The Universal Wrestling Federation was a 1986 re-branding of wrestler-turned-owner

Bill Watts William F. Watts Jr. (born May 5, 1939) is a retired American professional wrestler, promoter and former American football player. Watts garnered fame under his "Cowboy" gimmick in his wrestling career, and then as a promoter in the Mid-South Un ...

' Mid-South Wrestling promotion. Watts' goal was to elevate his promotion from a relatively smaller, regional-level business, to a national-level rival of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now known as

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

). However, Watts' business strategy quickly swung from "overnight" success to catastrophic failure, resulting in the 1987 sale of the UWF to another rival:

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 ...

(owner of Mid-Atlantic Wrestling,

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 ...

, the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA)'s most important championships, and the predecessor of

World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nati ...

). The promotion began as an NWA territory, NWA Tri-State, founded by

Leroy McGuirk Leroy Michael McGuirk (December 13, 1910 – September 9, 1988) was an American amateur and professional wrestler, and wrestling promoter. He was involved in professional wrestling for more than fifty years. As one of the longest surviving member ...

in the 1950s. Tri-State/Mid-South/UWF promoted in Oklahoma,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

and

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

until 1987. Because Watts did not register the "Universal Wrestling Federation" name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, businessman

Herb Abrams Herbert Charles Abrams (July 9, 1955 – July 23, 1996), also known by the nickname Mr. Electricity, was an American professional wrestling promoter from Queens, New York, who founded the Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF) in 1990. Early life ...

was able to use it to launch an unrelated wrestling promotion of the same name in 1990.

History

NWA Tri-State (1950s–1979)

A former territory wrestler who was blinded in a 1950 auto accident, Leroy McGuirk eventually took over promoting a wrestling circuit covering Oklahoma,

and

. Until 1973, "Cowboy" Bill Watts had been one of Tri-State's most popular wrestlers. After leaving Tri-State for Eddie Graham's

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 ...

, Watts returned to Tri-State in 1975.

Mid-South Wrestling (1979–1986)

In 1979, Bill Watts bought the Tri-State Wrestling territory from Leroy McGuirk, and re-branded it Mid-South Wrestling (MSW; officially, the Mid-South Wrestling Association). One of Watts' first acts as owner was to withdraw the company from the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). However, MSW would remain loosely aligned with the NWA, continuing to have the

NWA World Heavyweight Champion The NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship is a world heavyweight professional wrestling championship owned and promoted by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), an American professional wrestling promotion. The current champion is Tyrus, who is i ...

defend the title on MSW shows, which spiked live event sales. (During the "territory" system

940s-1980s 94 may refer to: * 94 (number) * one of the years 94 BC, AD 94, 1994, 2094, etc. * Atomic number 94: plutonium * Saab 94 See also

* * List of highways numbered {{Numberdis ...

the NWA World Heavyweight Champion would travel to each NWA-affiliated territory to defend the title against its top-drawing local star.) MSW then added

to its circuit. In 1982, MSW expanded to Oklahoma when McGuirk closed his personal, Oklahoma-based promotion. McGuirk also formed an alliance with

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

promoter

Paul Boesch Paul Max Boesch (October 2, 1912March 7, 1989) was an American professional wrestler and promoter, most famous for his work as an announcer and promoter for Houston Wrestling. He also spent several stints working with the Universal Wrestling Fed ...

to feature Mid-South talent on shows at the

Sam Houston Coliseum Sam Houston Coliseum was an indoor arena located in Houston, Texas. Early years Located at 801 Bagby Street in Downtown Houston, the Coliseum and Music Hall complex replaced the Sam Houston Hall, which was a wooden structure that had been erected ...

(one of the most famous arenas in professional wrestling), and other parts of southeastern

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. Mid-South used Shreveport, Louisiana as the base for its television tapings, which were first housed in the studios of

KTBS-TV KTBS-TV (channel 3) is a television station in Shreveport, Louisiana, United States, affiliated with ABC. The station is owned by the locally based KTBS, LLC (owned by the Wray Properties Trust, which is managed by Betty Wray Anderson, John D. ...

until they were moved around 1982 to the Irish McNeel Sports for Boys club, located on the Louisiana State Fairgrounds. Instead of the cartoon-ish characters and interviews common to the

Hulkamania 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 ...

-era WWF, Mid-South Wrestling's content focused on: energetic matches performed before raucous and packed crowds; characters whose personas blurred the line between good and evil; an intensely physical, athletic wrestling style; and an episodic TV show format. The promotion ran shows in a mix of small venues and gigantic arenas. In 1980, a card pitting a "blinded"

Junkyard Dog Sylvester Ritter (December 13, 1952 – June 1, 1998) was an American professional wrestler and college football player, best known for his work in Mid-South Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation as the Junkyard Dog (or JYD), a nickname ...

against Freebird Michael Hayes in the main event drew nearly 30,000 fans for a show presented by a promotion less than one year old. In 1984, Watts came out of retirement to team with a masked Junkyard Dog (under the name Stagger Lee) to face the Midnight Express to cap an angle in which the Express and manager

Jim Cornette James Mark "Jim" Cornette (born September 17, 1961) is an American author and podcaster who has previously worked in the professional wrestling industry as an agent, booker, color commentator, manager, promoter, trainer, and occasional prof ...

beat Watts on TV. Its undercard featured a showdown between

Magnum T.A. Terry Wayne Allen (born June 11, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Magnum T. A. Allen won the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship twice and was being groomed for a potential run with the N ...

and Mr. Wrestling II. The 1984 show drew 22,000 fans—an unimaginably large crowd for a regional territory show. In the mid-1980s, MSW began to expand nationally. In 1985, longtime wrestling fan

Ted Turner Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III (born November 19, 1938) is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor, and philanthropist. He founded the Cable News Network (CNN), the first 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he fo ...

invited Watts to air MSW's weekly TV show on Turner's SuperStation TBS network. Turner wanted an alternative to the World Wrestling Federation show airing in the coveted 2-hour, Saturday-evening timeslot, which the WWF had acquired when it bought out the majority ownership of

. (see: Black Saturday) Turner was angered by the WWF show because McMahon had promised him it would feature matches and promos taped in TBS' Atlanta studios (as Georgia Championship Wrestling had done for years). But instead of fresh, locally-produced content, the WWF's TBS show only presented clips and highlights from ''other'' WWF TV shows – some, depending on TV market, airing at the same time the TBS show did. (Eventually, the WWF would shoot local, in-studio matches, but only infrequently, and they were usually predictable squash matches.) MSW quickly became TBS' highest-rated show, so Watts positioned MSW to take over once Turner could force the WWF off his network. Watts' luck ran out, however, when former

co-owner Jim Barnett helped broker a deal enabling North Carolina-based Jim Crockett Promotions' (led by Jim Crockett, Jr.) to buy the Saturday timeslot from McMahon, and become TBS' sole pro wrestling show. Watts made one more attempt at going national the following year. As part of that plan, Watts replaced Mid-South Wrestling's parochial brandname with a more corporate, ambitious (and WWF-like) one: the Universal Wrestling Federation.

Universal Wrestling Federation (1986–1987)

In March 1986, MSW "went national" (the goal of the most ambitious regional promotions of this era), re-launching as the Universal Wrestling Federation, and securing a

syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...

deal airing their two one-hour, weekly TV programs (the lesser show, ''Power Pro Wrestling'' debuted in 1984) in major markets across the United States. The TV tapings were also taken out of Shreveport and moved on location at various live shows throughout the Mid-South/UWF territory. New wrestlers, mostly from

World Class Championship Wrestling World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), later known as the World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA) (1986–1991) was an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed ...

(WCCW), joined the company, as did former WCCW co-promoter

Ken Mantell Ken Lusk, better known by his ring name Ken Mantell, is an American retired professional wrestler, promoter and booker who competed throughout the National Wrestling Alliance in the 1970s and 80s. He is a former NWA World Junior Heavyweight Ch ...

. Despite the UWF's strong early ratings and critical praise, it could not compete nationally with

(JCP) and the WWF, as both had stronger TV distribution and larger live event, pay-per-view (and, in the WWF's case, merchandise licensing) revenue streams. The UWF was further hurt when the oil-based economy of its richest local market—Oklahoma—fell into a severe recession in fall, 1986. This left the blue collar core of the UWF's fanbase with far less disposable income to spend on things like attending wrestling shows. Watts sold the UWF to JCP on April 9, 1987, and many of the UWF's top stars were either retained by JCP, or immediately left for the WWF or WCCW. Unlike the other NWA-affiliated promotions JCP had bought out in the mid-1980s, the UWF did not immediately end; JCP kept its brand—and its three championships—alive in TV storylines until December 1987, when JCP's NWA-affiliated characters defeated all of the UWF characters in a series of "title vs. title" unification matches, among others. Only a few UWF wrestlers were well-received by JCP's fanbase; they included:

the Fabulous Freebirds The Fabulous Freebirds were a professional wrestling tag team who attained fame in the 1980s, performing into the 1990s. The team usually consisted of three wrestlers, although in different situations and points in its history, just two performed ...

Shane Douglas Troy Allan Martin (born November 21, 1964) is an American professional wrestler and promoter, better known by his ring name Shane Douglas. He is best known for his tenures in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), World Championship Wrestling (W ...

Rick Steiner Robert Rechsteiner (born March 9, 1961) is an American real estate broker and retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Rick Steiner. Steiner is best known for his tenure with World Championship Wrestling (WCW), where he was ...

, Eddie Gilbert, and UWF centerpiece "Dr. Death" Steve Williams. Most UWF imports were gone from JCP's roster within a year; however, one wrestler would go from UWF midcarder/tag team act, to breakout star in JCP, and the wrestling industry as a whole: Sting. Sting's UWF tag team (as The Blade Runners) partner would later become a WWF wrestling legend, too:

The Ultimate Warrior Warrior (born James Brian Hellwig; June 16, 1959 – April 8, 2014) was an American professional wrestler and bodybuilder. Best known by his ring name The Ultimate Warrior, he wrestled for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) from ...

