Wrestling Classics Trivia Quiz

Answer: Jim Londos

"The Golden Greek" Jim Londos held the NWA World Heavyweight Championship from 1930 to 1935. Londos held the NYSAC World Heavyweight Championship three times between 1930 and 1946. Londos' final reign as NYSAC World Heavyweight Championship lasted 2,601 days until his retirement in 1948.

Answer: Canada

Ivan Koloff, the Mongolian Stomper, Roddy Piper, and Don Leo Jonathan were born in Canada. Ivan Koloff was born in Montreal, Quebec; The Mongolian Stomper was born in Carbon, Alberta; Roddy Piper was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan; Don Leo Jonathan was born in Langley, British Columbia.

Answer: Danny Hodge

Danny Hodge is generally regarded as one of the two best American collegiate wrestlers in history, along with Dan Gable. The Dan Hodge Trophy is the college wrestling version of the Heisman Trophy. During his wrestling collegiately at the University of Oklahoma, Hodge was undefeated and never taken off his feet during his career.

Answer: 13

A young Terry Gordy dropped out of school and was trained to wrestle by Archie Gouldie. Gordy started wrestling at the age of 13 in 1974. Gordy began wrestling as a masked wrestler Terry Mecca in the International Wrestling Association.

Answer: Joe and Tony Stetcher

Joe Stetcher was a three-time World Heavyweight Champion from 1929 to 1928. Joe's brother, Tony Stetcher, was a wrestling and boxing promoter in Minnesota. Tony Stetcher was one of the promoters who helped form the National Wrestling Alliance in 1948.

Answer: "Playboy" Buddy Rose

"Playboy" Buddy Rose wrestled as the Executioner at the WWE's 1985 "Wrestlemania I" event. Rose competed in the AWA and NWA in the 1970s. Rose didn't join the WWE until 1982.

In the 1970s, three masked wrestlers performed as the Executioners in the WWE. These masked wrestlers were Killer Kowalski, Big John Studd, and Nikolai Volkoff. On May 11, 1976, "Captain" Lou Albano led the Executioners (Killer Kowalski and Big John Studd) to win the WWE Tag Team Championship. The team were stripped of their titles when a third masked Executioner (Nikolai Volkoff) interfered in a title defense.

Answer: Anderson

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin had to change his name from Steve Williams when he turned pro to avoid confusion with the already-established Steve "Dr. Death" Williams. But Williams was Austin's adopted name as he was born Steven James Anderson in 1964.

Answer: "To a nicer guy it couldn't happen."

"Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers defeated Pat O'Connor in Chicago, Illinois on June 30, 1961, in a Two Out of Three Falls Match. Rogers won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship with the victory. The event was held at Chicago's Comiskey Park and drew 38,622 fans. After the match, Rogers gave an in-ring interview and said, "To a nicer guy...it couldn't happen!".

Answer: The First Family

"The Mouth of the South" Jimmy Hart formed the First Family stable in Continental Wrestling Association. Hart used this stable to attempt to take the Continental Wrestling Association title from Jerry "the King" Lawler. Entertainer Andy Kaufman joined this stable in 1982 to have a high-profile feud with Lawler.

Answer: John Tenta

John Tenta participated in wrestling, football and rugby in college. In 1985 and 1986, Tenta participated in sumo wrestling for the Sadogatake stable earning the rank of Makushita 43. Tenta was trained to be a pro wrestler Shohei "Giant" Baba. Tenta competed as a pro wrestler under the names Earthquake, Avalanche, the Shark, and Golga.

Answer: Italian American

Joe Scarpa was an Italian American pro wrestler born in Nutley, New Jersey on October 4, 1928. PplpJoe Scarpa competed as the Native American character Chief Jay Strongbow. Strongbow won the WWE Tag Team Championship on four occasions.

Answer: Davey Boy Smith

Aurelian "Grizzly" Smith was a pro wrestler from Texas. He had three children who became pro wrestlers. His son, Aurelian, Jr., wrestled as Jake "The Snake" Roberts. His son, Michael, wrestled as Sam Houston. His daughter, Robin, wrestled as Rockin' Robin.

"The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith was a pro wrestler born in Golborne, England. His cousin was the Dynamite Kid. "The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith was not related to Aurelian "Grizzly" Smith.

Answer: Stan Hansen

In 1986, Stan Hansen was stripped of the AWA World Heavyweight Championship for failing to defend the title. Hansen continued to defend the title in Japan. The AWA threatened to take legal action against Hansen if he didn't return the belt. So, Hansen drove his truck on AWA World Heavyweight Championship belt and then returned the muddy belt back to the AWA.

Answer: Rikidozan

Rikidozan was born in the Kankyō-nan province of Korea. He took great pains to keep his birthplace and ethnicity as concealed as possible from the Japanese public. Rikidozan competed in sumo and professional wrestling and was known in Japan as "The Father of Puroresu".

Answer: Verne Gagne

Verne was an alternate for the United States freestyle wrestling team in the 1948 Summer Olympics, but the coaches held the team out of the competition. Thus, Gagne didn't officially compete in the in the 1948 Summer Olympics.

Three wrestlers did compete in the 1948 Summer Olympics. Harold Sakata, who wrestled as Tosh Togo and played Oddjob in the 1964 movie "Goldfinger", won the silver medal in the light heavyweight division in weightlifting. Maurice Vachon represented Canada in freestyle wrestling. Karl Gotch (Karl Istaz) represented Belgium in both freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling.