The Beast (wrestler)
Encyclopedia
Yvon Cormier was a Canadian
professional wrestler
. Competing primarily under the ring name
The Beast, he and his three wrestling brothers made up the Cormier wrestling family
. He wrestled in many countries but regularly returned to Canada, where he competed for the Eastern Sports Association
(ESA) and the ESA-promoted International Wrestling (IW). He also competed in the Calgary
, Alberta
-based Stampede Wrestling
for many years.
. His wrestling brothers were Leo Burke
(Leonce Cormier), Bobby Kay
(Romeo Cormier) and Rudy Kay
(Jean-Louis Cormier). The oldest brother, Malcolm, worked as a referee under the name Mel Turnbow.
As a teenager, he worked in the woods, shoed horses, and drove heavy equipment. He met Emile Dupré
in 1957, who told him to consider a career in professional wrestling. Cormier began training, and later moved to Indianapolis
, Indiana
to continue his preparation under trained Les Ruffen, and made his debut in 1963. At first, he used the ring name Pierre Lebelle before switching to Ivan the Lumberjack. In Texas, he was known as Joe Gump. When he later ventured to the Mid-Atlantic territory, Jim Crockett, Sr.
named him The Beast. At that time, he had thick, untamed hair and a large, curly beard.
The Beast spent part of his early career competing for Stampede Wrestling, where he faced such wrestlers as Stu Hart
. He won his first championship there in 1966. He defeated Stampede veteran Dave Ruhl
to win the Calgary version of the NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship
. Later that year, he dropped the title back to Ruhl. He gained a different title the following year, however, when he teamed with Bob Sweetan
to defeat the Christy Brothers (Bobby and Jerry) for the Calgary version of the NWA International Tag Team Championship
on July 12, 1967.
In 1969, The Beast became the first holder of the IW North American Heavyweight Championship
. On August 5, he gained a second title when he teamed with his brother Rudy Kay to defeat The Fabulous Kangaroos
(Al Costello
and Don Kent
) to win the ESA International Tag Team Championship
. Three weeks later, he dropped the North American title to The Stomper
(Archie Gouldie), who became his longtime rival. He then began competing for the Amarillo, Texas
-based territory of the National Wrestling Alliance
(NWA). He won the NWA Western States Heavyweight Championship
and held it for several months before losing it in a match against Ricky Romero on February 2, 1970.
Two months later, on April 4, The Beast teamed with Bull Ramos
to win the NWA Western States Tag Team Championship
by defeating Terry Funk
and Romero. They continued to face Funk and Romero and dropped the title back to them later that year. On July 27, The Beast regained the IW North American Heavyweight Championship from The Stomper and held it for over two months. He lost the championship to Eric Pomeroy that October. While competing in the ESA, The Beast also had another reign as International Tag Team Champion, this time while teaming with his brother Leo Burke. They held the title until dropping it on August 3, 1971 to The Beast's former partner Bob Sweetan and former rival Eric Pomeroy. The Beast had two more reigns with the ESA International Tag Team Championship that year, however. Four weeks after dropping it to Sweetan and Pomeroy, he regained the title from them with the help of his new partner Archie Gouldie, with whom The Beast had once feuded over the North American Heavyweight Championship. The title reign lasted for a little over a month before Pomeroy and Sweetan regained the championship trophy. Pomeroy and Sweetan held the title for only one week, however, as The Beast recruited his brother Rudy Kay to help him win the championship back on October 12. This time, the brothers' reign lasted for just over seven months. Sweetan eventually regained the title while teaming with Mike Dubois
on May 16 the following year.
Over a year passed before The Beast won another championship. In the summer of 1973, Sweetan was holding the ESA Tag Team Championship with Kurt von Steiger
when The Beast teamed with Bobby Kay, the only one of his brothers with whom he had not held a tag team championship, and regained the trophy. Once again, however, Sweetan won the title back on July 31 along with partner Mr. X. During the ESA off-season, The Beast returned to Texas and reformed his tag team partnership with brother Leo Burke. In January 1974, the brothers defeated Don Fargo and Hank James to win the NWA Western States Tag Team Championship. Within two months, however, they lost the title to long-time rival Romero and his partner Dory Funk, Jr.