. In April 1988, JCP, one of the biggest and late stage casualties of the "going national" war with the WWF, sold its collection of territories and titles to Ted Turner's TBS. Turner re-branded JCP "World Championship Wrestling," naming the new company after its TBS TV show. Ironically, "Cowboy" Bill Watts ended up running the same business that had swallowed his own: In spring of 1992, WCW hired Watts was as its latest Executive Vice President; he held the role less than a year. World Wrestling Entertainment acquired most of the Mid-South/UWF video archive, absorbing it into its

WWE Libraries WWE Libraries Inc. (branded as WWE Legacy Department) is a WWE-owned subsidiary that consists of the largest collection of professional wrestling videos and copyrights in the world. It comprises not only past and current works by WWE (formerly ...

collection in 2012 -- with a notable exception: Mid-South/UWF matches taped for ''

Houston Wrestling Houston Wrestling/Gulf Athletic Club is a now-defunct professional wrestling promotion that ran from the mid-1920s through 1987. Originally run by the Sigel family, it reached its greatest popularity under Paul Boesch. History Houston's wrestling ...

'' which aired on KHTV in

. Those rights are held by the estate of

, who was the Houston territory's promoter.Corrigan's Corner: Bruce Tharpe Talks NWA - Then and Now (Part 1)
/ref> Select episodes of Mid-South are available for viewing on the

WWE Network WWE Network is a subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and digital television Digital television (DTV) is the transmission of television signals using digital encoding, in contrast to the earlier analog television t ...

Storylines

The ''Battle of New Orleans'' was a long-playing brawl between Eddie Gilbert,

Terry Taylor Paul Worden Taylor III (born August 12, 1955) is an American retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name Terry Taylor and for his time as an in-ring performer in National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and Wo ...

, Chris Adams and Sting, which began in the ring and spilled out into the concession area. Beer kegs, chairs, tables, popcorn machine and anything the four wrestlers could get their hands on were used in the brawl which lasted nearly 15 minutes. Sting and Gilbert fought outside the ring, when Rick Steiner came in and piledrived Shane Douglas. With Taylor on top, referee Randy Anderson made the pinfall. Later, Adams came out and told Anderson what had happened, which prompted Gilbert and Taylor to gang-up on Adams. Sting came in to even the sides, and that resulted in an all-out brawl outside the ring. Gilbert was the mastermind of this famous angle and received huge praise from fellow promoters and wrestlers. Adams was engaged in a storyline involving

Iceman King Parsons King Bailey Parsons Jr. (born June 11, 1950) is a former professional wrestler better known by his ring name Iceman King Parsons. Professional wrestling career Parsons started wrestling in 1979 after being trained by Nick Kozak. King started fo ...

and Taylor, which evolved out of the

UWF Tag Team Championship The UWF Tag Team Championship was the tag team title in the Universal Wrestling Federation from 1986 until the promotion closed in 1987. It was formerly known as the Mid-South Tag Team Championship from 1979 until 1986 when Mid-South Wrestling b ...

tournament in February 1987. Originally, Adams and Iceman were one of the eight teams participating, and Taylor was teamed with Sam Houston. In a semi-finals match, Adams and Iceman wrestled against "Dr Death" Steve Williams and

Ted DiBiase Theodore Marvin DiBiase Sr. (born January 18, 1954) is an American retired professional wrestler, manager, ordained minister and color commentator. He is currently signed to WWE working in their Legends program. DiBiase achieved championship ...

until Skandor Akbar's Devastation Inc. charged the ring to attack Williams and DiBiase. The match ended when Williams and DiBiase were counted out, and Adams and Parsons won the match. Adams, who was helping Williams and DiBiase fight off Akbar and his army, wanted the match to continue, but Parsons wanted the win. After a lengthy argument, Adams and Parsons split, and Chris chose

Savannah Jack Theodore Russell (October 15, 1948 - January 17, 2012) was an American professional wrestler, best known under the ring name of "Savannah Jack" in Bill Watts' Universal Wrestling Federation in the Mid-South from 1986 to 1987. He won the UWF Tel ...

as his new tag team partner. Iceman sucker-punched Savannah during a match and injured him, thus Adams had to choose another tag partner. He chose Terry Taylor, whose team lost a semi-final match to Rick Steiner and Sting. Taylor and Adams eventually won the UWF tag team titles, and held the belts for two months. Meanwhile, Adams and Parsons engaged in a lengthy feud, which lasted for more than a decade (the two had feuded earlier in WCCW when Adams was the heel and Parsons was the

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 ...

