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| Former NWA world champions Ric Flair and Harley Race |
What a great shot of two of the greatest champions to ever lace up the boots: Ric Flair and Harley Race.
The photo was taken Saturday 8/29/15 in advance of World League Wrestling's "Night of Champions" event in Troy, MO.
That's Harley's Reggie Parks replica of the domed-globe version of the NWA world title belt, better known as the "Ten Pounds of Gold."
Edited from a post originally published August of 2015 on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway.
By Brack BeasleyAt first glance I figured this poster to be from 1976 but upon researching the date, found it to be Valentines Day, 1977.
It promotes an NWA World Title match at the Sampson County Middle School gym in Clinton, NC with Terry Funk defending against Chief Wahoo McDaniel. Unfortunately for Funk, he lost the championship to Harley Race in Toronto only 8 days prior, so this scheduled defense by Funk never transpired.
The question is, did Race defend the NWA World Title in Clinton? One would have to assume so as he probably took over Funk's bookings upon winning the belt. In addition, Race defended the belt against Wahoo in Charlotte on the 13th and Columbia, SC on the 15th.
Other familiar Mid Atlantic names on the card included Tiger Conway Jr., Crusher Blackwell, Sgt. Jacques Goulet, Johnny Eagle, and young Macho Man Randy Poffo.
The poster itself has a vertical layout with all black print over a two tone background and great images of Funk and Wahoo with their names in big bold letters.
NO. 43 IN THE BEASLEY POSTER SERIES
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Mid-Atlantic Gateway Notes
by Dick Bourne
Always interesting to see future world champions working the opening matches on cards in their early careers. In this case Tatsumi Fujinami, billed here as Dr. Fujiani (and occasionally Dr. Fujinami) would later become IWGP and NWA World Champion. The second match of the night featured pre-macho Randy Poffo who would later win the WWF World Title as Randy "Macho Man" Savage.
Wahoo McDaniel was reigning Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Champion when he presumably wrestled the world champion in Clinton. It was also around this time that Wahoo was presented with a brand new Mid-Atlantic belt, the familiar white-faced title belt most associated with the championship, and would be worn by many future hall-of-famers between 1977 and 1985.
by David Chappell
Mid-Atlantic Gateway
The Scope arena in Norfolk, Virginia got its distinctive moniker shortened from the word “kaleidoscope,” because the builders saw so many varied usages for the edifice that was constructed from 1968 to its opening in 1971. And to be sure, I have seen quite a number of different events at the Scope over the years. But none held a candle to the Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling events that graced its presence.
Thursday night events at the Norfolk Scope housed a multitude of noteworthy battles in the grand history of Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling. When I am at current shows at the now 51-year-old Scope, I often find myself looking up at the rafters and the uniquely designed roof of that historic arena, and then with a rich imagination try to beam two Mid-Atlantic legends down to the Scope’s squared circle for them to repeat their magic of yesteryear one more time.
During the most recent RAW show I attended in Norfolk, I had a flashback to a Norfolk Scope card on November 2, 1978, featuring an NWA World Title bout between Champion Harley Race and top challenger Paul Jones.
Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling announcer Rich Landrum did a special interview with Race that aired on WAVY TV Channel 10 in Norfolk to promote the bout. Landrum led off, “Norfolk Scope Coliseum, a World’s Heavyweight Championship match with the challenger Paul Jones [going] up against this man, the World’s Heavyweight Champion Harley Race.”
Race began, “Let me say this Jones, you’ve done a lot of campaigning; you must have done it quite well to come up with a Title shot at the Scope. Well let me tell you something Jones, when you come for this [belt], you come for all the marbles, you come for everything in wrestling.”
Harley continued, “You got [Ric] Flair out here bragging and going on about what he owns and controls, but this is the honcho in wrestling. And you are coming for the absolute honcho in wrestling, Harley Race. I am the cock of the walk; I am the man of the hour. I’m the man that’s got a quarter of a million-dollar bounty on him. You come for me Jones, and you come to take one awful beating and a beating is exactly what I’m going to give you son.”
The World Title match between Race and Jones was a classic one hour draw in one of Paul’s last splendid babyface efforts before he would turn into a “bad guy” in about a month when he attacked Ricky Steamboat as part of a two-ring battle royal in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The bout at the Scope on November 2, 1978, saw Paul Jones at the zenith of his prowess as a “battle to the end babyface,” much like he was two years earlier in his classic program with the ruthless Blackjack Mulligan. The Scope saw many of those titanic struggles as well. In fact, it saw titanic struggles every Thursday night during the Mid-Atlantic years.
The Scope. What a building. When I peer into that kaleidoscope, to this day, no matter what event I may go there to see, I still see Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling memories burning brighter than ever.
by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway
Our good friend Jeff Jewett put together a great photo for Action Figure Friday that we featured several years ago. It features a figure of the 8-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion (and "greatest wrestler on the face of God's green earth") Harley Race, complete with miniature domed-globe belt and his classic 1980s red and blue robe. He's standing in front of the original 8x10" hardcover edition of the book "Ten Pounds of Gold", a close look at the 1973-1986 NWA World championship title belt and the eight champions who held it during that time period. (You will notice that the original version of the book I wrote with Dave Millican even contained a brief foreword from the legendary "Nature Boy" Ric Flair, which was subsequently removed. You can learn all about that here.)
Jeff had his copy of the original "Ten Pounds of Gold" book signed by Harley Race, which you see in the bottom left corner of the slipcover in the photo above. I just think the whole thing is very cool and loved this, and I appreciate Jeff's thoughtfulness in putting this photo together for me.
As it relates to Race and the "Ten Pounds of Gold" book, I was fortunate enough to have several phone conversations with Harley Race in 2012 when working on the second edition of the book. He loaned me a notebook that promoter Paul Boesch had given him after the historic NWA title change match with Jack Brisco on July 20, 1973 in Houston. That notebook contained dozens of 8x10" photographs taken by Boesch himself that night. Many of those photos appear in the second edition of "Ten Pounds of Gold" and I've always appreciated Harley's generosity and kindness in allowing me to use them.
In what turned out to be the third and final phone call during that time, Harley suggested I change the title of the book. At first I thought he was joking. But he was dead serious. Change the name of the book to "Ten Pounds of Pure Gold." And then it hit me - - that's the way Harley usually referred to the belt. "Ten pounds of pure gold, buddy."
That's a wonderful memory, and all these years later I begin to wish I had done just that.
Thanks again for the photo, Jeff!
Edited from an original post published April 2020 as Part of Action Figure Friday on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway.
Ring announcer Boyd Pierce raises the hand of a triumphant Jack Brisco moments after Brisco defeated Harley Race for the NWA World Heavyweight championship on July 20, 1973 in Houston, Texas. A dejected Race is seen in the corner behind them.
NWA President Sam Muchnick is at left. He had attended the card that night in Houston and brought the new NWA World title belt with him. It was presented to Race before the match, but he didn't have a chance to enjoy the new belt, as Brisco took the 2-out-of-3 fall match and the championship laurels that night.
Although hidden behind Brisco in this photograph so you can't see him here, it is Tiger Conway, Jr. who is strapping the belt around the new champion's waist.
A wonderful photograph, perhaps taken by promoter Paul Boesch who took many photos that night, featured in an issue of Gong Magazine in Japan.
Nobody Does it Better
Ric Flair claims the song "Nobody Does It Better" was not inspired by James Bond, but by him. "The songwriter, Carol Sager, obviously has seen me wrestle. Who can blame the woman for becoming overcome by my brilliance?" Don't you wish you had Flair's imagination?
Move Over Mother Teresa
Wahoo McDaniel doesn't want any publicity for his many charitable works, but someone should publicly congratulate him. Wahoo is a tireless worker for the downtrodden and helpless. We're lucky to have Wahoo living in our world.
A Dish Best Served Cold
Terry Funk, back on the road to success, declares, "Harley Race cheated when he took my title. That doesn't bother me anymore. I don't want revenge. I just want to break him in two for the fun of hearing him scream."
Two Legs A Week
Feeling no remorse whatsoever for breaking Wahoo McDaniel's leg, Greg Valentine has gone on to break the leg of young rookie "Irish" Pat McKillan. "I hope to break at least two legs a week," says Valentine. "Maybe four, if I get lucky."
Originally published in May 2018 on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway.
The Japanese magazines still do an excellent job of remembering the old NWA champs. These are images from a special section of a magazine in Japan that looked back at the history of the NWA World title and presented a special interview with Harley Race.