Returning to the ESA, The Beast and Bobby Kay defeated Sweetan and Dubois to win the vacant Tag Team Championship. The reign lasted for less than one week before Sweetan and Dubois won the trophy in a rematch. The following month, The Beast had another short reign with the IWA North American Heavyweight Championship, winning the title and losing it back to Great Kuma in less than two weeks. He followed this with a victory for the Tag Team Championship with Burke on July 13, once again winning the title from Sweetan and Dubois. By early August, the brothers had dropped the title to Kuma and Geto Mongol
.
The Beast and Rudy Kay had one last reign as ESA International Tag Team Champions together. They defeated Bob Brown
and The Patriot during the autumn of 1975 to win the trophy. They held the title until the end of the ESA's 1975 season. The Beast's final title reign began in Texas on February 20, 1976. He and Leo Burke won a tournament for the vacant NWA Western States Tag Team Championship, defeating Romero and his son Silver Streak to win the title. They held it for one week before dropping it to Romero and Silver Streak on February 27.
During his career he wrestled seven different world champions, including six time limit draws
. At one point, he wrestled Giant Baba
in Japan in front of a crowd of 45,000 people. He also participated in numerous chain matches, in which he and an opponent were joined together by a steel chain attached to their wrists.
450 pounds with each, and he was once recorded as bench pressing 527 pounds. During one photo session, Cormier lifted a telephone pole
from the ground and carried it around while posing for pictures. According to one story, he once got upset with a horse that refused to cooperate and knocked it down with one punch.
Like his brothers, Cormier was a lifelong ice hockey
fan. He also trained horses for harness racing
and had six of his own Percheron
horses. He had four sons, all of whom are being trained to wrestle, as well as one daughter. He was married to his wife, Doris, for 44 years until his death.
In May 2008, Cormier was diagnosed with lymphoma
. He underwent treatment but suffered a heart attack
soon after beginning. Doctors later determined that the cancer had moved into his bone marrow
. He died on March 4, 2009 at a hospital in Moncton, New Brunswick
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
professional wrestler
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
. Competing primarily under the ring name
Ring name
A ring name is a stage name used by a professional wrestler, martial artist, or boxer. While some ring names may have a fictitious first name and surname, others may simply be a nickname, such as The Undertaker.-Wrestling:...
The Beast, he and his three wrestling brothers made up the Cormier wrestling family
Cormier wrestling family
The Cormier wrestling family is a group of Canadian brothers who competed in professional wrestling. They were born in New Brunswick and wrestled primarily in Canada. They also competed in the United States and had stints in several other countries. On many occasions, the Cormiers wrestled together...
. He wrestled in many countries but regularly returned to Canada, where he competed for the Eastern Sports Association
Eastern Sports Association
The Eastern Sports Association, often referred to in the business simply as "the Maritimes," was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Halifax, Nova Scotia...
(ESA) and the ESA-promoted International Wrestling (IW). He also competed in the Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
-based Stampede Wrestling
Stampede Wrestling
Stampede Wrestling is a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta and was for nearly 50 years one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies...
for many years.
Career
Cormier was born into a family of thirteen children, of which four of the brothers became professional wrestlers, and another became a refereeReferee (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling referee is the official figure that makes sure that wrestling matches move smoothly in an attempt to maintain kayfabe. The referee also has the ultimate power in the ring...
. His wrestling brothers were Leo Burke
Leo Burke
Leonce Cormier is a retired Canadian professional wrestler. He was born in Dorchester, New Brunswick. He competed across Canada, in several American promotions, and wrestled internationally for both Puerto Rico's World Wrestling Council and the National Wrestling Alliance in New Zealand...
(Leonce Cormier), Bobby Kay
Bobby Kay
Romeo Cormier is a retired Canadian professional wrestler best known by the ring name Bobby Kay. He is a member of the Cormier wrestling family, a group of four brothers who were all successful professional wrestlers. Romeo Cormier competed in Canada and the United States from 1967 to the...
(Romeo Cormier) and Rudy Kay
Rudy Kay
Jean-Louis Cormier was a Canadian professional wrestler best known by his ring name Rudy Kay. Cormier competed primarily in Canada and often formed a tag team with his brothers; together, they are known as the Cormier wrestling family...
(Jean-Louis Cormier). The oldest brother, Malcolm, worked as a referee under the name Mel Turnbow.