), with Parsons frequently referring to Adams as "Jailbird," a reference to Adams serving jail time in 1986 on an assault conviction. Taylor and Adams, who dominated the UWF tag team scene, lost a match to Steiner and Sting when Taylor kicked Adams foot off the rope as he was being pinned by Sting. A face-vs-face bout between Adams and Taylor marked Taylor's heel turn as he piledrived Adams on the floor. The Taylor-Adams war proved to be one of the most violent feuds in the UWF, with an equal intensity to the feud Adams had with the Von Erichs in World Class. The feud did have a short interruption when Taylor was injured in an automobile accident, but picked up again by the summer and carried over to World Class by 1988. Taylor and Adams promoted a famous angle in August which involved a press conference, where Taylor spoke about his situation with Adams and then left. Chris later took questions, which prompted Taylor to attack Adams with a chair. The following week, Adams conducted an interview vowing revenge against both Taylor and Eddie Gilbert. Other famous UWF angles included promoter Bill Watts being attacked and having the

flag of the Soviet Union The State Flag of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (), commonly known as the Soviet flag (), was the official state flag of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) from 1922 to 1991. The flag's design and symbolism are derived from ...

draped on him by Eddie Gilbert,

Missy Hyatt Melissa Ann Hiatt (born October 16, 1963), better known by her ring name, Missy Hyatt, is an American retired professional wrestling valet, commentator, and occasional professional wrestler. She is best known for her appearances with World Cha ...

cold-cocking John Tatum after joining forces with Gilbert, Skandor Akbar throwing a fireball at Hacksaw Jim Duggan ("blinding" him temporarily), and the Freebirds breaking Steve Williams' arm. Williams recruited

Oklahoma Sooners The Oklahoma Sooners are the athletic teams that represent the University of Oklahoma, located in Norman. The 19 men's and women's varsity teams are called the "Sooners", a reference to a nickname given to the early participants in the Land Ru ...

(and future

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...

head coach)

Barry Switzer Barry Layne Switzer (born October 5, 1937) is a former American football coach and player. He served for 16 years as head football coach at the University of Oklahoma and four years as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football Le ...

into training and getting back into the ring. It paid off on July 11, 1987 when Dr. Death defeated

Big Bubba Rogers Ray Washington Traylor Jr. (May 2, 1963 – September 22, 2004) was an American professional wrestler best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) under the ring name Big Boss Man, as well as for his appearances with ...

(Ray Traylor) to win the UWF Heavyweight Championship. The Freebirds became faces around that time, as they began feuding with Skandor Akbar's army as well as The Angel of Death. A prelim wrestler, Mike Boyette, wrestled in the UWF and is believed to be one of the very few wrestlers to never win a match. Video editors for the show even put together a music video of his various losses in the ring, set to the

Little River Band Little River Band (LRB) are a Rock music, rock band originally formed in Melbourne, Australia, in March 1975. The band achieved commercial success in both Australia and the United States. They have sold more than 30 million records; six studi ...

song " Lonesome Loser". "Gorgeous" Gary Young also competed in the UWF, claiming that he was a rookie. He actually had five years experience under his belt. Young's claims prompted Jim Ross to begin referring to him as a "five-time rookie of the year." As the UWF's merge with "the NWA" was taking place,

, who held the

UWF Television Championship The UWF Television Championship, promoted by the Universal Wrestling Federation, started out as the Mid-South Television Championship in 1984 and was then represented by a medal. It was renamed when Mid-South Wrestling changed its name to the UW ...

, began an angle with the NWA World Television Champion,

Nikita Koloff Nikita Koloff (born Nelson Scott Simpson on March 9, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with Jim Crockett Promotions and its successor, World Championship Wrestling between 1984 and 1992, where ...

. Taylor stole the NWA TV title belt during an NWA show, but Koloff (with help from Dusty Rhodes) reclaimed it before their official in-ring encounter. They met at

Starrcade 1987 Starrcade '87: Chi-Town Heat was the fifth annual Starrcade professional wrestling supercard event produced by Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP) under the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) banner. It took place on November 26, 1987, from the UIC Pavi ...

, and Nikita unified the two titles as the final leg of the NWA-UWF merger was finished. Williams would successfully defend the UWF Heavyweight Title on the same show versus

Barry Windham Barry Clinton Windham (born July 4, 1960) is an American retired professional wrestler. The son of wrestler Blackjack Mulligan, he is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW ...

. Williams immediately left to do a series of lucrative performances in Japan; the title was retired while he was in Asia. Sting, Rick Steiner, Eddie Gilbert, Missy Hyatt, announcer Jim Ross, Brad Armstrong and the aforementioned Taylor became permanent NWA roster members, among others. The Freebirds, Savannah Jack,

, matchmaker Frank Dusek, and promoter Ken Mantell joined the new Wild West Wrestling promotion, which later merged with

. "Gentleman" Chris Adams, who initially stayed with Jim Crockett Promotions post-UWF, left due to a money dispute and returned to World Class in November 1987. DiBiase, Big Bubba Rogers, One Man Gang, and Sam Houston joined the WWF, joining fellow UWF alumnus " Hacksaw Jim Duggan", who the WWF had signed in February 1987. The Sheepherders, who originally joined Crockett after the merger, left in mid-1988 for the WWF, where they were renamed

the Bushwhackers The Bushwhackers are a professional wrestling tag team who competed first as the New Zealand Kiwis and then as The Sheepherders during their 36-year career as a tag team. They wrestled in the World Wrestling Federation, Jim Crockett Promotions, ...

. Terry Taylor also departed, appearing in World Class for a few months (feuding with Chris Adams and Kevin Von Erich), then the WWF in mid-1988 as ''The Red Rooster''. Taylor would go on to have a long WWF/WWE career behind-the-scenes, holding various management and creative team roles.

