . James. N.Y. 1878. Jacobs Robson wrote Wrestling and Wrestlers , biographical sketches of celebrated athletes of the northern ring in1893. next we find, Physical Culture and Self Defence Fitzimmons . 1902, Wrestling in the catch hold and Graeco Roman Styles Scribner NY . 1903. Ju-Jitsu, what it really is, Apollo’s Mag 1905. Jiu-Jitsu Combat Tricks . Putman 1904. Apollo’s Mag. 1905, The Complete Kano Jiu-Jitsu Higashi , London 1905. Standing Catch-as catch-can Wrestling Bacon 1908, Scientific Wrestling . Bothner 1908, Complete Science of Wrestling . Hackenschmidt . 1909. Life Work of Farmer Burns 1911, Ernest Grunn wrote The Text Book of Wrestling in or around 1919. The Art of Wrestling as taught in the British Army came out via Gale and Polden in 1919. Wrestling for Health Gotch 1924, In 1926 Ed Lewis , with a self named Sandow , (Billy) published a whole library of 8 volumes. The Sandow-Lewis library , vol 5 to 8 being solely on wrestling. Jack Dempsey,Idol of Fistiana. Ring Magazine, although its boxing, The Ring. published most and the best of all combat books this one published in 1929. Nat Fleischer was the publisher. In the 1930s Mac Mahon a strongman published a booklet on wrestling which included 90 holds. Then we find, The Art of Ju Jitsu.Foulshams 1932. From Milo to Londos The story of wrestling through the ages. Obrian 1936. This is probably the most interesting and informative book of them, one I consider most rare and valuable. Lou Ravelle ,a gym owner in London, who also did a bit of wrestling wrote a fictional , but expose of the sport entitled Grand Slam. H.Lundin wrote a biography, On the Mat and Off, Memoirs of a Wrestler . 1937. Also in 1937 Harry Mann published The Arena Wrestling Course . Containing three lessons. Amongst this library, possibly the best/most interesting and rare is the publication Fall Guys, The Barnums of Bounce. The inside story of the Wrestling business. Americas most profitable and best organised professional sport . Written by Marcus Griffin and published in Chicago in 1937. If you thought you knew it all about the business of wrestling, then be surprised and read this most amazing book which really does tell the truth and nothing but the truth. A novelty was a “book” published in 1938 4 sets of moving pictures on Wrestling , a type of “flicker book” Blackie and Sons . Someone who knew a bit about both wrestling and promoting was Sir Athol Oakley, bringing out a manual entitled Blue Blood On the Mat The All in Wrestling Story . Published circa 1971, the author certainly likes to claim many ideas and innovations in the game. Interesting, but don’t believe everything you read. A favourite book I recommend is The Pictorial History of Wrestling by Graeme Kent , large book extensively illustrated 320 pages. 1968. For names we know, Simon Garfield wrote The Wrestling in 1996, including many well known British wresters of the Golden Age of Saturday Night wrestling. In 1976, Joe D'Orazio together with Mike Judd under the pen name of Pam Edwards wrote the 'Who's Who of Wrestling', followed by more similar books by Mick McManus, Kent Walton , an Expose called 'You Grunt and I'll Groan',by Jackie TV Pallo , and a whole series by great International wrestlers such as Adrian Street, Pat Roach, Seamus Donlevy, and Johnny Kincaid ,' Two falls,two submissions and a knockout' by Al Marquette , in 2003 Gene Le Bell brought out How to Break into Pro Wrestling, The insiders Guide to the business. Recently, there has been books by Northern star :Ray Robinson 'The Sherrif', 'Confessions of a wrestler' by Jackie 'Glitterboy' Evans, plus a sexually explicit offering by Johnny Mr. Muscles England. A modern manual is The Grapple Manual, Heroes and Villains from the Golden Age of World Wrestling 2005, includes info on Big Daddy, Mick Mc Manus, Klondyke Kate and most of the others of that era. Magazines on wrestling . Along with the many books, magazines had long reported wrestling matches of the day. Particularly good was the American The Police Gazette , a publication around the early 1900s, which of course favoured wrestlers like Frank Gotch . In the UK., the popular magazine Health and Strength regularly gave write ups on wrestling matches and even instructional articles. TIn the U.K. the legendary publication 'The Wrestler' was a monthly sellout pro. mag. that reigned supreme from 1961 until its demise in 1972, he favourite journal for fight fans however,must have been The Ring , primarily a boxing magazine, published by Nat Fleischer in my view the greatest writer on combat arts, to which wrestling was added later. So much was the call, that Boxing and Wrestling , and later Weider’s Wrestling magazine was published, the editor of the latter was actually a friend of mine by the name of Chas Smith , who in his turn had been adopted by the famous Assirati family. Chas was a prolific writer and ex seaman who was as tough as the people he wrote about.There were also favourite periodicals such as 'Ringsport and 'Matworld' generally dedicated to the respective Promoters such as Paul Lincoln , and their own band of gladiators. ( Sam Betts a.k.a. Dwight J. Ingleburgh in his prime as International globe trotting star ) (A very young Spencer Churchill) Thus the list above is only a fraction of publications on or about wrestling . Recently Johnny Kincaid has been putting pen to paper in his most readable of books, the first one being From International Wrestling to Pubs and Punters. The latest offering and potential best seller is from Scottish sensation : Dale Storm with his exciting memoirs called 'Ask him again ref'. I have missed dozens if not hundreds of wrestling titles and publications. Today the emphasis is on either exposés, instructional manuals, listing and explaining how to do the various throws and holds, or personal biographies, the latter in the main giving a truthful write up of the wrestling game and in the main good reads and usually humorous. My apologies to any current writer who’s book I have not “plugged” or mentioned.