WRESTLING HERITAGE

1970s wrestler fpr independent promoters Steve Walton achieved international recognition as one of the best, but it was not in the world of wrestling. For forty years, until his premature death, Steve was a world renowned  animal trainer, specialising in Dolphins, yet also working with other creatures such as whales, sea lions bears and chimpanzees. Indeed it was an unfortunate incident with a chimpanzee in frilly knickers that brought Steve to national attention in December, 1972, when the Daily Mirror reported that Molly had escaped and made uninvited visits to houses in Stanley View, Leeds.

Steve’s interest in animals was connected  to his wrestling activities. Steve was employed as the  dolphin trainer at Don Robinson’s Marineland in Scarborough. One of Robinson’s many business interests was as a major independent wrestling promoter in the 1960s and 1970s.  Forty years later Steve described himself then, and still, as part of the Don Robinson family, as his friendship with Robinson and colleagues endured for decades.

Although soccer was his first sporting love, he had a trial for Leeds United, Steve developed an interest in wrestling whilst working for Robinson in the company of wrestlers Klondyke Bill and Toma Hansom.   Steve trained  with them and eventually became  a part time wrestler on 1970s independent shows, mainly working for Don Robinson. He was certainly handily placed to fill the place of a missing wrestler on a Robinson show.

From Scarborough Steve moved as head trainer of dolphins at Windsor Safari Park and yet this was only the start of his incredible story. Following work in many animal parks Steve worked self employed as an animal adviser, travelling the world and setting up animal health and breeding programmes.

Wherever he travelled Steve always returned home to Scarborough where he remained in touch with, and supported,  Toma Hansom (until his death), Don Robinson, and the other north east lads. Until the outbreak of Covid 19 earlier this year  he was still travelling the world sharing his internationally acclaimed knowledge of marine wildlife.

Steve Walton died 13th December, 2020, aged 66.

The giant Austrian Otto Wanz  weighed in around the 25 stones mark, Born in 1943 his first sporting love was boxing, and he had a nationally successful amateur boxing career. 

He turned professional around 1970, establishing himself in European rings. He is mostly remembered by British fans for his epic clash with Ray Steele in the 1984 Royal Albert Hall Spectacular, when he successfully defended his CWA championship against the Yorkshireman.   Otto subsequently gained international acclaim in North America, the Far East and Europe, winning the AWA World heavyweight championship. He later returned to Britain to work for promoter Orig Williams. Following retirement Otto settled back in his native country, Austria, promoting, acting and  organising strong men competitions. 

The first time we saw Buddy Ward in action he struck us as a bit of a hard nut. We weren't wrong. An unsurprising assessment to those who saw the shaven headed whirlwind in action, but a little more surprising when we tell you he was facing Bob Sherry, one of the hardest men in the game. Liverpool born Buddy turned professional in 1959, and never went out of his way to make friends in the ring. Not the most scientific of wrestlers he was, nonetheless, a man with some skill who could hold his own with anyone in the ring. Some early bouts saw him billed as Woody Ward (reference to his family name of Woodward) and in the early sixties a frequent opponent was a young "German" who went on to become Steve Viedor, also from Ellesmere Port, the town that Buddy adopted. During the 1960s  Buddy worked  mainly in the opposition halls, but also made some appearances for Joint Promotions, and was a frequent traveller to the continent and Australia. In recent years he worked with Bob and Jean Bell, organising the Ellesmere Port Wrestlers Reunion. In April, 2010, Buddy surprised the wrestling fans when he came out of retirement, aged 75, to wrestle Johnny Saint in his local hall. A swift ending failed to subdue Buddy, phoning us the next day to tell us he was satisfied to have made the fans happy. No doubt just another of life's experiences that will add to Buddy's latest career change, that of after dinner speaker.

The dark, wavy haired heavyweight was a post war protege of Athol Oakeley. He wrestled Ed Bright in 1952 for Oakeley's version of the British Heavyweight Title  at the Royal Albert Hall and faced  Tiger Joe Robinson at Harringay in another high profile match.   Other memorable opponents included Bert Mansfield, Al Hayes and Gerry Hoggarth.  It was against Hoggarth, at the Royal Albert Hall in April 1953, that Jock finally dropped his British heavyweight championship. Many of Jock's contests were for promoter Atholl Oakeley who, following the end of the second world war, strived to revive the all-in style of wrestling he had introduced to Britain in 1930, which included a twenty count for a knock-out.

The iconic Max Ward brought a touch of American style razamatazz as the referee wearing his trademark striped shirt. In 2012 Wrestling Heritage named him the Number 1 Wrestling Official of the Heritage for refereeing duties in which he remained unobtrusive, allowed the wrestlers retain centre stage whilst also enhancing the overall performance.

Yet Max Ward ‘s contribution to wrestling went back much further. Before his unmistakable refereeing style was unleashed on the unsuspecting public by promoter Paul Lincoln Max Ward was a heavyweight wrestler working throughout Britain and travelling to Sweden, Germany and France. We can trace him back to wrestling in 1943 whilst he was serving in the R.A.F. and reported in November by the Hull Daily Mail to have beaten Manuel Trudeau by two faills to one at Madeley Street Baths. By then he was in his early twenties, having been born in Bristol on 23rd July, 1920

A 1950s resident of Halesowen, seven miles from Birmingham on the edge of the industrial heartland Max had the geographical legitimacy for his billing as Midlands Heavyweight Champion, but we have yet to find any reference to any championship matches.

Max continued wrestling until the early 1960s, mainly for Paul Lincoln, one of the main independent promoters. In the early 1960s the bumps were beginning to take their toll on Max's body and he turned referee for Paul Lincoln Management, a role at which he excelled. From time to time Max would be called back to wrestling duties to settle a score with a wrestling villain. In 1963, by which time he was a regular Lincoln referee he said, in Birmingham’s Sports Argus, that he was challenging Dr Death, “I have stood enough of foreign wrestlers coming to Birmingham and taking liberties with me …. I will show how an old-timer deals with masked Americans.” Fans still enjoyed Max back in the ring in the 1970s for a series of referee versus wrestler matches, in which he faced Cyanide Sid Cooper.

Wrestling enthusiast Ballymoss told us: “When Max worked for Paul Lincoln I believe it was part of the show for him to become fully involved and he filled this role brilliantly, particularly when involved with some one like Docker Don Stedman. If he had disqualifed Don or some other top notch heel he often wrote down their name on a notepad and informed them in grave tones that they would be reported to the British Wrestling Federation - hilarious stuff; action which could see the disqalified wrestler demand a re-match, a much needed ingredient with the paucity of wrestlers in the Paul Lincoln stable.”

With the 1966 merger of Paul Lincoln Management and Dale Martin Promotions Max became a popular tv referee and, around 1967 or 1968, became one of the regular referees at the Royal Albert Hall.

Max Ward died in 2002, aged 83, and just two weeks after receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award from the British Wrestlers Reunion.

The big, bruising Australian Sharky Ward made his way into British rings during the winter of 1980 - 81. He faced an odd assortment of opponents ranging from Jeff Kaye to Wayne Bridges, losing to the kent wrestler in a World Heavyweight Title eliminator at the Royal Albert Hall in October, 1980.  Sharky was Australian Phil Ward who used a variety of names in Australia, USA, New Zealand and  Japan. In New Zealand he was appointed coach of the national sumo wrestling team.

Franco-Finnish wrestler visited Britain in 1957 and 1959, working for Joint Promotions, mainly in the midlands and north of England. First rate opponents included Bob Archer O'Brien,  Ken Joyce and John Foley. He did venture south, in February 1959, to face Cliff Belshaw at the Royal Albert Hall. He returned twice more, in 1961 and 1962, this time working for Dale Martin Promotions in the south of England.