World Champion Part Two

We had beaten the best that promoter Gust Karras had put in front of us. We had done it under the most adverse conditions. Angus had been subjected to humiliating terms of the match by being blindfolded and having one arm tied behind his back … but we did it!!! We won the match with ol' Danny Yellowbear (Littlebear to you).

We had won the right to meet Dory Funk Jr. at the Century II Auditorium in Wichita, Kansas. We were destined to become the World Champion.

Monday nights were a tradition in Wichita for wrestling. Many great stars had held audiences in awe as they battled to try and gain the right to someday meet the world's champ. Some would take the tag-team route and have success unlimited. Others would fall by the wayside and go to other territories.

Names like Bob Orton Sr., Dick Murdoch, Benny Rameriz, The Viking, Roger Kirby, Mike George, Baron Von Raschke, Rufus R. Jones, and a host of others, had battled in the confines of the squared circle to try to gain a shot against the world's champ. They were only a moment away from winning, but it seemed that the world's champ always had that little extra ounce of energy and went the distance to keep the title.

Being a world's champ meant a lot of traveling … both by car and by plane. Dory Funk had come in from Portland, Oregon just the night before, and he had a tough grueling match against Cowboy Frankie Laine. They had gone an entire 90 minutes without gaining a fall on each other.

I knew how grueling this match had to have been, and the timing couldn't have been better for Angus. I was sure of victory and the happiness that went with it. That GOLD BELT would be mine.

The opening match had a midget tag bout with Little Lord Littlebrook and Little Bruiser facing Little Bobo Johnson and Wee Willie Wilson. These men brought the house down with their antics, and Littlebrook and Bruiser won the bout with a giant swing by Bruiser on Bobo Johnson.

Betty Niccoli, the women's United States Champion, went against Jean Antone. I wouldn't fight either of those gals on a bet. Jean won the match by disqualification but didn't win the belt.

Bob Orton Sr. beat the Viking, and Billy Howard beat Bobby Whitlock in other matches on the card. Omar Atlas took on Harley Race but was beaten by the Missouri State Champ. Rufus R. Jones took on Stan Pulaski and was the victor with head butts and a body press. Pat O'Connor and Ray Candy beat the team of the California Hippies. In a special match, Steve Bolus lost to Benny Rameriz. The semi-main event had Bob Geigel meeting Roger Kirby. I have seen bouts before, but this left nothing that could top it except the world's champion. Those guys did everything except tear the top of the Century II right off its foundation. The riot squad was called out to ringside, and there were fights breaking out in the aisle way. It was hard to contain these two guys. The referee finally called the bout a no-contest and threw it out.

I have had butterflies in my stomach before when I went to Madison Square Garden in New York and The Cow Palace in San Francisco and the Amphitheater in Chicago … but never like this. The anxiety that I felt could not be put into words. I kept telling Angus, "You better get this belt for me, OR ELSE!!!" I was destined to become the champion, and this might be my only trip down victory road.

The special referee for the match was Baron Fritz Von Raschke. This was a guy I thought was an ally of ours in that he was a rough style wrestler. He sure changed his spots that night. He growled in our dressing room, "ALL RIGHT … Dey are ready."

The crowd was ripped and ready, as we say in the business. After the instructions, the bell was rung, and the battle began. Dory Funk Jr. hit Angus so many times with his right, he was asking for his left. He countered every hold Angus tried and even gave us a few we hadn't seen before. The first fall was won by Jr. in a little over 30 minutes with a spinning toe hold. Angus won the second fall in 20 minutes with a giant suplex and a pin. There were less than 10 minutes of time left in the bout, and I was bound and determined to have that belt.

The bell rang for the third fall, and I had Angus charge Dory. I kept screaming, "Hit his back and legs," because they had been damaged just a few minutes before by the devastating suplexes. Angus hit him with all he had and grabbed him in a big bear hug and tried to just end his career right there in the middle of the ring. Dory had reached the ropes and was still being held by Angus when Raschke grabbed Angus by the arm and pulled him off of Dory. Angus was a bit peeved at him and took a swing at the Big Red Baron. Raschke moved back with the grace of a pro boxer and knocked the fist out of his way. By then, the two of them had gotten into a real battle of wits. Pushing each other's nose into each other's face, screaming at each other, and then pushing at each others chest ... I thought World War III was going break out in the middle of that ring.

In the meantime, Dory had rested up and was coming up behind Angus when I screamed out to him. Angus turned, and the battle began again. Fists were flying everywhere. Suddenly, the bell began ringing, signaling the time limit had expired. I jumped into the ring and began to complain that the referee had put his two cents' worth into the match and interfered. We could have beaten Funk if we only had five more minutes. I guess my complaint fell on deaf ears … the commission seated at ringside took the 60 minute draw as a match, and history was closed on another fantastic match in the career of Dory Funk Jr., the greatest NWA Champion.

Percival A. Friend, Retired
The Epitome of Wrestling Managers

2003 BWC Hall of Fame Inductee
2004 CAC Hall of Fame Inductee
2006 LWA Hall of Fame Inductee
2007 TCCW Hall of Fame Honoree