Legends of the Lankyverse

Legends of the Lankyverse Jun 25, 2021 14:43:01 GMT -8

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Post by LankyLefty17 on Jun 25, 2021 14:43:01 GMT -8

The man, the myth, the legend. Tank sits atop many lists as the biggest star in the history of wrestling. For the better part of 30 years, Tank remained one of the top draws in the world and held a major promotions top belt. His prime probably sat somewhere in the mid 80's to late 90's when he was the face of World Federation of Wrestling- holding the belt 4 times, the second reign lasting almost 4 years. In an era where people were commonly bouncing between WFoW and the CWA, Tank remained loyal to The Fed- engaging in memorable fueds with Wild Bill Bronson, Duke Masters (sorta... more on that later), and his most common rival- Wrecking Ball Allen. He's the reason WFoW beat out CWA in the states, and his declining age and lack of a true successor is what eventually sunk WFoW.

Where is he now:
In 2018 he founded Warrior Pro Wrestling, and has been running the promotion as well as occasionally wrestling. Despite his age he still moves around well enough, and can still be lethal if he gets his hands on you...

A legend of the Texas territories, Bronson first made national waves when, in a 1981 feud with Bay Area based Tank McDaniel, he broke Tank McDaniel's jaw with a vicious lariat. The Bronson Lariat would become one of the most famous finishing moves in wrestling, with Bronson getting steady work throughout the territories as a main event heel. In 1984, Bronson would join WFoW to rematch Tank in one of the biggest live gates of the time. The match culminated with Tank kicking out of not one, but two lariats- the second would legit break his jaw for the second time. Despite the massive gate, bad blood between Tank (who always insisted the broken jaws were intentional and malicious) and Bronson would mean he would never work with the promotion again.

Wild Bill would go on to do sporadic dates for CWA, but his focus would shift to overseas in Japan- where he would have an extremely successful 10 year run as the top foreign heel. He would even win JAAPW's heavyweight championship twice, all while making occasional returns to the US for one off feuds and angles. He would continue to work mostly in Japan until his retirement in 2004.

Where is he now:
Still alive and kicking, getting ready to celebrate his 80th birthday later this year. After wrestling he moved back to Texas, and invested in local businesses- mainly a dealership, a car wash, and a couple of Arby's franchises (which weirdly became the best investment of the three). In 2015 he fully retired and moved to Japan, where he still makes occasional appearances at autograph signings or smaller shows. In a 2019 podcast he admitted he did in fact try to break Tank's jaw.

One of the pioneer "flyers" in wrestling, Wrecking Ball Allen is probably best known for his almost decade long feud with Tank McDaniel over the WFoW World Title. Though what he probably should be more well known for is his much more under the radar feud with Jack Young. Both were gifted athletes and excellent talkers, they ruled the upper mid card in the early 80's in both WFoW and the CWA putting on some of the best matches of the era. It was that rivalry that catapulted Allen into a big contract with WFoW as the 1B for the promotion, shifting between ally and rival for Tank until 1998- when injuries and drug problems pulled him out of full time wrestling for good.

Where is he now:
Wrecking Ball sadly passed away in 2010 from an enlarged heart, likely due to steroids and other drugs. He had been wrestling indies off and on trying to make a comeback but it never really materialized. He did however make a brief return to the limelight in 2006 when he starred in a reality show that saw him taking odd jobs dressed in his full wrestling gear. The show lasted two seasons before getting canceled due to Allen showing up on set high as a kite (though to be fair, who could blame him).

If there was ever a CWA counterpart to Tank McDaniel in the 80's and 90's, it would be "The Natural" Duke Masters. One of the very best promos ever, and one of the best workers the sport has ever seen, Duke rose to the top of the CWA rankings after just two years of professional wrestling experience. He was a major draw throughout his career, and a supremely popular World Champion who played the perfect cocky heel that became the archetype many in the industry followed even to this day.

