Marty Jones is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

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 ...

best known for his work in

Joint Promotions Professional wrestling in the United Kingdom spans over one hundred years but became popular when the then new independent television network ITV began showing it in 1955, firstly on Saturday afternoons and then also in a late-night midweek slot. I ...

and

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 ...

throughout the 1980s and 1990s. During this period, he was the predominant holder of the Mountevans World Mid Heavyweight title. Jones was also responsible for training

William Regal Darren Kenneth Matthews (born 10 May 1968), better known by the ring name William Regal, is an English retired professional wrestler. He is known for his over 20 years spent in WWE, as both a performer and an on-screen authority, and for his ti ...

Professional wrestling career

Jones was trained by Ted Betley and

Billy Robinson William Alfred Robinson (18 September 1938 – 3 March 2014) was a British professional wrestler and wrestling instructor. Robinson was one of the few wrestlers who was successful in several continents (Europe, North America, Asia and Oceania ...

. The 1967

Granada Television ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was it ...

documentary ''The Wrestlers'' contains footage of a young Jones, along with other students, being trained by Robinson. Jones made his wrestling debut in 1972 as an 18-year-old. He won his first singles

championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

on 12 November 1976 when he defeated "Rollerball"

Mark Rocco Mark Hussey (11 May 1951 – 30 July 2020) was an English professional wrestler who competed for Joint Promotions, All Star Wrestling and the second BWF as Mark "Rollerball" Rocco and as the original masked Black Tiger in New Japan Pro-Wrestlin ...

for the

British Light Heavyweight Championship The British Light Heavyweight Championship was a top British wrestling championship found throughout the country's circuit. The title's broken history dates back to the 1920s. After going inactive in 2004, the title was re-activated in 2014. ...

(left vacant following the retirement that year of Billy Joyce). This was to be the start of a long and heated feud with Rocco, whom Jones also defeated for his British Heavy-Middleweight title only to immediately vacate the belt due to already holding a heavier British title. Jones also held the British Commonwealth tag team titles with a young Steve Wright in the late-1970s. On 8 November 1982 he defeated Bobby Gaetano for the World Mid-Heavyweight Championship left vacant by the death of

Mike Marino Mike Marino (born 8 October 1921 as Michael Harrison – died 24 August 1981) was an English professional wrestler and a leading name during the '' World of Sport'' era in British wrestling. At his death Marino was holder of the three Mid-Heavy ...

the previous year. His semifinal opponent in the tournament was a young

Bret Hart Bret Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE under a legend's contract. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling backgr ...

. As a result of this win, Jones vacated his British Light Heavyweight title after six years as undefeated champion. Jones would go on to win this title several times trading it back and forth with Dave "Fit" Finlay on several occasions. He also lost the title to Wright who was billed as being "Bull Blitzer" from

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

(

kayfabe In professional wrestling, kayfabe, as a noun, is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically the portrayal of competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants as being genuine and not staged. ...

) During the early 1980s Jones also wrestled for

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Nakano, Tokyo. Founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, the promotion was sold to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. TV Asahi and Amuse, Inc. own minority shares ...

. He faced

Tiger Mask is a Japanese manga series written by Ikki Kajiwara and illustrated by Naoki Tsuji. The series was first published in Kodansha's ''Bokura Magazine'' from 1968 to 1970 and was later published in ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' from 1970 to ...

on 8 October 1982 and also participated in two tag team matches alongside well-known international names in early 1983. In one Jones teamed with

The Masked Superstar William Reid "Bill" Eadie (born December 27, 1947) is an American retired professional wrestling, professional wrestler who has competed under the names of Ax as part of Demolition (professional wrestling), Demolition and The Masked Superstar. H ...

against

Antonio Inoki Muhammad Hussain Inoki (born ; February 20, 1943 – October 1, 2022) was a Japanese professional wrestler, martial artist, politician, and promoter of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. He was best known by the ring name , a homag ...

and

Tatsumi Fujinami (born December 28, 1953) is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to WWE on a legend's contract. Fujinami is most well known for his long tenure with New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he was a six-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion. H ...

