Joe Ventura (born 1953) is a Canadian retired

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

who was active throughout the 1970s and 80s. Although he is of Italian descent, Ventura had most of his success portraying an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

(

First Nation Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

) under the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...

(Chief) Joe Lightfoot. He spent the majority of the 1970s competing in Canada for

Stampede Wrestling Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta. For nearly 50 years, it was one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies. Originally established by Stu Hart in 1948, the prom ...

and

NWA All-Star Wrestling NWA All Star Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Vancouver) is a Canadian professional wrestling promotion, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. All-Star Wrestling folded in 1989 but returned in 2007 no longer affiliated with the National Wr ...

and the majority of the 1980s competing in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, primarily throughout the

National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion and former professional wrestling governing body operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA ...

, where he is a former NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion.

Professional wrestling career

Stampede Wrestling and Canadian promotions (1970s)

Ventura began his professional wrestler career in the mid-1970s, wrestling in

Calgary, Alberta Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Canadian Prairies, Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,30 ...

and

Regina, Saskatchewan Regina () is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, after Saskatoon, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 C ...

primarily for

Stu Hart Stewart Edward Hart (May 3, 1915 – October 16, 2003) was a Canadian amateur and professional wrestler, wrestling booker, promoter, coach, trainer, football player and sailor. He is best known for founding and handling Stampede Wrestling, a ...

. His older brother Tito Senza was also a wrestler. Having competed against wrestlers such as Keith Hart he made his way to

Maple Leaf Wrestling Maple Leaf Wrestling was the unofficial name in the 1970s and 1980s of the professional wrestling promotion run by Frank Tunney in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. History Queensbury Athletic Club The promotion, initially known as the Queensbury Athle ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Ontario, Canada, teaming with Steve Bolus on MLW television in a losing effort against

Baron von Raschke James Donald Raschke (born July 30, 1940) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Baron von Raschke. Early life Raschke was a three-year letterman with the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Cornhuskers wrest ...

and

Greg Valentine Jonathan Anthony Wisniski (born September 20, 1951) is a retired American professional wrestler, better known as Greg "The Hammer" Valentine. He is the son of wrestler Johnny Valentine. Over five decades, Valentine held more than 40 championship ...

on December 16, 1978. Throughout the remainder of the 1970s, Ventura competed for

All-Star Wrestling All Star Wrestling (ASW) is a British professional wrestling promotion operated by Brian Dixon and based in Birkenhead, England. Founded as Wrestling Enterprises of Birkenhead in October 1970, it has also been known over the years as All Star P ...

and

Stampede A stampede () is a situation in which a group of large animals suddenly start running in the same direction, especially because they are excited or frightened. Non-human species associated with stampede behavior include zebras, cattle, elephants ...

, feuding with wrestlers including Terry Sawyer,

Dynamite Kid Thomas Billington (5 December 1958 – 5 December 2018), best known by the ring name the Dynamite Kid, was a British professional wrestler. Trained by former wrestler "Dr Death" Ted Betley, he competed in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), ...

, Cuban Assassin and

Roddy Piper Roderick George Toombs (April 17, 1954 – July 31, 2015), better known as "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, was a Canadian professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and actor. In professional wrestling, Piper was best known to international audiences for hi ...

. On March 1, 1977 he defeated Chin Lee to win his first title - the

Grand Prix Wrestling Grand Prix Wrestling (GPW) is a professional wrestling promotion run and owned by Emile Duprée. Grand Prix Wrestling has recently finished the 2013 Rising Sun In The Maritimes Tour. Atlantic Grand Prix Wrestling tours parts of New Brunswick, P ...

Junior Heavyweight Championship. In April 1979, he won the

NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship The NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship is a National Wrestling Alliance-sanctioned tag team professional wrestling championship based mainly in the Extreme Canadian Championship Wrestling promotion, although the title has been contested for in the ...

, teaming with Bobby Bass to defeat

Igor Volkoff Pierre Lafleur (born February 13, 1939) is a former French Canadian professional wrestler who is best known for his appearances with the World Wide Wrestling Federation under the ring name Lumberjack Pierre where he was the half of The Yukon Lumber ...

and The Mongol.

Pacific Northwest (1980)

On October 24, 1980 Ventura made his debut in the

, wrestling for

Pacific Northwest Wrestling Pacific Northwest Wrestling (PNW) (also known as Big Time Wrestling and Portland Wrestling) is the common name used to refer to several different professional wrestling companies, both past and present, based in Portland, Oregon, United States. T ...

in Eugene, Oregon under the ring name "Joe Lightfoot". Now portraying an

, Lightfoot became a mainstay in PNW, competing against

Buddy Rose Paul Robert Perschmann (November 27, 1952 – April 28, 2009) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Playboy Buddy Rose. He wrestled primarily for the AWA, WWF, and for promoter Don Owen in Pacific Northwest ...

and The Destroyer. He also became a regular tag team partner with

Jay Youngblood Steven Nicolas Romero (June 21, 1955 – September 2, 1985) was an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Jay Youngblood. He wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance's Jim Crockett Promotions in a tag team with Ricky Stea ...

