Maple Leaf Wrestling was the unofficial name in the 1970s and 1980s of the professional wrestling promotion run by

Frank Tunney Francis Martin Tunney (November 12, 1912 - May 10, 1983) was a Canadian professional boxing and wrestling promoter, based in Toronto. Biography Early life He was educated in Markham, Ontario, and went to a business college after high school. His ...

in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

History

Queensbury Athletic Club

The promotion, initially known as the Queensbury Athletic Club, traces its roots back to 1930, when it was launched by Jack Corcoran, who had previously promoted boxing in Toronto under the Queensbury name. Initially, Corcoran was involved in a promotional war with rival promoter Ivan Mickailoff, but after Corcoran allied himself with the new Maple Leaf Gardens in 1931, he took control of professional wrestling in Toronto. The Gardens would remain the main venue for the promotion for more than 60 years.

The Tunneys take over

Corcoran stepped down in 1939 and was bought out by his assistants, John and

. John died just a few months later, and the promotion was then run by Frank. Through most of the 1940s and 1950s, Frank Tunney's biggest star was local hero

Whipper Billy Watson William John Potts, (June 25, 1915 to February 4, 1990) was a Canadian professional wrestler best known by his ring name "Whipper" Billy Watson. He was a two-time world champion, having held both the National Wrestling Association title and the ...

, who became a two-time world champion. Starting in 1969, the shows were headlined by The Sheik for more than eight years. Over the decades, they kept the Gardens busy on nights when there was no hockey game. Canadian, British Empire and world titles were all fought there.

Aligning with Jim Crockett Promotions

In 1978, Tunney began working with promoter

Jim Crockett, Jr. James Allen Crockett Jr. (August 10, 1944 – March 3, 2021) was an American professional wrestling promoter. From 1973 to 1989, he was part owner of Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP), a wrestling company affiliated with the National Wrestling Allian ...

, who ran Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling in the Carolinas. The two would become partners in the Toronto promotion, along with George Scott, a key executive with Crockett who had been a preliminary wrestler for Tunney from 1950-1956.

Aligning with the World Wrestling Federation

Following Frank's death in 1983, the business was run by John's son Jack Tunney and Frank's son, Eddie Tunney. The Tunneys hosted National Wrestling Alliance and Mid-Atlantic Wrestling matches until 1984, when Jack Tunney abandoned Crockett and signed with Vince McMahon's expanding World Wrestling Federation, with Jack serving as a figurehead on-air president of the WWF from 1984–1995, while also serving as the (legitimate) president of Titan Sports Canada, the local arm of the WWF's parent company.

Continued usage of the ''Maple Leaf Wrestling'' name

Following the WWF takeover in 1984, the name ''Maple Leaf Wrestling'' continued to be used for the federation's Canadian TV program (a staple of

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

station CHCH-TV for many years), which the WWF took over production of after the Tunneys split from the NWA. The show was hosted by Angelo Mosca and Jack Reynolds. TV tapings for the show were held in Brantford and other cities in southern Ontario for the next two years, until the WWF ceased the tapings in 1986 and decided to simply use the ''Maple Leaf Wrestling'' name for the Canadian airings of '' WWF Superstars of Wrestling''. In these Canadian episodes there was some Canadian footage, usually matches from Maple Leaf Gardens and updates by on-air announcer and former wrestler Billy Red Lyons. These tapings were actually the precursor to the WWF's '' Wrestling Challenge'', which became the "B" show to ''WWF Superstars Of Wrestling'', the "A" show. Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura were the hosts for the Canadian tapings (with Ventura doing his famous "The Body Shop" segment), and when those tapings morphed into ''Challenge'' in 1986, Ventura was moved to the "A" show, Superstars, which had been renamed from WWF Championship Wrestling, and joined their announcers, Vince McMahon and Bruno Sammartino, to form a three-man team. Sammartino eventually left that team, making it just McMahon and Ventura. Bobby Heenan replaced Ventura as the Canadian tapings became ''WWF Wrestling Challenge''.

The end of the Tunneys' involvement

In 1995, McMahon chose to run the shows in Toronto without any involvement from the Tunneys. The final show at the Gardens was held on September 17, 1995.

Some featured performers

* The Sheik *

Ric Flair Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Regarded by multiple peers and journalists as the greatest professional wrestler of all time, Flair has had a career spanni ...

* Gene Kiniski *

Dara Singh Dara Singh Randhawa (born Deedar Singh Randhawa; 19 November 1928 – 12 July 2012) was an Indian professional wrestler, actor, director and politician. He started acting in 1952 and was the first sportsman to be nominated to the Rajya Sab ...

* Fritz Von Erich * Bruno Sammartino * Angelo Mosca * Dewey Robertson * Sweet Daddy Siki * Tiger Jeet Singh * Johnny Valentine * Terrible Ted, a black bear * Lord Athol Layton *

Haystack Calhoun William Dee Calhoun (August 3, 1934 – December 7, 1989) was an American professional wrestler, who used the professional name "Haystack" or "Haystacks" Calhoun. Early life Born on August 3, 1934, William Dee Calhoun grew up on a farm i ...

* Andre The Giant

Championships

External links

Toronto Wrestling HistoryMaple Leaf Wrestling - Pictorial & HistoryWrestling-Titles.com: Maple Leaf Wrestling
{{Professional wrestling in Canada Professional wrestling in Toronto Canadian professional wrestling promotions Entertainment companies established in 1930 1986 disestablishments in Ontario National Wrestling Alliance members 1930 establishments in Ontario Entertainment companies disestablished in 1986 WWE in Canada