and the other saw him team with

Rusher Kimura was a Japanese professional wrestler, best known by his ring name . He was a five-time IWA World Heavyweight Champion, making him a five-time world champion. Sumo wrestling career He was a sumo wrestler under the ''shikona'' Kinomura, a dir ...

against

Hulk Hogan Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...

and Inoki. Jones also partnered with

André the Giant André René Roussimoff (; 19 May 1946 – 28 January 1993), better known by his ring name André the Giant, was a French professional wrestler and actor. Roussimoff was known for his great size, which was a result of gigantism caused by exce ...

in a further bout. Jones also wrestled in

for one of the biggest companies in Europe at the time, the Catch Wrestling Association. He teamed with his old in-ring foe Finlay to win the CWA tag titles from Tony St. Clair and Mile Zrno on 23 June 1990. In

, Jones became a heel in the early 1990s. He defeated Tony St Clair for the British Heavyweight Championship in 1996. Also in 1996, Jones teamed up with Peter Collins on 1 February to defeat the "Liverpool Lads" ( Rob Brookside and "Doc" Dean) for the vacant

British Open Tag Team Championship The British (Open) Tag Team Championship is the top tag team championship contested for throughout the British wrestling circuit. It is currently being contested for in Brian Dixon's All Star Wrestling. Although the title was created just af ...

before retiring later that year. He later returned to finally lose his World Mid Heavyweight title to "Legend of Doom" Johnny South on 27 May 1999 in Bristol. In 2000 he feuded with masked wrestler

Kendo Nagasaki Kendo Nagasaki is a professional wrestling stage name, used as a gimmick of that of a Japanese Samurai warrior with a mysterious past and even supernatural powers of hypnosis. The name derives from the modern martial art of Japanese fencing ( K ...

due to his dissatisfaction with the latter winning a "Wrestler of the Millennium" trophy which Jones felt he should have won. Jones was featured heavily in Ray Robinson's autobiography, The Sheriff, released in 2013.https://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/8/news-headlines/82077/marty-helps-ray%E2%80%99s-book-to-be-a-forearm-smash Jones made a special guest appearance at GL1 Gloucester Leisure Centre October 2013 and in Dundee for Scottish Wrestling Entertainment on 29 and 30 November. Jones is now a trainer at Grapple Wrestling, a Leeds-based wrestling promotion. Jones is now a trainer at The Squared Circle Academy, based in Royton, Oldham. As a trainer he has been responsible for training

Luke Menzies Luke Menzies (born 29 May 1988) is an English professional wrestler and former professional rugby league footballer. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Ridge Holland. He spent the majo ...

and in recent years mentored multiple members of the

NXT UK ''NXT UK'' is a professional wrestling television programme that was produced exclusively in the United Kingdom by the American promotion WWE. It aired on BT Sport and 5Action (previously known as Paramount Network). In the United States, the s ...

roster along with scores of other UK and international talents. Jones regularly makes appearances at the

Skegness Skegness ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey District of Lincolnshire, England. On the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, the town is east of Lincoln and north-east of Boston. With a population of 19,579 as of 2011, i ...

based promotion
Lion Wrestling Promotions

Championships and accomplishments

:* British Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) :*

( 1 time) – with Danny Collins * Catch Wrestling Association :*

CWA World Tag Team Championship The CWA World Tag Team Championship was a major professional wrestling tag team title defended in the Continental Wrestling Association. It lasted from 1980 through 1983. Title history Footnotes References See also *Continental Wrestling ...

( 1 time) – with

Fit Finlay David Finlay Jr. (born 31 January 1958) is an Irish retired professional wrestler currently signed to WWE as a trainer/assistant coach. He is known for his work with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) under the ring name Fit Finlay from 1995 t ...

:*World Mid-Heavyweight Championship (7 times) :*

( 5 times)

References

External links

Marty Jones in action
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Marty 1945 births English male professional wrestlers Living people Professional wrestling trainers Stampede Wrestling alumni Sportspeople from Oldham Expatriate professional wrestlers in Japan English expatriate sportspeople in Japan English expatriate sportspeople in Germany

Professional wrestling career

Championships and accomplishments

Further reading

References

External links