By Brack Beasley
Mid-Atlantic Gateway Contributor
I chose to highlight this particular poster primarily due to the number of Mid Atlantic Wrestling legends it features. By my count, no less than 14. It promotes a card held on Sunday night, August 14th, 1977 at the famed Greensboro Coliseum headlined by an NWA World Heavyweight title match with Harley Race defending against Wahoo McDaniel.
In one of the most revered rivalries in the history of professional wrestling, Ric Flair defended his United States title against TV champ Ricky Steamboat while Blackjack Mulligan took the challenge of a handicap match against the team of Dusty Rhodes and George Scott.
Fans didn't have to wait until the main events for great action as the undercard consisted of stars such as Paul Jones, Mr. Wrestling, the Masked Superstar, Kim Duk, Johnny Weaver, Danny Miller, Abe Jacobs, and a young Tully Blanchard.
Other than the main event names in high impact red (and in a smaller font than normally seen due to space constraints), the poster has black print over a bright pink background and images of Race, Flair, Dusty, Wahoo, Steamboat, and Duk on the sides.
Signatures by Ricky Steamboat and the Superstar add a nice touch to this representation of a great era in Jim Crockett Promotions, and professional wrestling as a whole.
NO. 30 IN A SERIES
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MID-ATLANTIC GATEWAY NOTES
by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Wrestling's hottest feud of the decade, Flair vs. Steamboat, and one of Harley Race's toughest contenders in our territory and others includiong Florida, Georgia, and Houston, Whaoo McDaniel, topped this amazing card in Greensboro.
But the match that fans might have anticipated the most due its unusual nature and the story leading up to it, was the handicap match between Blackjack Mulligan and George Scott, with Scott's partner that night Dusty Rhodes. Mulligan had roughed up Scott a bit on a TV interview, and although retired from the ring at this point (and the booker of the territory behind the scenes), Scott wanted in the ring one more time with Mullgian. Mulligan was so sure he could whip the retired Scott under any circumstances, allowed Scott to pick a partner and he would face them in a handicap situation.
This set up a series of matches around the territory where Scott picked various opponents around the horn including Rhodes, Ricky Steamboat, Mr. Wrestling Tim Woods, and even his own brother, the semi-retired Sandy Scott. The latter reformed the famous 60s tag team of the "Flying Scotts."
by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway
Back in 2012, while surfing the internet, I came across a great article by pro-wrestling superstar Tom Prichard on his "Doctor's Note" blog. I originally wrote about it on the Domed Globe website, and I am now posting it on the Gateway as well.
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| Tom Prichard's ticket stub for wrestling at the Sam Houston Coliseum, July 20, 1973 |
Today (February 6) marks the anniversary of Harley Race's historic NWA title win over Terry Funk in Toronto, Canada, that took place on February 6, 1977. It was Race's second NWA title win, with six more to come over the next seven years.
Forgotten by many is the key role Championship Wrestling from Florida played in the key events that led up to title change in Toronto.
The following is an article about all of that magic originally published on The Domed Globe website and republished on the Mid-Atlantic Gateway in May of 2021.
by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway
We're always appreciative of newspapers that do a good job of presenting wrestling in a journalistic fashion. This is a particularly good article in the Tampa Tribune promoting an upcoming card for Championship Wrestling from Florida on February 8, 1977, just two nights after Harley Race defeated Terry Funk with an Indian deathlock to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.
Who knows who wrote the piece. It doesn't really sound like it came from the office, but it sounds way too informed to be written by the a staff sports writer either.
The article captures all the complete twists and turns in the wonderful story leading up to this night at the fabled Fort Homer Hesterly Armory. There were actually two separate stories being told.
The second story told answered a question many might have had following the finish to the title change match in Toronto. As a teenage fan watching wrestling in 1977, when the film of the match from Toronto was shown on Mid-Atlantic television, it seemed strange to me that Race had won by submission with an Indian deathlock. I had only ever seen our local hero Paul Jones win with that hold. In the wrestling magazines, it seemed the reports usually suggested Race typically won with various suplexes or his infamous flying headbutt from the top turnbuckle, resulting in wins by three-count pinfall. Why had Race instead gone for the submission for the win against Funk in Toronto?
The answer, it turned out, played out the night before in Florida.
The main event of the card in St. Petersburg on Saturday night was Terry Funk defending the NWA title against Dusty Rhodes. As the article above reports, Funk injured his knee in the match against
Rhodes, and "against his better judgement" went ahead with the scheduled
title defense against Race the next night in Toronto.
