Mick McManus (wrestler)
| Birth name | William George Matthews |
|---|---|
| Born |
11 January 1920 New Cross, London, England, UK |
| Died | 22 May 2013 (aged 93) |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Billed height | 5 ft 6 in (168 cm) |
| Billed weight | 12 st 7 lb/175 lb (79 kg) |
| Trained by | John Ruskin Amateur Wrestling Club |
| Debut | 1947 |
Mick McManus (born William George Matthews; 11 January 1920 – 22 May 2013) was an English professional wrestler. The role he played was noted as a heel European wrestler and often went by the nicknames "The Man You Love to Hate", "Rugged South London Tough Guy" and "The Dulwich Destroyer".
McManus was born in New Cross, south London. After leaving school he worked in a drawing office and then for a firm of printers. He began training as a wrestler, and during the Second World War helped teach Royal Air Force personnel in the sport. His first professional performance took place in 1945, while on a posting to Australia.
McManus was among wrestlers such as Mark Rocco and Kendo Nagasaki whose characters bent the rules as far as they could go without being disqualified, much to the fury of the crowd. He was also well known for using short range forearm jabs in matches. He became famous for his trademark black trunks and cropped black hair and for his catchphrase "Not the ears, not the ears".
McManus made more television appearances than any other wrestler in a career which spanned more than 20 years. Losing to Peter Preston by disqualification during his later years, he lost the European Middleweight title on television to a younger wrestler Mal Sanders.
McManus won his first wrestling title, the British Welterweight Championship, in 1949 by defeating Eddie Capelli for the vacant championship. He dropped the title to Jack Dempsey in 1957 but regained it from Dempsey. He dropped the title to him the following year, however. His 1963 bout against Jackie Pallo was watched by over 20 million people on British television. On 13 November 1967, McManus won the British Middleweight Championship with a victory over Clayton Thomson. Thomson regained the title in a rematch two months later. McManus also won the European Middleweight Championship in June 1968 by defeating Vic Faulkner. Faulkner regained the title belt in September, but McManus won it back in April 1971. He held the championship for almost seven years before losing it to Mal Sanders. McManus and Sanders traded the belt back and forth in matches that year and into the following year, with McManus holding the title a total of four times.
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