Former personnel

Announcers

Mid-South's main television broadcasting team included Bill Watts and Boyd Pierce, with KTBS-TV staff announcer Reisor Bowden serving as ring announcer. Jim Ross joined Mid-South after the closure of Leroy McGuirk's Tri-State promotion in Oklahoma, and remained through the transition to UWF. Bill Watts's son Joel Watts was later added to the Mid-South/UWF broadcasting team, and also worked behind-the-scenes as a producer of the TV program. Following Jim Crockett Promotions' purchase of the UWF, both Bill and Joel Watts exited the promotion and Jim Ross was joined by various partners including

Magnum T. A. Terry Wayne Allen (born June 11, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Magnum T. A. Allen won the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship twice and was being groomed for a potential run with the N ...

, Michael P.S. Hayes and

. Veteran JCP announcer

Bob Caudle Bob Caudle (born August 2, 1930) is an American professional wrestling announcer most notable for his time with the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). He started working with Jim Crockett Promotions in the late 1950s for promoter Jim Crockett, Sr. ...

became Ross's permanent partner near the closure of UWF. Frank Dusek and Toni Adams also served as ringside commentators during the course of its UWF tenure; both of whom moved on to World Class.

Wrestlers of NWA Tri-State/Mid-South/UWF

* Chris Adams *

Toni Adams Toni Leah Adams (née Collins) (August 19, 1964 – June 24, 2010) was an American professional wrestling valet, who appeared in several North American regional promotions during the 1980s including the Universal Wrestling Federation and the Uni ...

* Afa *

Skandor Akbar Jimmy Saied Wehba (September 29, 1934 – August 19, 2010) was an American professional wrestler and manager better known by his ring name Skandor Akbar, which translates as "Alexander the Great". Akbar led the villainous stable Devastation, Inc. ...

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 excess ...

* Angel of Death * Brad Armstrong * Bill Ash * The Assassin * "Mr USA" Tony Atlas *

Ox Baker Douglas Albert Baker Sr. (April 19, 1934 – October 20, 2014) was an American professional wrestler and actor, better known professionally as Ox Baker. He was famous for his distinctive eyebrows and finishing move, the Heart Punch, sometimes c ...

* The Barbarian * Jessie Barr * Pat Barrett * Black Bart * Don Bass *

Brian Blair Brian Leslie Blair (born January 12, 1957) is an American retired professional wrestler and politician. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) under the ring name B. Brian Blair as one half of the tag t ...

Tully Blanchard Tully Arthur Blanchard (born January 22, 1954) is an American-Canadian professional wrestler and manager. He is best known for his appearances with Jim Crockett Promotions and the World Wrestling Federation in the mid-to-late 1980s as a member of ...

Nick Bockwinkel Nicholas Warren Francis "Nick" Bockwinkel (December 6, 1934 – November 14, 2015) was an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association (AWA) in the 1970s and 1980s. Bockwinkel ...

* Mike Bond *

Matt Borne Matthew Wade Osborne (July 27, 1957 – June 28, 2013), known professionally as Matt Borne, was an American professional wrestler. Osborne was a second generation wrestler, the son of Tony Borne, and is best known as being the first wrestler to ...

* Mike Boyer *

Bruiser Brody Frank Donald Goodish (June 18, 1946 – July 17, 1988) was an American professional wrestler who earned his greatest fame under the ring name Bruiser Brody. He also worked as King Kong Brody, The Masked Marauder, and Red River Jack. Over the years ...

* Leroy Brown * The Brute *

King Kong Bundy Christopher Alan Pallies (November 7, 1955 – March 5, 2019) was an American professional wrestler, actor and stand-up comedian, better known by his wrestling gimmick and ring name, King Kong Bundy. Under this gimmick, he portrayed a pugnacious, ...

Ray Candy Ray Canty (December 3, 1951 – May 23, 1994), better known by the ring name Ray Candy, was an American professional wrestler who worked for a variety of different wrestling promotions in the United States, Japan and Puerto Rico such as Jim Crocke ...

Coco Samoa Ulualoaiga Onosai Tuaolo Emelio (March 9, 1945 – January 9, 2007) was an American Samoan professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Cocoa Samoa. Professional wrestling career He began his training by studying martial arts in Japa ...

* Charlie Cook * Wendell Cooley * Tiger Conway Jr. *

(Manager) *

Dennis Condrey Dennis Condrey (born February 1, 1952) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the Continental Wrestling Association, Jim Crockett Promotions and World Championship Wrestling in the 1970s and 1980s ...

Art Crews Art Crews (born January 3, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler who competed in North American regional promotions including the National Wrestling Alliance, particularly the Central States, Mid-South and Pacific Northwest territor ...

* Dark Journey * John Davidson * Rick Davidson *

Jim Duggan James Edward Duggan Jr. (born January 14, 1954), better known by his ring name "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE on a Legends contract. His best-known character is that of an American patriot, which ...

* Bobby Duncum * Frank Dusek *

Bobby Eaton Bobby Lee Eaton (August 14, 1958 – August 4, 2021) was an American professional wrestler best known as "Beautiful" Bobby Eaton. He was most famous for his work in tag teams, especially as one-half of The Midnight Express. Under the managem ...