The rest, as they say, is history. Race knew what most fans didn't about the night before in the St, Petertsburg Bayfront Arena. Funk was hurt, and Race took advantage. He defeated Funk in 14:10 with an Indian death-lock to capture the gold belt. (I can still hear ring announcer Norm Kimber make the famous call.) It was a hold Race used infrequently (if ever?) and seemed almost out of place as it happened that night in Maple Leaf Gardens.
As the author of the article pointed out. Brisco's victory over Race in
St. Petersburg came three days too early. Race got the better of him in
Tampa this night to retain.
The injury to Funk's knee in St. Petersburg gave Funk an excuse he could bandy about after his loss to Race in Toronto the next night.
The article also colors between the lines nicely, accurately reporting key dates in the NWA title history of Brisco and the Funk Brothers, and even including a reference to an NWA title change in the same building eight years earlier to the week.
It's just an all around amazing piece to be found in a newspaper, and one of my favorite clippings from the history of the NWA title changes during the domed-globe era. And for those curious, it explains one of the mysteries about the historic Toronto finish some fans may have had at the time.
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Video of Harley Race's win over Funk in Toronto can be found on the Domed-Globe website here.
See three pages from the Florida program "The Grapevine" for the Feb. 5 show in St. Petersburg that set the stage for Toronto. (Thanks@bobbynorton9115 on Twitter.)
2/5/77 NWA Champion Terry Funk loses by DQ against Dusty Rhodes at the Bayfront Center. Funk loses the championship belt in his next match against Harley Race 2/8/77 in Toronto. @wrestlerweekly @magateway @ByMikeMooneyham pic.twitter.com/xVRo5lqzlx
— Championship Wrestling from Florida Guy (@bobbynorton9115) May 21, 2021
This article was originally posted on The Domed Globe in May 2021 and the Mid-Atlantic Gateway that same month.
The Japanese magazines still do an excellent job of remembering the old NWA champs. These are images from a special section of a magazine in Japan that looked back at the history of the NWA World title and presented a special interview with Harley Race.
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| Former NWA World Champions Ric Flair and Harley Race (2015) |
What a great shot of two of the greatest champions to ever lace up the boots: Ric Flair and Harley Race.
The photo was taken today 8/29/15 in advance of World League Wrestling's "Night of Champions" event in Troy, MO. Flair was making a special appearance there for Harley's Missouri-based promotion.
That's Harley's replica of the domed-globe version of the NWA world title belt sitting on the table in front of them, better known as the "Ten Pounds of Gold."
Race beat Flair in June of 1983 in St. Louis to win his seventh NWA World championship, breaking Lou Thesz's long-standing record at that time. Flair got it back five months later at the first Starrcade event on Thanksgiving night of that same year in Greensboro, NC. The two traded it again in 1984 in the controversial New Zealand/Singapore title changes that weren't officially recognized at the time, but are now by the National Wrestling Alliance.
by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway
We're always appreciative of newspapers that do a good job of presenting wrestling in a journalistic fashion. This is a particularly good article in the Tampa Tribune promoting an upcoming card for Championship Wrestling from Florida on February 8, 1977, just two nights after Harley Race defeated Terry Funk with an Indian deathlock to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.
Who knows who wrote the piece. It doesn't really sound like it came from the office, but it sounds way too informed to be written by the a staff sports writer either.
The article captures all the complete twists and turns in the wonderful story leading up to this night at the fabled Fort Homer Hesterly Armory. There were actually two separate stories being told.
The first story cemented former champion Jack Brisco as Florida's top contender for the NWA title. Many of the fans coming to the Hesterly Armory that Tuesday night had witnessed Brisco cleanly beat Harley Race, also a former champion, that past Saturday in St. Petersburg. Surely Brisco could beat Race again, this time with his newly won NWA World championship at stake in Tampa.
The second story told answered a question many might have had following the finish to the title change match in Toronto. As a teenage fan watching wrestling in 1977, when the film of the match from Toronto was shown on Mid-Atlantic television, it seemed strange to me that Race had won by submission with an Indian deathlock. I had only ever seen our local hero Paul Jones win with that hold. In the wrestling magazines, it seemed the reports usually suggested Race typically won with various suplexes or his infamous flying headbutt from the top turnbuckle, resulting in wins by three-count pinfall. Why had Race instead gone for the submission for the win against Funk in Toronto?