As a teenager, he worked in the woods, shoed horses, and drove heavy equipment. He met Emile Dupré
Emile Duprée
Emile Duprée is a former professional wrestler and promoter. He is also the father of former WWE professional wrestler, René Duprée and currently lives in Pointe-du-Chene, New Brunswick.-Professional wrestling career:...
in 1957, who told him to consider a career in professional wrestling. Cormier began training, and later moved to Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
to continue his preparation under trained Les Ruffen, and made his debut in 1963. At first, he used the ring name Pierre Lebelle before switching to Ivan the Lumberjack. In Texas, he was known as Joe Gump. When he later ventured to the Mid-Atlantic territory, Jim Crockett, Sr.
Jim Crockett
James Allen Crockett was a professional wrestling promoter sometimes known as Jim Crockett, Sr. or to people within the business simply as "Big Jim".-Early life:...
named him The Beast. At that time, he had thick, untamed hair and a large, curly beard.
The Beast spent part of his early career competing for Stampede Wrestling, where he faced such wrestlers as Stu Hart
Stu Hart
Stewart Edward "Stu" Hart, CM was a Canadian amateur wrestler, professional wrestler, promoter and trainer. Hart founded Stampede Wrestling, a promotion based in Calgary, Alberta, and was the father of famous wrestlers Bret and Owen Hart...
. He won his first championship there in 1966. He defeated Stampede veteran Dave Ruhl
Dave Ruhl
Dave Ruhl was a Canadian professional wrestler who during his near 30-year career competed in North American regional promotions in Western Canada and the Canadian Prairies as well as in Japan and other international promotions...
to win the Calgary version of the NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship
NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship (Calgary version)
The Calgary version of the NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship was established in 1946, and became the top championship in Stampede Wrestling when that promotion opened in 1948; it held that status until 1972, when the title was vacated and later abandoned after the last champion, Dave Ruhl, was...
. Later that year, he dropped the title back to Ruhl. He gained a different title the following year, however, when he teamed with Bob Sweetan
Bob Sweetan
Bob Sweetan better known as "Bruiser" Bob Sweetan or "Mr. Piledriver" Bob Sweetan, after his signature finishing maneuver, was born in 1940. Bob was a professional wrestler who over his long career held numerous titles. Bob enjoyed tremendous success with the National Wrestling Alliance...
to defeat the Christy Brothers (Bobby and Jerry) for the Calgary version of the NWA International Tag Team Championship
Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Championship
The Stampede International Tag Team Championship is the main tag-team title in the Canadian professional wrestling promotion Stampede Wrestling. It was created in 1958 as the NWA International Tag-Team Championship...
on July 12, 1967.
In 1969, The Beast became the first holder of the IW North American Heavyweight Championship
IW North American Heavyweight Championship
This is a list of people who held the "North American Heavyweight Title" under the banner of International Wrestling from 1969 to 1984. The promotion was owned by the Eastern Sports Association from 1969 until 1976...
. On August 5, he gained a second title when he teamed with his brother Rudy Kay to defeat The Fabulous Kangaroos
The Fabulous Kangaroos
The Fabulous Kangaroos is a former professional wrestling tag team that existed in various forms from 1957 until 1983. The first incarnation of The Fabulous Kangaroos was formed when Italian Australian Al Costello teamed with Australia native Roy Heffernan and adopted an "Ultra Australian" gimmick...
(Al Costello
Al Costello
Giacomo Costa was an Italian Australian professional wrestler best known by his ring name, Al Costello. Costello was the first professional wrestler to be nicknamed "The Man of a Thousand Holds" because of his innovative and very technical style.Costello was the creator and original member of the...
and Don Kent
Don Kent (wrestler)
Leo Joseph "Joe" Smith Jr. was an American professional wrestler who wrestled as Don Kent and also as The Black Dragon, Doug Kent, Joe Smith and Super Medico III during his 20 years in professional wrestling.Don Kent is one half of The Fabulous Kangaroos alongside partners Al Costello, Bruno...
) to win the ESA International Tag Team Championship
ESA International Tag Team Championship
Eastern Sports Association's International Tag Team Title was represented by a Trophy, and was defended in the Maritimes from 1969-75.- International Tag Team Champions :...