, competing as "The Indians". The team proved a very popular

babyface Babyface or Baby Face can refer to: Nicknames * Lester Joseph Gillis a.k.a. Baby Face Nelson, an infamous 1930s bank robber * Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette (1933–1971), an American hard bop and soul-jazz musician * "Baby Face", Jimmy McLarnin ...

duo, winning the

NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship The NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S. states of ...

October 25, 1980. The team also worked in Canada, winning the

on November 3, 1980, Lightfoot's second reign with the title.

NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion & Puerto Rico (1981)

In 1981, Lightfoot travelled to

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

to work for the

World Wrestling Council The World Wrestling Council (WWC) (Spanish: "Consejo Mundial de Lucha"), is a Puerto-Rican professional wrestling promotion based in Puerto Rico. It was originally established as Capitol Sports Promotions in 1973 by Carlos Colón Sr., Victor J ...

. Here he had great success as a babyface, becoming a prominent single's competitor. On November 7, 1981, Lightfoot won the

WWC World Junior Heavyweight Championship The WWC Junior Heavyweight Championship is a Championship (professional wrestling), championship contested for in the Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion, the World Wrestling Council. While ...

, defeating Les Thornton. This was the second title he won from Thornton in as many months as he had captured the

NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship The NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Created in 1945, the title is competed for by junior heavyweight wrestlers. History The first NWA World Junior ...

on October 16 in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Tennessee, Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Di ...

Georgia Championship (1981-82)

Lightfoot competed throughout the United States and Canada in the mid-1980s, wrestling primarily for

Georgia Championship Wrestling Georgia Championship Wrestling was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Atlanta, Georgia. The promotion was affiliated with what had been the world's top sanctioning body of championship titles for decades before, the National W ...

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, NWA Hollywood and PNW. He continued his successful tag-team with Jay Youngblood throughout the territories and were the most popular tag team in

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...

, where on February 27, 1981, they teamed with Andre the Giant in the main event to defeat

Rip Oliver Larry Richard Oliver (October 6, 1952 – March 5, 2020) was an American professional wrestler, known as "Crippler" Rip Oliver, who had success in Pacific Northwest Wrestling (PNW). Early life Oliver was born in Florida. His father was Dennis Lee ...

and The Destroyer in Oregon. He also had memorable rivalries with

The Iron Sheik Hossein Khosrow Ali Vaziri ( fa, حسین خسرو علی وزیری, romanized: Hossein Xosrô 'Ali Vaziri; born March 15, 1942), better known by his ring name the Iron Sheik, is an Iranian retired professional wrestler, amateur wrestler and a ...

and

The Moondogs The Moondogs are a Northern Irish rock band formed in 1979, and consisting of Gerry McCandless, Austin Barrett and Jackie Hamilton. Their career spans three albums, four singles and two television programmes. Discography Singles *"She's Nine ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

Florida, Central States and Jim Crockett Promotions (mid/late 1980s)

Lightfoot became a mainstay in

Championship Wrestling From Florida Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF) was the corporate and brand name of the Tampa, Florida wrestling office existing from 1961, when Eddie Graham first bought into the promotion, until 1987, when it closed down. It is also referred to as ...

from 1984 onwards. He formed a successful team with Mike Davis, competing in noted feuds with Black Bart & Kevin Sullivan and

Hector In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...

Chavo Guerrero Salvador Guerrero IV (born October 20, 1970) better known by his ring names Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero Jr., is an American professional wrestler. He has previously worked for World Championship Wrestling (WCW), World Wrestling Federatio ...

. Lightfoot also began one of his most memorable rivalries with the

One Man Gang George Gray (born February 12, 1960) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, (The) One Man Gang. For two years in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), he was Akeem "The African Dream". Prior to this, he was ...

, a feud which spanned both CWFF and

Jim Crockett Promotions Jim Crockett Promotions Inc. is a family-owned professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, restarted by Jim Crockett's son and Jim Crockett Jr's brother, David Crockett. Founded in 1931, the promot ...

. They competed against each other in both singles and tag matches and also had a strap match on October 4, 1984 at the Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida. He worked his way through Jim Crockett Promotions and

Central States Wrestling Heart of America Sports Attractions, also known as the Midwest Wrestling Association, Central States Wrestling and the World Wrestling Alliance, was an American professional wrestling promotion that ran shows mainly in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska ...

during this time, often teamed with other Native/Indian stars in tag team matches. He teamed with Billy Two Eagles win the

NWA Central States Tag Team Championship The NWA Central States Tag Team Championship was the primary tag team championship for the Heart of America Sports Attractions / Central States Wrestling promotion from 1979 until the promotion ceased to exist in 1988. The Central States Tag Team ...

in July 1986.

Championships and accomplishments

(1 time) *

**Grand Prix Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *

(1 time) *

(2 times) *

(1 time) *

(1 time)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lightfoot, Joe 1953 births Canadian male professional wrestlers Canadian sportspeople of Italian descent Faux First Nations professional wrestlers Living people 20th-century professional wrestlers NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champions Professional wrestlers from Montreal