Eli the Eliminator John Richmond (born 1961) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Eli the Eliminator. Richmond competed in North American regional promotions during the 1980s in Bill Watts' Universal Wrestling Federation and ...

Paul Ellering Paul Ellering (born August 22, 1953) is an American professional wrestling manager and former professional wrestler. He is currently signed with WWE to a legends contract. Ellering spent most of his wrestling career managing the Road Warriors (A ...

* Fishman * Ric Flair * The French Angel * The Grappler * The Grappler II * "Gorgeous" Jimmy Garvin * Mike George * Robert Gibson * Eddie Gilbert * Terry "Bam Bam" Gordy * "Crazy" Luke Graham *

The Great Kabuki , better known as , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is famous as the first to blow Asian mist in his opponents' faces. Professional wrestling career Mera was born on September 8, 1948 in Nobeoka, Japan. He started wrestling in ...

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 Federati ...

Hector Guerrero 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 ...

* "Playboy" Garry Hart * Stan "The Lariat" Hanson * Freebird Michael "P. S." Hayes * "Gorgeous" Gino Hernandez * Hercules Hernandez (Hercules WWE) *

Tim Horner Timothy Horner (born August 19, 1959) is a retired professional wrestler, best known as Tim "White Lightning" Horner, one half of The Lightning Express with Brad Armstrong. Professional wrestling career Early career (1978–1988) Tim Horner ...

* Mike Hudspeth * Rock Hunter (wrestler turned manager) *

(Manager) *

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 ...

* Bill Irwin *

* Cactus Jack *

Leilani Kai Patty Seymour (born January 23, 1960) is a semi-retired professional wrestler, better known by her ring name Leilani Kai. She began training with The Fabulous Moolah right after finishing high school. In the 1980s, as part of the World Wrestling ...

* Kamala * Cajun Kenly *

Killer Khan Krugman, Michael. ''André the Giant: A Legendary Life'', p.48. (born March 6, 1947) is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. Popularly known as Killer Khan, he was billed from Mongolia and had numerous high-profile matches with André the G ...

* King Cobra * Krusher Khruschev * Sonny King * Kelly Kiniski * "The Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff *

* "Killer" Karl Kox * Kortsia Korchenko * "The Big Cat" Ernie Ladd *

Buddy Landel William Fritz Ensor (August 14, 1961 – June 22, 2015) was an American professional wrestler better known by the ring name "Nature Boy" Buddy Landel. He was best known for his work in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) territories. Early lif ...

* Charlie Lane *

Jose Lothario Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods. *Jose ben Abin *Jose ben Akabya * Jose the Galil ...

Arn Anderson Martin Anthony Lunde (born September 20, 1958), better known by the ring name Arn Anderson, is an American professional wrestling road agent, author, and retired professional wrestler. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a ...

* Mad Dog Boyd *

Velvet McIntyre Velvet McIntyre (born November 24, 1962) is an Irish-Canadian retired professional wrestler. After beginning her career in 1980, she wrestled in American independent promotions before joining the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). She ...

Dutch Mantel Wayne Maurice Keown (born November 29, 1949) is an American professional wrestling manager, booker and retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Dutch Mantel (also spelled Dutch Mantell). Keown debuted in 1972, as Wayne Cow ...

* Judy Martin *

Mil Máscaras Mil Máscaras (born Aarón Rodríguez Arellano, July 15, 1942) is a Mexican luchador (professional wrestler) and actor. He is regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers of the lucha libre tradition in Mexico – along with El Santo and Blue Demo ...

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 ...

Hiro Matsuda (July 22, 1937 – November 27, 1999) was a Japanese professional wrestler and trainer best known by his ring name . He trained many professional wrestlers including Hulk Hogan, The Great Muta, "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff, Scott Hall, Lex ...

* Shawn Michaels * Butch Miller * The Missing Link * The Mongolian Stomper *

Ricky Morton Richard Wendell Morton (born September 21, 1956) is an American professional wrestler, currently performing on the independent circuit. He is the current GCW Television Champion, after pinning Matt Cardona at GCW Say You Will. For most of his care ...

* "King Kong" Mosca * "Captain Redneck" Dick Murdoch * Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart * Mr. Olympia) *

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 w ...

Paul Orndorff Paul Parlette Orndorff Jr. (October 29, 1949 – July 12, 2021), nicknamed "Mr. Wonderful", was an American professional wrestler and college football player, best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Cham ...

* Bob Orton, Jr. * Pork Chop Cash * "Iceman" King Parsons * Tank Patton *

Al Perez Al Perez (born July 23, 1960) is a retired American professional wrestler. He held 16 titles during a 20-year career, including the WCWA World Heavyweight Championship. Professional wrestling career Early career Perez began wrestling as an amat ...

David Peterson David Robert Peterson (born December 28, 1943) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as the 20th premier of Ontario from 1985 to 1990. He was the first Liberal officeholder in 42 years, ending the so-called Tory dynasty. Backgr ...