The answer, it turned out, played out the night before in Florida.
The main event of the card in St. Petersburg on Saturday night was Terry Funk defending the NWA title against Dusty Rhodes. As the article above reports, Funk injured his knee in the match against
Rhodes, and "against his better judgement" went ahead with the scheduled
title defense against Race the next night in Toronto.
The rest, as they say, is history. Race knew what most fans didn't about the night before in the St, Petertsburg Bayfront Arena. Funk was hurt, and Race took advantage. He defeated Funk in 14:10 with an Indian death-lock to capture the gold belt. (I can still hear ring announcer Norm Kimber make the famous call.) It was a hold Race used infrequently (if ever?) and seemed almost out of place as it happened that night in Maple Leaf Gardens.
As the author of the article pointed out. Brisco's victory over Race in
St. Petersburg came three days too early. Race got the better of him in
Tampa this night to retain.
The injury to Funk's knee in St. Petersburg gave Funk an excuse he could bandy about after his loss to Race in Toronto the next night.
The article also colors between the lines nicely, accurately reporting key dates in the NWA title history of Brisco and the Funk Brothers, and even including a reference to an NWA title change in the same building eight years earlier to the week.
It's just an all around amazing piece to be found in a newspaper, and one of my favorite clippings from the history of the NWA title changes during the domed-globe era. And for those curious, it explains one of the mysteries about the historic Toronto finish some fans may have had at the time.
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Video of Harley Race's win over Funk in Toronto can be found on the Domed-Globe website here.
Late update: See three pages from the Florida program "The Grapevine" for the Feb. 5 show in St. Petersburg that set the stage for Toronto. (Thanks@bobbynorton9115 on Twitter.)
2/5/77 NWA Champion Terry Funk loses by DQ against Dusty Rhodes at the Bayfront Center. Funk loses the championship belt in his next match against Harley Race 2/8/77 in Toronto. @wrestlerweekly @magateway @ByMikeMooneyham pic.twitter.com/xVRo5lqzlx
— Championship Wrestling from Florida Guy (@bobbynorton9115) May 21, 2021
This article was originally posted on our sister website, The Domed-Globe.
Relatively rare footage from the Kansas City territory (aka Central States or Heart of America Promotions). The studio presentation is hosted by Bill Kersten, likely in the late 1970s or early 1980s. We are told that this studio production was taped at KBMA TV 41, later KSHB 41. (Additional information always welcome.)
Race, sometimes called "Mad Dog" in Kansas City before winning the NWA title in 1973, now went by the moniker "Handsome" Harley Race, which was always our favorite. Bill Kersten drove that home throughout this match; Harley was the hometown favorite. The video is a nice time-capsule of Harley in his prime as NWA champion, with a great closing shot of him in the ring at the ropes holding the ten pounds of gold.
Thanks to Mike over at the Mid-Atlantic Championship Podcast (@midatlanticpod) for tipping us off to this video (always love seeing Harley Race as in a studio ring) and Tyrone Mendez for info on the location.
More information on Bill Kersten over at the Studio Wrestling.
Originally posted on our Studio Wrestling website.
by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway
From 1975-1978, legendary wrestling announcer Ed Capral hosted Wide World Wrestling, a brand new program at that time for Jim Crockett Promotions.
Capral was the longtime host for pro wrestling in Atlanta on channel 11 until the Atlanta wrestling wars of the mid-1970s, when he jumped ship to the upstart All South Wrestling promotion run by Ann Gunkle, the widow of the late Ray Gunkle, an amateur and pro wrestler who was a major star in the southeast. All South lost the war to the stalwart NWA wrestling promotion and Capral found himself without an announcing job.
Jim Crockett hired him to host their brand new program, and Capral brought his classic old-school announcing style to TV stations across the Mid-Atlantic area.
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| Ed Capral with NWA World Champion Harley Race on the set of Wide World Wrestling. |
We present here a vintage audio clip from of Ed signing off an episode of Wide World Wrestling in 1977 and previewing the matches that would be seen on the show the following week. That line-up, by the way, was loaded with talent including a young Tully Blanchard going up against NWA World Champion Harley Race.
For the record, here is match list Capral announced:
And of course the familiar barter announcement and the classic Wide World Wrestling theme music plays along, one of my favorite TV wrestling themes of all time. (More on that music here.)
