Wrestling is full of tragic stories, but it never gets easier for fans to bid farewell to their favorites. In 2024, we had to say our final goodbyes far too many times.
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00:00Wrestling is full of tragic stories, but it never gets easier for fans to bid farewell
00:05to their favorites. In 2024, we had to say our final goodbyes far too many times.
00:11The Macedonian madman Kris Markov died at 85 on February 10th after suffering a stroke.
00:17Markov, whose real name was Hristo Zalevarov, wrestled from the 1960s through the 1980s.
00:23His death was announced by longtime Minnesota announcer Mick Karch, who knew Markov for
00:27almost 60 years. Born in Yugoslavia and raised in Minnesota, Markov began his career in the
00:32American Wrestling Association. He also wrestled for the World Wrestling Association, where
00:37he won tag team gold alongside Angelo Poffo. Markov would also go on to appear in N.W.A.
00:43as well as the Japan Wrestling Association. In 1981, he joined Jim Crockett Promotions,
00:48where he tagged with Nikolai Volkov in a team called the Imperial Russians.
00:52WCW's Ice Train, real name Harold Hoag, died at the age of 58 on January 23rd.
00:59Diamond Dallas Page announced Hoag's death on social media, but didn't note the cause.
01:03Ice Train debuted in WCW in July 1993 on an episode of WCW Worldwide and became a mid-card
01:10fixture in the company. He never won any titles, but he became a fan favorite, joining up with
01:15Scott Norton in the tag team Fire & Ice for a time. In 2000, Hoag was repackaged as M.I.
01:21becoming a member of the New Blood. He was feuding with Canyon when WWE bought WCW, and
01:26he retired from wrestling shortly after the purchase in 2001.
01:30Hoag did come out of retirement 18 years later at 52 years old. His last match was on December
01:3521st, 2019, for European Wrestling Promotion. He took on Dave Taylor, and the match ended
01:41in a no contest. In recent years, Hoag posted weightlifting videos on his Instagram.
01:46"...One more set, baby."
01:48Joshi wrestler Asahi died at the age of just 21 on February 1st, following a reported car
01:54accident. She was best known for her time with Ice Ribbon, where she made her debut
01:58at just 14. Asahi's contract with Ice Ribbon ended in 2023, and she joined AWG on a three-
02:04to six-month loan. She ended up becoming a full-time part of the promotion, though. AWG
02:10confirmed her death on X, formerly Twitter, posting,
02:13"...we would like to inform you that Asahi, a member of our company, has passed away due
02:16to an unexpected accident."
02:18Tributes poured in for the wrestler after her death, with one fan calling her a ray
02:23of sunshine. Asahi's last match was a tag team victory on January 31st. She temporarily
02:28stepped away from wrestling to focus on school in 2020, but made her comeback the following
02:33year.
02:35Florida wrestler Frankie Francisco Chiazzo, a veteran on the independent scene, died at
02:39the age of 48 on January 20th. His cause of death has not been released publicly. He wrestled
02:45for many promotions during his career, including TNA, N.W.A., and more.
02:49At the end of the day, it's Francisco Chiazzo's world!
02:54He was also known by many nicknames, such as Journeyman, the Shot Caller, and the Southeast
02:59Gangster. Barry Rose, a Florida promoter, shared the news of Chiazzo's death in a Facebook
03:04post, sending condolences to his family and friends.
03:07Chiazzo began his career in 1996. He debuted for N.W.A. Florida in May of 2001. He also
03:13appeared in Deep South Wrestling and made a few appearances in WWE in the mid-2000s.
03:18He was most recently a trainer for the World Wrestling Network, an N.W.A.-affiliated promotion.
03:24Anthony Gaines died on February 23rd at the age of just 30. His cause of death also has
03:29yet to be revealed.
03:31The heartbreaking news was announced on X by Empire State Wrestling, a promotion where
03:35he gained much of his popularity. The statement read,
03:38"...we are devastated to hear of the passing of Anthony Gaines. He was a remarkable performer
03:42in the ring who also touched the hearts of many lives outside of it. You will always
03:47be loved and never be forgotten. Without a doubt, you were authentically none of a kind."
03:51Gaines, whose real name was Anthony Nicamenti Jr., used none of a kind as a personal tagline.
