Harley Race
| Harley Race | |
|---|---|
Race in 2007
|
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| Birth name | Harley Leland Race |
| Born |
April 11, 1943 Quitman, Missouri, U.S. |
| Residence | Chesterfield, Missouri, U.S. |
| Spouse(s) |
Vivian Jones (m. 1960; her death 1960) Beverley Race (1995-her death) |
| Children | 2 |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | The Great Mortimer Harley Race Jack Long The King |
| Billed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Billed weight | 245 lb (111 kg) |
| Billed from | Kansas City, Missouri, U.S. |
| Trained by | Buddy Austin Ray Hrstich Stanislaus Zbyszko Wladek Zbyszko |
| Debut | 1960 |
| Retired | 1991 |
Harley Leland Race (born April 11, 1943) is an American former professional wrestler, and current promoter and trainer.
During his career as a wrestler, Race worked for all of the major wrestling promotions, including the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE), and World Championship Wrestling (WCW). He held the NWA World Heavyweight Championship seven times, and was the first NWA United States Heavyweight Champion, which is now known as the WWE's United States Championship. Race is one of six men inducted into each of the WWE Hall of Fame, the NWA Hall of Fame, the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame, and is considered by many past and present fans/wrestlers and promoters as one of the best professional wrestlers of all time. He is highly respected for his toughness and lifelong dedication to the business.
Race was an early fan of professional wrestling, watching programming from the nearby Chicago territory on the DuMont Network. After overcoming polio as a child, he began training as a professional wrestler as a teen under former world champions Stanislaus and Wladek Zbyszko, who operated a farm in his native Missouri. While in high school, an altercation with another classmate led to the principal kneeing Race in the back of the head as he tried to break up the fight. Enraged, Race attacked him, resulting in his expulsion. Already 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) and 225 lb (102 kg), Race decided to get his start in professional wrestling. Race then became the driver of Happy Humphrey, as he was too large to drive at the time.
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