. Three weeks later, he dropped the North American title to The Stomper
Mongolian Stomper
Archie Gouldie is a Canadian professional wrestler better known by his ring name The Mongolian Stomper.-Stampede Wrestling:Gouldie held the North American heavyweight title a record ten times between 1968 and 1984, quite a streak of longevity for that time frame...
(Archie Gouldie), who became his longtime rival. He then began competing for the Amarillo, Texas
Amarillo, Texas
Amarillo is the 14th-largest city, by population, in the state of Texas, the largest in the Texas Panhandle, and the seat of Potter County. A portion of the city extends into Randall County. The population was 190,695 at the 2010 census...
-based territory of the National Wrestling Alliance
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
(NWA). He won the NWA Western States Heavyweight Championship
NWA Western States Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Western States Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling title in the National Wrestling Alliance's Amarillo, Texas territory, NWA Western States Sports....
and held it for several months before losing it in a match against Ricky Romero on February 2, 1970.
Two months later, on April 4, The Beast teamed with Bull Ramos
Apache Bull Ramos
Manuel Ramos , better known as Apache Bull Ramos, was an American professional wrestler from his debut in 1956 until the 1970s who primarily worked as a heel. He had notable feuds with Bruno Sammartino, Dutch Savage, Jimmy Snuka, Terry Funk and Mil Máscaras...
to win the NWA Western States Tag Team Championship
NWA Western States Tag Team Championship
The NWA Western States Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling title in the National Wrestling Alliance's Amarillo, Texas territory, NWA Western States Sports....
by defeating Terry Funk
Terry Funk
Terrence "Terry" Funk is an American professional wrestler and actor known chiefly for the hardcore wrestling style he adopted in the latter part of his career that inspired many younger wrestlers, including Mick Foley...
and Romero. They continued to face Funk and Romero and dropped the title back to them later that year. On July 27, The Beast regained the IW North American Heavyweight Championship from The Stomper and held it for over two months. He lost the championship to Eric Pomeroy that October. While competing in the ESA, The Beast also had another reign as International Tag Team Champion, this time while teaming with his brother Leo Burke. They held the title until dropping it on August 3, 1971 to The Beast's former partner Bob Sweetan and former rival Eric Pomeroy. The Beast had two more reigns with the ESA International Tag Team Championship that year, however. Four weeks after dropping it to Sweetan and Pomeroy, he regained the title from them with the help of his new partner Archie Gouldie, with whom The Beast had once feuded over the North American Heavyweight Championship. The title reign lasted for a little over a month before Pomeroy and Sweetan regained the championship trophy. Pomeroy and Sweetan held the title for only one week, however, as The Beast recruited his brother Rudy Kay to help him win the championship back on October 12. This time, the brothers' reign lasted for just over seven months. Sweetan eventually regained the title while teaming with Mike Dubois
Michel Lamarche
Michel Lamarche is a retired Canadian professional wrestler, known by his ringnames Alexis Smirnoff and Michel "Le Justice" Dubois , who competed in North American regional promotions including the National Wrestling Alliance, including the Mid-South, Central States, Georgia and San Francisco...
on May 16 the following year.
Over a year passed before The Beast won another championship. In the summer of 1973, Sweetan was holding the ESA Tag Team Championship with Kurt von Steiger
Kurt and Karl Von Steiger
Kurt and Karl Von Steiger was the ring name of professional wrestlers Lorne Corlett and Arnold Pastrick worked under for most of their careers. The Von Steiger gimmick was that of two German villains, called heels, despite both wrestlers hailing from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada...
when The Beast teamed with Bobby Kay, the only one of his brothers with whom he had not held a tag team championship, and regained the trophy. Once again, however, Sweetan won the title back on July 31 along with partner Mr. X. During the ESA off-season, The Beast returned to Texas and reformed his tag team partnership with brother Leo Burke. In January 1974, the brothers defeated Don Fargo and Hank James to win the NWA Western States Tag Team Championship. Within two months, however, they lost the title to long-time rival Romero and his partner Dory Funk, Jr.
Dory Funk, Jr.
Dory Ernest Funk Jr. known professionally as Dory Funk, Jr. is a professional wrestler and wrestling trainer. He is the son of Dory Funk Sr. and brother of Terry Funk. He is credited with the invention of the Texas cloverleaf submission hold and runs the Funking Conservatory, a professional...
Returning to the ESA, The Beast and Bobby Kay defeated Sweetan and Dubois to win the vacant Tag Team Championship. The reign lasted for less than one week before Sweetan and Dubois won the trophy in a rematch. The following month, The Beast had another short reign with the IWA North American Heavyweight Championship, winning the title and losing it back to Great Kuma in less than two weeks. He followed this with a victory for the Tag Team Championship with Burke on July 13, once again winning the title from Sweetan and Dubois. By early August, the brothers had dropped the title to Kuma and Geto Mongol
Newton Tattrie
Newton Tattrie is a retired professional wrestler who started his career in the 1960s working for Stu Hart's Stampede Wrestling promotion out of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. During his career, Tattrie wrestled all over the globe, wrestling for promotions across the US and Canada, Africa, Japan,...
.
The Beast and Rudy Kay had one last reign as ESA International Tag Team Champions together. They defeated Bob Brown
Bob Brown (wrestler)
Robert Harold Brown was a Canadian professional wrestler, better known by his ring name "Bulldog" Bob Brown.- Early life :...
and The Patriot during the autumn of 1975 to win the trophy. They held the title until the end of the ESA's 1975 season. The Beast's final title reign began in Texas on February 20, 1976. He and Leo Burke won a tournament for the vacant NWA Western States Tag Team Championship, defeating Romero and his son Silver Streak to win the title. They held it for one week before dropping it to Romero and Silver Streak on February 27.
During his career he wrestled seven different world champions, including six time limit draws
Tie (draw)
To tie or draw is to finish a competition with identical or inconclusive results. The word "tie" is usually used in North America for sports such as American football. "Draw" is usually used in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Commonwealth of Nations and it is usually used for sports such as...
. At one point, he wrestled Giant Baba
Shohei Baba
was a professional wrestler and co-founder of All Japan Pro Wrestling. He was also known as Giant Baba. Baba, along with Antonio Inoki, became one of the most famous Japanese wrestlers of his era, with a popularity in Japan comparable to Hulk Hogan's in the United States of America...
in Japan in front of a crowd of 45,000 people. He also participated in numerous chain matches, in which he and an opponent were joined together by a steel chain attached to their wrists.
Personal life
Cormier was known for his physical strength and intense exercise regimen. He was known to bench pressBench press
The bench press is an exercise of the upper body. For bodybuilding purposes, it is used to stimulate the pectorals, deltoids, and triceps. While on his or her back, the person performing the bench press lowers a weight to the level of the chest, then pushes it back up until the arm is straight...
450 pounds with each, and he was once recorded as bench pressing 527 pounds. During one photo session, Cormier lifted a telephone pole
Utility pole
A utility pole is a pole used to support overhead power lines and various other public utilities, such as cable, fibre optic cable, and related equipment such as transformers and street lights. It can be referred to as a telephone pole, power pole, hydro pole, telegraph pole, or telegraph post,...
from the ground and carried it around while posing for pictures. According to one story, he once got upset with a horse that refused to cooperate and knocked it down with one punch.
Like his brothers, Cormier was a lifelong ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
fan. He also trained horses for harness racing
Harness racing
Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait . They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, although racing under saddle is also conducted in Europe.-Breeds:...
and had six of his own Percheron
Percheron
The Percheron is a breed of draft horse that originated in the Perche valley in northern France. Percherons are usually gray or black in color. They are well-muscled, and known for their intelligence and willingness to work. Although their exact origins are unknown, the ancestors of the breed were...
horses. He had four sons, all of whom are being trained to wrestle, as well as one daughter. He was married to his wife, Doris, for 44 years until his death.
In May 2008, Cormier was diagnosed with lymphoma
Lymphoma
Lymphoma is a cancer in the lymphatic cells of the immune system. Typically, lymphomas present as a solid tumor of lymphoid cells. Treatment might involve chemotherapy and in some cases radiotherapy and/or bone marrow transplantation, and can be curable depending on the histology, type, and stage...
. He underwent treatment but suffered a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
soon after beginning. Doctors later determined that the cancer had moved into his bone marrow
Bone marrow
Bone marrow is the flexible tissue found in the interior of bones. In humans, bone marrow in large bones produces new blood cells. On average, bone marrow constitutes 4% of the total body mass of humans; in adults weighing 65 kg , bone marrow accounts for approximately 2.6 kg...