03:57He debuted in 2014 with Upstate Pro Wrestling and went on to work for Revenge Pro Wrestling,
04:03Toronto's Smash Wrestling, and Pro Wrestling Rampage. He rose to viral fame in 2018 at
04:08an ESW show when he took a pounce from the much larger Ace Romero and flew right out
04:14of the ring.
04:15One of the four founding members of the original Four Horsemen and one-half of the Minnesota
04:19Wrecking Crew with his kayfabe brother Gene, Ole Anderson, died at 81 on February 26th.
04:26His cause of death has not been revealed, but it was reported in 2007 that the real-life
04:30Alan Robert Rogowski had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Anderson worked as a booker
04:35for Georgia Championship Wrestling and Jim Crockett Promotions following his wrestling
04:39career. He would go on to be part of WCW's executive team and booking committee, forever
04:44hating Vince McMahon and the then-WWF for his takeover of the territories. Anderson
04:50was fired from WCW when Eric Bischoff took over the company, and he retired from professional
04:55wrestling in 1996.
04:58Mike Jones, better known to wrestling fans as Virgil in WWE and Vincent in WCW, died
05:04peacefully at a hospital on the morning of February 28th at the age of 72.
05:09His death was announced on Facebook by referee Mark Charles III. Charles noted in an interview
05:14with Slam Wrestling that Virgil had two strokes in 2023. Jones also confirmed he had dementia
05:19in 2022, and he had been battling stage 2 colon cancer. Prior to his health issues,
05:26Virgil was often seen at comic and wrestling conventions throughout the country. Virgil
05:29began his wrestling career as Soul Train Jones in the Championship Wrestling Association
05:33in 1985 before moving on to the then-WWF in 1986. He was best known as the bodyguard of
05:40Ted DiBiase, but he also was a member of the NWO in WCW.
05:45Canadian legend Paul the Butcher Vaushan died on February 29th at the age of 86 after having
05:51a brain tumor removed in 2023. The adoptive father of the late Luna Vaushan suffered from
05:56colon and throat cancers, as well as diabetes. Even through his later life struggles, Vaushan
06:02kept in touch with his fans on his official Facebook page, often sharing health updates.
06:06Vaushan started in the business in 1957, playing a heel and taking up the Butcher moniker.
06:12He spent time in the AWA, WWE, NWA, and Georgia Championship Wrestling. He won the AWA World
06:19Tag Team Championships alongside his brother, Mad Dog Vaushan.
06:23We decided on the Butcher. It wasn't an animal name, but it was just as diabolical, I guess,
06:31as Mad Dog.
06:32Paul retired from wrestling in 1985, going on to run as a federal candidate in Canada
06:38three times, but never winning. He and his wife also sold therapeutic magnets.
06:43All-Japan veteran Yutaka Yoshi passed away after suddenly falling ill in the locker room
06:48after a match on March 10th. He was 50 years old. All-Japan Pro Wrestling announced the
06:53news noting that Yoshi was participating in a tournament before he died. His family confirmed
06:59he died of arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, and stressed Yoshi's death
07:04had nothing to do with the match.
07:06At the time of his passing, he was wrestling on a freelance basis, which he had been doing
07:09since 2006. Yoshi had a background in judo and began his career in the New Japan Dojo
07:15in 1994. He debuted at the end of that year, but broke his leg in his second match. Yoshi's
07:21first major match came in January 1998 in the Tokyo Dome. He held many championships
07:26throughout his career, including the NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship in Pro Wrestling 01
07:32and the IWGP Tag Team Championship.
07:36Sumo and wrestling star Akebono Taro, who was born as Chadwick Rowan, died at age 54
07:41in the beginning of April. Reports from Japan claimed he died of heart failure, as the former
07:46New Japan star had been battling heart issues that made him unable to walk. He also reportedly
07:51suffered from partial memory loss, making him unable to remember his time in professional
07:57wrestling.
07:58Akebono changed his name upon moving to Japan from Hawaii. He became a successful sumo star
08:02in the 90s, becoming the first non-Japanese wrestler to achieve the title of yokozuna,
08:08the highest rank in the sport.
08:09Chad was the first. Chad was the first to break that ceiling.
08:15Akebono's first WWE match came in 2005, and he wrestled three times for the promotion,
08:20including an infamous WrestleMania 21 bout in which he defeated Big Show in a sumo match.