* "Leaping" Lanny Poffo * Big John Quinn * Tom Renesto jr * Johnny "Crash" Rich *

Wendi Richter Victoria "Wendi" Richter (born September 8, 1961) is an American retired professional wrestler. She began her professional wrestling career in companies such as the National Wrestling Alliance, where she teamed with Joyce Grable, with whom s ...

* "Hacksaw" Butch Reed * "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes * Buddy Roberts *

Jake Roberts Aurelian Smith Jr. (born May 30, 1955), better known by the ring name Jake "The Snake" Roberts, is an American professional wrestler and actor currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) where he performs as manager to Lance Archer. He is be ...

* Col. Buck Robley * "Blade Runner" Rock (The Ultimate Warrior) * Big Boss Man *

Bob Roop Robert Michael Roop (born July 22, 1942) is an American retired amateur wrestler and professional wrestler whose career spanned high school, college, the United States Army, amateur and professional wrestling. He was an American heavyweight Gr ...

* Billy Romeo * Vinnie Romeo *

Nelson Royal Nelson Combs (July 21, 1935 – February 3, 2002) was an American professional wrestler, trainer and promoter, better known by his ring name, Nelson Royal. He held the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship on six occasions along with numerou ...

* The Russian Brute * Brett Sawyer *

Buzz Sawyer Bruce Alan Woyan (June 14, 1959 – February 7, 1992) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Buzz Sawyer. Professional wrestling career Sawyer started wrestling in 1978 (other sources state 1979) in the National W ...

* Sika * "Iron" Mike Sharpe *

Dick Slater Richard Van Slater (May 19, 1951 – October 18, 2018) better known by his ring name "Dirty" Dick Slater, was an American professional wrestler who wrestled in the 1970s, 1980s, and mid-1990s for various promotions including Mid-Atlantic Champion ...

* Vladic Smirnoff * Bob Stabler * Joe Stark * Tom Statan *

Dennis Stamp Dennis Stamp (December 6, 1946 – March 13, 2017) was an American professional wrestler and referee. He was best known for wrestling extensively during the 1970s and 1980s for the American Wrestling Association, and for the National Wrestling Al ...

* Sting *

Adrian Street Adrian Street (born 5 December 1940) is a retired Welsh professional wrestler and author known for his flamboyant, androgynous wrestling persona, brought to prominence in the 1970s and 1980s. Street was often accompanied to the ring by his long- ...

Chief Jay Strongbow Luke Joseph Scarpa (October 4, 1928 – April 3, 2012) was an American professional wrestler and WWE Hall of Famer who was best known by the ring name Chief Jay Strongbow. Much like his contemporary Wahoo McDaniel, he portrayed a Native Americ ...

Big John Studd John William Minton (February 19, 1948 – March 20, 1995) was an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name, Big John Studd. Studd is best known for his appearances with the World Wide Wrestling Federation/World Wr ...

* Sunshine * The Super Destroyer *

Bob Sweetan Robert Carson (born Robert Beier, July 4, 1940 – February 10, 2017), better known by his ring name Bob Sweetan, was a Canadian professional wrestler and convicted sex offender. Sweetan was nicknamed "Bruiser" and "Mr. Piledriver", the latter i ...

Magnum T. A. Terry Wayne Allen (born June 11, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Magnum T. A. Allen won the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship twice and was being groomed for a potential run with the N ...

* "Hollywood" John Tatum *

* "Big" Tug Taylor * Tony Torres * The Turk * "Handsome" Johnny Valentine *

Jack Victory Kenneth Rinehurst (born July 3, 1964) is an American professional wrestler and manager, better known by his ring name, Jack Victory. He is perhaps best known for his appearances with the Universal Wrestling Federation and the World Class Wrestlin ...

* Doug Vines *

Nikolai Volkoff Josip Hrvoje Peruzović (October 14, 1947 – July 29, 2018), better known by his ring name Nikolai Volkoff, was a Yugoslav-American professional wrestler best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Although Volkoff often p ...

Kerry Von Erich Kerry Gene Adkisson (February 3, 1960 – February 18, 1993), better known by his ring name Kerry Von Erich, was an American professional wrestler. He was part of the Von Erich family of professional wrestlers. He is best known for his time with ...

* Koko B. Ware * "Cowboy" Bill Watts * Luke Williams * "Dr. Death" Steve Williams *

Ed Wiskoski Edward Wiskoski (born January 10, 1945) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances in the American Wrestling Association under the ring name Colonel DeBeers from 1985 to 1990. Early life Wiskoski was the ...

* Mr. Wrestling II *

Yoshiaki Yatsu Yoshiaki Yatsu (谷津嘉章 ''Yatsu Yoshiaki'', born July 19, 1956) is a Japanese professional wrestler, amateur wrestler and mixed martial artist. He is known for being one-half of the first-ever All Japan Pro Wrestling World Tag Team Champi ...

*Gary Young * Oliver Humperdink

Tag teams and stables

The Fabulous Freebirds The Fabulous Freebirds were a professional wrestling tag team who attained fame in the 1980s, performing into the 1990s. The team usually consisted of three wrestlers, although in different situations and points in its history, just two performed ...