. He died on March 4, 2009 at a hospital in Moncton, New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
.
In wrestling
- ManagersManager (professional wrestling)In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
- Rudy LaBelleRudy KayJean-Louis Cormier was a Canadian professional wrestler best known by his ring name Rudy Kay. Cormier competed primarily in Canada and often formed a tag team with his brothers; together, they are known as the Cormier wrestling family...
- Signature and finishing moves
- Bear hug
- Knee drop
Championships and accomplishments
- Eastern Sports AssociationEastern Sports AssociationThe Eastern Sports Association, often referred to in the business simply as "the Maritimes," was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Halifax, Nova Scotia...
- ESA International Tag Team ChampionshipESA International Tag Team ChampionshipEastern Sports Association's International Tag Team Title was represented by a Trophy, and was defended in the Maritimes from 1969-75.- International Tag Team Champions :...
(8 times) - with Rudy KayRudy KayJean-Louis Cormier was a Canadian professional wrestler best known by his ring name Rudy Kay. Cormier competed primarily in Canada and often formed a tag team with his brothers; together, they are known as the Cormier wrestling family...
(3), Leo BurkeLeo BurkeLeonce Cormier is a retired Canadian professional wrestler. He was born in Dorchester, New Brunswick. He competed across Canada, in several American promotions, and wrestled internationally for both Puerto Rico's World Wrestling Council and the National Wrestling Alliance in New Zealand...
(1), Archie GouldieMongolian StomperArchie Gouldie is a Canadian professional wrestler better known by his ring name The Mongolian Stomper.-Stampede Wrestling:Gouldie held the North American heavyweight title a record ten times between 1968 and 1984, quite a streak of longevity for that time frame...
(1), and Bobby KayBobby KayRomeo Cormier is a retired Canadian professional wrestler best known by the ring name Bobby Kay. He is a member of the Cormier wrestling family, a group of four brothers who were all successful professional wrestlers. Romeo Cormier competed in Canada and the United States from 1967 to the...
(3) - IW North American Heavyweight ChampionshipIW North American Heavyweight ChampionshipThis is a list of people who held the "North American Heavyweight Title" under the banner of International Wrestling from 1969 to 1984. The promotion was owned by the Eastern Sports Association from 1969 until 1976...
(4 times)
- NWA Western States SportsNational Wrestling AllianceThe National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
- NWA Western States Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA Western States Heavyweight ChampionshipThe NWA Western States Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling title in the National Wrestling Alliance's Amarillo, Texas territory, NWA Western States Sports....
(1 time) - NWA Western States Tag Team ChampionshipNWA Western States Tag Team ChampionshipThe NWA Western States Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling title in the National Wrestling Alliance's Amarillo, Texas territory, NWA Western States Sports....
(3 times) - with Leo Burke (2) and Bull RamosApache Bull RamosManuel Ramos , better known as Apache Bull Ramos, was an American professional wrestler from his debut in 1956 until the 1970s who primarily worked as a heel. He had notable feuds with Bruno Sammartino, Dutch Savage, Jimmy Snuka, Terry Funk and Mil Máscaras...
(1)
- Stampede WrestlingStampede WrestlingStampede Wrestling is a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta and was for nearly 50 years one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies...
- NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship (Calgary version)NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship (Calgary version)The Calgary version of the NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship was established in 1946, and became the top championship in Stampede Wrestling when that promotion opened in 1948; it held that status until 1972, when the title was vacated and later abandoned after the last champion, Dave Ruhl, was...
(1 time) - NWA International Tag Team Championship (Calgary version)Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team ChampionshipThe Stampede International Tag Team Championship is the main tag-team title in the Canadian professional wrestling promotion Stampede Wrestling. It was created in 1958 as the NWA International Tag-Team Championship...
(1 time) - with Bob SweetanBob SweetanBob Sweetan better known as "Bruiser" Bob Sweetan or "Mr. Piledriver" Bob Sweetan, after his signature finishing maneuver, was born in 1940. Bob was a professional wrestler who over his long career held numerous titles. Bob enjoyed tremendous success with the National Wrestling Alliance...