08:26Akebono continued to wrestle in All Japan, New Japan, Pro Wrestling 01, and Dragon Gate.
08:31He was a two-time Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion in All Japan. Akebono retired from
08:35wrestling in 2017 due to his health issues.
08:40While Pro Wrestling announced the death of its former Universal Heavyweight Champion
08:43shooter Tony Jones on April 14th, he was 53 years old. Jones also wrestled in Ultimate
08:49Pro Wrestling and Extreme Pro Wrestling, and had stints in WWE, first in 1998. He appeared
08:55in March 2007 on an episode of Heat where he faced Eugene. Four months later, he faced
09:00Gene Snitsky.
09:02Jones was a notable collegiate wrestler before entering professional wrestling, and even
09:06competed in several tournaments with Kurt Angle. Jones was best known, though, for his
09:10appearance alongside tag partner Mike Modest in Beyond the Mat. Jones and Modest won the
09:15APWU Universal Tag Team Championships and were named the promotion's Tag Team of the Year
09:21in 1998.
09:23Bad Bones' John Klinger died of a heart attack on May 20th, only days after his final match
09:28against Flash Morgan Webster. The German wrestler's death at the age of just 40 was announced
09:33by West Side Extreme Wrestling on social media.
09:36Klinger started his career with WXW in the early 2000s, and was set to retire in September
09:41of 2024. He wrestled almost 450 matches in a WXW ring, and competed in various other
09:48promotions in the United States and Japan, including Progress, ICW, and Evolve.
09:54Bad Bones held multiple titles throughout his career, including the WXW Unified World
09:59Heavyweight Championship and European Heavyweight Championship. He also made appearances in
10:04TNA in 2011, 2014, and 2017, facing the likes of Christopher Daniels, Samoa Joe, and EC3.
10:12Klinger won the January 2011 edition of TNA Gut Check in London, something the promotion
10:16highlighted in its social media tribute to him.
10:20WWE Hall of Famer Sika Nwaii.
10:23One half of the Wild Samoans, alongside his brother Afa, died on June 25th. In addition
10:28to his contributions in the world of professional wrestling, he was also the father of Roman
10:33Reigns and late WWE star, Rosie. Sika began training in the early 1970s, and he and Afa
10:39made their stampede wrestling debut in 1973.
10:42The Wild Samoans made their way to the WWF in 1980, managed by Captain Lou Albano, and
10:48became two-time tag team champions during their initial run. While away from WWF for
10:53a few years, the Wild Samoans spent time in New Japan Pro Wrestling, Mid-South, and Georgia
10:59Championship Wrestling.
11:00Upon returning to WWF in 1983, Afa and Sika regained the WWF Tag Team Championship and
11:06reigned for several months that year. Sika returned three years later as a singles wrestler
11:10before teaming up with Kamala, a partnership that ended when the latter left WWF in 1987.
11:17His last televised WWF match was a Battle Royal at WrestleMania IV, his first pay-per-view
11:23appearance.
11:24Afa N'Awaii was sadly not far behind his brother, dying from a heart attack at age
11:2880 on August 16th.
11:31Aside from his long tag team career with Sika, Afa also had a solo stint in WWE that began
11:37in 1992, where he managed Rikishi and Samu, the Head Shrinkers. He wrestled his final
11:43match in 1994, but as many wrestlers do, he returned for an odd bout here and there following
11:48his retirement.
11:49His final match happened in 2014, when Afa was 71 in his own promotion, World Extreme
11:55Wrestling.
11:56British wrestler James Castle died on June 15th at just 35 years old following a long
12:01battle with acute myeloid leukemia. A stalwart of the British independent scene, Castle wrestled
12:07for RevPro, debuting in a tag team known as the Revolutionists in 2013. He and tag team
12:13partner Shaw Samuels won RevPro's Undisputed Tag Team Championships in June 2015 and held
12:19on to the gold for the next year. He also wrestled for IPW, X-Wrestling Alliance, and
12:24the Wrestling League, but his career ended in 2019 when he received his initial cancer
12:29diagnosis. He held the Wrestling League's Heavyweight Championship on one occasion.
12:33The anarchist was one of the first students to train at the RevPro Portsmouth School,
12:38and the first wrestler trained from scratch to get featured on the promotion's main shows.
12:43Castle revealed in January that the leukemia had returned, and doctors told him that it
12:47was terminal.
12:48Big Cat Scott Henson, a veteran of the wrestling scene in British Columbia, died at the age
12:53of 40 on June 15th.
12:55The news of his death was confirmed by Canadian Apex Wrestling, who called the former tag
12:59team champion a driving force behind many fellow wrestlers' careers. Henson's career
13:04started in backyard wrestling in 2000. He later wrestled in Elite Canadian Championship
13:09Wrestling and became the solid steel champion in the 3-2-1 battle promotion.
13:14Henson was known for coming out to the ring wearing gloves that looked like paws, in addition
13:19to being heavily involved in the Pacific Northwest wrestling scene, Henson was also a podcaster
13:23and gamer, appearing on the podcast The Worst Year of Our Lives alongside his tag team partner
13:29Sarian Softpaws.
13:30Hello, I'm Scott, that's Drew, and welcome to just a quiet little anime podcast.
13:36The Taskmaster Kevin Sullivan died at the age of 74 following complications from emergency
13:42surgery on August 9th. Sullivan reportedly suffered an accident in May while at a Florida
13:47autograph signing. He underwent emergency surgery that saved his leg at the time, but
13:51contracted sepsis and encephalitis.
13:54Sullivan was never trained professionally, but went on to lead the Three Faces of Fear
13:58and the Dungeons of Doom, both stables that caused problems in the ring for Hulk Hogan
14:03and WCW in the 90s. Before that, he wrestled for Championship Wrestling from Florida and
14:08Jim Crockett promotions. Sullivan was a booker as well as a wrestler.
14:12I used to book a year out, and I could adjust after three months.
14:19He was also known for being involved heavily in backstage politics, feuding both personally
14:24and professionally with Chris Benoit and Brian Pillman. His final match was fittingly against
14:29Brian Pillman Jr. in 2019.
14:32Sid Vicious, also known as Sid Justice and Psycho Sid, died at age 63 on August 26th.
14:38He had been battling cancer for several years, according to his son, who announced his father's
14:43death on Facebook. Vicious died of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, but had previously battled heart
14:48issues as well.
14:50Vicious, whose real name was Sid Udy, was a multiple-time champion in both the WWF and
14:55WCW. After his passing, many of his peers, including Ric Flair and Sting, paid tribute.
15:01Vicious debuted in 1987 and went on to become a six-time world champion. He won the WWE
15:07Championship twice, as well as the WCW World Heavyweight Championship on two occasions.
15:12Vicious headlined WrestleMania in 1992 and 1997, as well as Starrcade in 2000.
15:18His final match came on August 5th, 2017, when he defeated Paul Rosenberg in Canada
15:23for Great North Wrestling. His final WWE match was in June 2012, when he returned as Psycho
15:29Sid to defeat Heath Slater.
15:32Liger Wrestling Federation's Liger Rivera died on October 22nd, just days before his
15:3738th birthday. He was reportedly hospitalized and put into a medically-induced coma.
15:42The cruiserweight debuted in 2001 and retired in 2018. He held the EWF American Championship
15:48in 2010, as well as the promotion's cruiserweight title and tag team championship, alongside
15:54TJ Perkins. Rivera also wrestled under a mask as Batman Well in another California-based
15:59independent promotion, Hood Slam.
16:02The EWF put together a YouTube tribute to Rivera, and many of his peers memorialized
16:06him as well. Among them was Raw General Manager Adam Pearce, who posted that it was always
16:11a pleasure to share a locker room with Rivera. EWF partnered with the NWA for a series of
16:17shows from 2006 to 2012. Pearce and Rivera both worked those shows.
16:22A legend of Lucha Libre and the Mysterio family, Rey Mysterio Sr., uncle of WWE Hall of Famer
16:29Rey Mysterio, died at age 66 on December 20th. AAA broke the news on X, announcing that Mysterio,
16:37real-life name Miguel Ángel López-Díaz, had passed away.
16:41Mysterio held many championships throughout his career, including seven in Tijuana wrestling,
16:45once as the American Champion, and three times as one-half of the Tijuana Tag Team Champions.
16:51Mysterio and his nephew, the future Rey Mysterio, would win the WWA World Tag Team Championships
16:57while he was in AAA. He officially retired in 2009, but unsurprisingly came out of retirement
17:03multiple times in the 2020s, with his last match occurring in 2023.