Jack-Hammer
YOU WILL RESPECT MY AUTHORITAH!!!!
When you look back over the history of the AWA, NWA, WCW and WWE titles, you'll see lists filled with some of greatest and most distinguiished wrestlers to ever lace up the boots. However, there are also a lot of mainly forgotten champions, wrestlers that were on top and may have even had good runs as champion but you never really hear their names spred around.
For me, as of right now, I'd probably have to go with Pedro Morales. Now, there are a lot of "world" titles throughout wrestling over the past century but Morales was the first member of a racial minority to win a widely recognized world championship. Morales was a good all around wrestler and was a pretty big star in the WWWF. He was a big draw, particularly among the large hispanic population residing within certain parts of the WWWF's territory at the time. Morales held the title from February 8, 1971 until December 1, 1973 in a reign that lasted close to 3 years and had feuds with some pretty big names over the course of those years including a number of matches against Bruno Sammartino. I'd say that Morales' greatest moment as champ came on September 1, 1972 at the very first Showdown at Shea event. Morales wrestled Sammartino to a 75 minute draw in the first title match featuring two fan favorites against one another.
I'm not saying Morales was the best or anything, but he was a world champion in a big promotion during a time when racial prejudice was not only part of the social norm, it was often encouraged and accepted right out in the open. He's had one of the longest world title reigns of the past 40 years and you just never really hear anyone talk about the guy.
For me, as of right now, I'd probably have to go with Pedro Morales. Now, there are a lot of "world" titles throughout wrestling over the past century but Morales was the first member of a racial minority to win a widely recognized world championship. Morales was a good all around wrestler and was a pretty big star in the WWWF. He was a big draw, particularly among the large hispanic population residing within certain parts of the WWWF's territory at the time. Morales held the title from February 8, 1971 until December 1, 1973 in a reign that lasted close to 3 years and had feuds with some pretty big names over the course of those years including a number of matches against Bruno Sammartino. I'd say that Morales' greatest moment as champ came on September 1, 1972 at the very first Showdown at Shea event. Morales wrestled Sammartino to a 75 minute draw in the first title match featuring two fan favorites against one another.
I'm not saying Morales was the best or anything, but he was a world champion in a big promotion during a time when racial prejudice was not only part of the social norm, it was often encouraged and accepted right out in the open. He's had one of the longest world title reigns of the past 40 years and you just never really hear anyone talk about the guy.