There was just one problem, Masters was a royal dick. Just an unholy piece of crap. Like if Doc Wyatt, President Evil, and Midas Mathews smushed into a single person, only worse. Wrestlers routinely refused to work with Duke- and Duke routinely used backstage politics to get his way. He would walk out on championship fights. He would intentionally injure opponents. He would routinely change finishes and fire wrestlers without authority and (sadly, because of his drawing power) without consequence. He literally stole the JAAPW belt for a month even though he didn't even have a match on the card (because he backed out of it at the last minute). Virgil Wyatt fired him twice. Virgil Wyatt. The first time, in 1988, he immediately signed with WFoW with the expectation of a mega fight with Tank McDaniel... only to back out and refuse the match a week before the show. After a year of dodging he went back to the CWA... where he was again fired in 1992 for basically refusing to do anything because his contract was guaranteed. He was eventually brought back in a last ditch effort to save the company (it didn't work) where he went down as the last CWA champion before the doors closed. He would continue wrestling off and on through the 90's and into the mid 2000's, both stateside as well as in Japan and Mexico. By 2008 his knees were shot and his goodwill with promoters had run out and he retired.

Where is he now:
Still semi-active, but mostly just retired. He has had some success in the independent scene as a manager/commentator, and he can still sell out when he does appearances, but Duke still remains... difficult. He was arrested in 2019 for taking a dump on the hood of a local Florida promoters car after he wouldn't re-negotiate his appearance fee, and a recent endorsement deal for an energy drink ended when he was kicked off a plane for being too drunk. He has claimed he's planning to run for mayor in his current home town of Memphis, though he has attempted a run for political office before and lost.

One of the most famous tag teams in the country, the Midnight Riders were the dominant tag team of the 1980's. Billed out of Dallas Texas, Jimmy Jackson and Kerry Mashburn combined a good look with a fast athletic style that made them a legitimate draw in the Texas territories. They're most known for their feuds with the Heavy Metal Express and the Youngbloods that would headline tours all along the southern states. Those feuds ended in 1989 when the Riders signed an exclusive deal with WFoW, where they never saw the same level of success. They would stay with the company through the late 90s before being released- largely due to Kerry Mashburn's knee injuries preventing them from regularly working. They would continue to regularly wrestle in Mexico and Japan all the way till 2012, even holding tag titles in both Lucha POWER and JAAPW, before retiring.

Where are they now:
Still wrestling actually. The retirement lasted about two years before they started taking dates, partially due to poor investments, partially due to boredom. Now in their 60's the Rider's can't move like they use to but still surprisingly hold their own. There are rumors that Tank McDaniel, always a fan of them from their time together, has been bugging both men to sign with Warrior Pro as trainers that occasionally still get in the ring.

A true legend of the sport, Baron von Baron is one of the most decorated pro wrestlers in history. A 5 time CWA World Heavyweight Champion and a 2 time WfoW World Champ, Baron was one of the top stars in wrestling throughout the 70’s. While he never reached the popularity of a Tank McDaniel, his title numbers and reigns remain a record today and in many eyes he’s viewed as the standard bearer of the golden age of wrestling. By the mid 80’s Baron had transitioned to mostly a front office role, taking turns as both a lead booker and commissioner of the CWA (before being ousted from both by Virgil Wyatt). Universally respected by everyone in the industry, Baron officially retired from wrestling- both in the front office as well as active competition- In 2001.

Despite spending time as both a wrestler and a booker, Baron also found time to build out the Baron Wrestling School- one of the premier wrestling academies in the world. Operating out of his hometown of San Antonio, Texas- the list of graduates is too long to call out one by one. Maybe more impressive is the lineage he started- both his son (Austin Baron) and grandson (Vic Baron) have gone on to be multi time World Champions in their own right.

Where is he now:
After turning the wrestling school over to his son Austin in 2010, the patriarch of the Baron Family mostly runs local shows out of The Longhorn, a venue he owns outright. There have been overtures over the years to try and get him back into the business but outside of some one off events and occasional appearances as a “guest trainer” he has largely seemed content to stay out of the limelight.

Arguably one the most famous Japanese wrestler of all time, Shintaro Ito was part of the “Big Three” during the hayday of Japan All Around Wrestling in the mid 80’s to mid 90’s. His five year feud with Jumbo Matsui produced some of the greatest matches of all time, and his run with “Wild” Bill Bronson as tag team champions turned rivals got worldwide coverage in pro wrestling circles.

In 2003 Ito left JAAW to form Dragon Fire Japan- which banked most of its early success by centering its booking around Ito, before age took over and he was forced to pivot towards younger talent.

Where is he now:
Still owning and operating Dragon Fire Japan, Ito hasnt laced them up in almost a decade- mainly working with the talent behind the scenes and running the companies operations. Rumors always persist that the recently turned 70 year old could make a return to the ring but it seems the legend is content letting the next generation carry the flag.