Enjoy this little audio blast from the past!
Audio is courtesy of the collection of Gary Wray. Originally posted in February 2021 on the Studio Wrestling website, part of the Mid-Atlantic Gateway family of websites.
RALEIGH NC - NOVEMBER 22, 1977
by Dick Bourne
Mid-Atlantic Gateway
The year 1977 was Ricky Steamboat's breakout-year in pro wrestling, upsetting Ric Flair for the NWA TV Championship in the spring of that year. Flair moved on and won the United States Championship from Bobo Brazil that summer, only to have Steamboat take that title from him, too, in October.
Race's defenses against Steamboat that week included a Tuesday night tilt in Raleigh, a Thanksgiving night clash in Norfolk, a Friday night battle in Charleston, and a Saturday night finale in Spartanburg.
Race managed to escape this tour through the Mid-Atlantic territory with his title intact, but his first bout with Steamboat woke him to the reality that the young superstar from Hawaii was more than up to the task to hang with the tough veteran champion. The Raleigh match went to the one-hour time limit, leaving Race stunned and exhausted. For most of the rest of the week, he didn't take any chances, often getting disqualified for throwing Steamboat over the top rope.
But Race quickly developed a healthy respect for Steamboat, and the two had classic title matches over the next several years across the Mid-Atlantic territory and in Canada as well.
Race's promo for their first match in Raleigh is classic-Harley, and is included below, a vintage audio recording made on a small cassette tape recorder by Gary Wray. Les Thatcher introduces the taped promo Harley sent in from Kansas City.
Transcription:
LES THATCHER: Harley Race will put his world title on the line against Ricky Steamoat. Here's some comments from the world's champion.
HARLEY RACE: Well it looks like the kid has finally moved up in the ranks. The last time I was around the Carolina area, I had no idea in the world that Rick Steamboat was going to be as good as what he has proven himself to be. You beat Flair. You beat everyone around there there is to beat. There's only one left. It's me, right here. When I come to Raleigh, I'm putting ten pounds of pure gold on the line. And let me tell you something kid, when you come for this, you're coming for my livelihood. You're coming for an investment in my life of 18 years, 'pert near as many years as you are old. So when I come, daddy, I'm coming to beat you, and beat you I will.
Race's voice inflection when he says "I'm putting ten pounds of pure gold on the line." ... his observation that his career has spanned roughly the same time Steamboat had been alive ... there was no one better than the champ, "Handsome" Harley Race.
c. 2020 Mid-Atlantic Gateway
Race Regains NWA Title, Defends Against Brisco
Harley Race won the National Wrestling Alliance world heavyweight championship against Terry Funk in Toronto Sunday night and will defend the title against Jack Brisco tonight at Fort Homer Hesterly Armory.
As far as Brisco is concerned, their championship fight is three nights too late. Brisco beat Race Saturday night at the Bayfront Center in St. Petersburg.
The turn of events involving Funk, Race, Brisco and Dusty Rhodes make soap operas seem awfully dull.
Rhodes beat Funk in the featured title match Saturday night at the Bayfront, but Funk was disqualified for kayoing the referee and the title didn't change hands.
Funk, however, injured a knee in that match and against better judgment went ahead with his scheduled match with Race in Toronto Sunday night.
Race beat Funk in a quick 14 minutes, 10 seconds with an Indian death lock, which places pressure on the knee and ankle.
NWA rules require a new champion to fulfill the former champion's match commitments. Interestingly, this brings Race right back against Brisco on tonight's Gasparilla Championships starting at 8:30 at Hesterly.
Terry Funk defeated Brisco for the championship in Miami in December of 1975.
Race previously held the title by defeating Dory Funk Jr. - - Terry's brother - - in March of 1973 and Race lost it to Brisco the following July.
An interesting triangle.
And who does Rhodes, the popular "American Dream wrestle tonight at Hesterly? Dory Funk Jr.
So, tonight's intriguing lineup pits Race vs. Brisco and Rhodes vs. Funk -- one champion and two ex-champs in the top two bouts.
It was in the same Gasparilla week of 1969 that Dory Funk Jr., lifted the heavyweight championship from Gene Kiniski at Hesterly.
Race has been wrestling professionally for 17 years. He turned pro with the NWA at 16, the youngest wrestler ever to do so.
Race makes his home in Kansas City.