( Michael Hayes,

Terry Gordy Terry Ray Gordy Sr. (April 23, 1961 – July 16, 2001) was an American professional wrestler. Gordy appeared in the United States with promotions such as Mid-South Wrestling, Georgia Championship Wrestling, World Class Championship Wrestling, Jim ...

, and Buddy Roberts) * The Samoan Warriors ( Afa and Sika) * Devastation Inc. (

, The Samoan Warriors,

, Vladic Smirnoff,

, Leroy Brown,

, Kamala, The Missing Link, and Bill Irwin ) * The Rat Pack (

, Hacksaw Duggan, and

) * Ted DiBiase and Hacksaw Duggan * Ted DiBiase and "Dr. Death" Steve Williams *

Ivan Ivan () is a Slavic male given name, connected with the variant of the Greek name (English: John) from Hebrew meaning 'God is gracious'. It is associated worldwide with Slavic countries. The earliest person known to bear the name was Bulgari ...

and

The Lightning Express ''The Lightning Express'' is a 1930 American pre-Code Universal film serial, featuring the adventures of "Whispering Smith" (played by Al Ferguson). This serial is considered a lost film. The serial's story focuses on whether a railroad will ...

( Brad Armstrong and

) * Rock 'N Roll Express (

and Robert Gibson) * The Jive Tones (

Pez Whatley Pezavan Whatley (January 10, 1951 – January 18, 2005) was an American professional wrestler best known for his time with NWA Mid-America. Professional wrestling career Whatley played football and wrestled for Notre Dame High School in Chatta ...

and Tiger Conway) * The Midnight Express (

and

) *

and

Dick Murdoch Hoyt Richard Murdoch (August 16, 1946 – June 15, 1996) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring names "Dirty" Dick Murdoch and "Captain Redneck". He was best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation and New Jap ...

* Junkyard Dog and

Mr. Olympia Mr. Olympia is the title awarded to the winner of the professional men's bodybuilding contest at Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance Weekend—an international bodybuilding competition that is held annually by the International Federation ...

* Junkyard Dog and

Killer Karl Kox Herbert Alan Gerwig (April 26, 1931 – November 10, 2011) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name of Killer Karl Kox, who competed in the National Wrestling Alliance as well as international promotions such as All ...

The Sheepherders The Bushwhackers are a professional wrestling tag team who competed first as the New Zealand Kiwis and then as The Sheepherders during their 36-year career as a tag team. They wrestled in the World Wrestling Federation, Jim Crockett Promotions, ...

( Butch Miller and Luke Williams) *

and Chris Adams * The Blade Runners ( "Blade Runner" Rock and "Blade Runner" Flash) * Hot Stuff International, Inc. (

Hot Stuff Eddie Gilbert Thomas Edward Gilbert Jr. (August 14, 1961 – February 18, 1995) better known by his ring name "Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert, was an American professional wrestler and booker. Gilbert started his wrestling career for the Continental Wrestling Asso ...

, "Blade Runner" Rock, and "Blade Runner" Sting) * H & H International, Inc. (Hot Stuff Eddie Gilbert,

, Rick Steiner, Sting, and

) * John Tatum and Jack Victory * The Bruise Brothers ( Pork Chop Cash and Mad Dog Boyd) * The Super Destroyer and The Grappler * The Graplers (The Grappler and The Grappler #2) * Mr. Wrestling II and Tiger Conway Jr * Mr. Wrestling II and Col. Buck Robley * One Man Gang and Killer Khan *

and Yoshi Yatsu * The Davidsons (Rick Davidson and John Davidson) * "Hacksaw" Butch Reed and Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart *

The Pretty Young Things The Pretty Young Things was a professional wrestling tag team, composed of Koko Ware and Norvell Austin. History During a tag-team tournament in 1983, the masked Stagger Lee teamed up with fellow face Norvell Austin to take on “Fargo’s Fabu ...

( Koko Ware and

Norvell Austin Norvell Austin (born March 9, 1951) is a retired American professional wrestler. Austin worked for most of his career in the Southern United States, most often in tag team competition. Norvell Austin is most famous for teaming with Sputnik Monro ...

) *

The Fantastics The Fantastics were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Bobby Fulton and Tommy Rogers that worked together extensively between 1984 and 2007. At times, Bobby Fulton would team up with his brother Jackie Fulton under the same name. Te ...

(

Bobby Fulton James Hines (born October 4, 1960) is a retired American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Bobby Fulton. He was one half of the tag team The Fantastics with Tommy Rogers. Professional wrestling career James Hines started wr ...

and Tommy Rogers)

Championships

NWA Tri-State

Mid-South Wrestling

Universal Wrestling Federation

References

External links

TRIBUTE PAGES for Legends of Mid-South

Tri-State/Mid-South Title Histories

UNIVERSAL WRESTLING ARCHIVES
{{Jim Crockett Promotions Independent professional wrestling promotions based in the Southwestern United States Jim Crockett Promotions National Wrestling Alliance members Professional wrestling in Arkansas Professional wrestling in Louisiana Professional wrestling in Mississippi Professional wrestling in Oklahoma de:Universal Wrestling Federation#UWF (Bill Watts)