Rip Rogers
Encyclopedia
Mark Sciarra whose professional name is Rip Rogers is a former professional wrestler and trainer for Ohio Valley Wrestling
. He is currently a trainer for Derby City Wrestling in Louisville
, Kentucky
.
and Gary Royal
in Angelo Poffo's ICW and won the Tag Team Titles with Royal. As with the three-member version of Demolition defending the WWF World Tag Team Championship with any two of the three members, the Convertible Blondes also used the so-called "Freebird Rule
" to defend the ICW Tag Team Championship in this manner. He left the ICW following a dispute with Angelo Poffo's son Randall Poffo better known by his ring name Randy Savage
.
In 1984, he went to the National Wrestling Alliance
(NWA)'s Jim Crockett Promotions
where he formed "The Hollywood Blonds" with Ted Oates and won the National Tag Team Titles. By early 1986, he was in the Tennessee
area feuding with Dutch Mantel
.
The Ripper spent most of 1988 and 1989 in Calgary Stampede Wrestling. Strangely given his history and reputation he was mainly a lower to mid card performer. Yet he always seemed to get a rise out of the crowd as an antagonizing heel. Rogers received a small push near the end of his run in Stampede (the territory shut up shop at the end of '89). When he teamed with long time Stampede veteran Kerry Brown
as part of the Midnight Cowboys tag team. They had a running feud with popular International Tag Team Champs Bad Company, which included Bruce Hart
& Flyin' Brian Pillman
.
In 1989, he wrestled for the World Wrestling Council
in Puerto Rico
as one of their top heels with partner Abbuda Dein.
He was back in the NWA in time for it to be renamed World Championship Wrestling
(WCW) in 1991 and he lost several matches to Brian Pillman
.He later substituted for Pillman, being the scapegoat in the ill-fated Yellow Dog angle. His biggest win was at WCW BattleBowl in 1993 where he teamed with Road Warrior Hawk
and defeated Davey Boy Smith
& Stevie Ray
then named Kane. By late 1991, he had left WCW for the Global Wrestling Federation
where he joined The Cartel, which included Scotty Anthony
, Makhan Singh
and Cactus Jack
. They were the top heels for several months and he created a lot of havoc while there.
After that run, he occasionally wrestled in the United States
, wrestling for a time with a promotion in Indianapolis
known as Circle City Wrestling. He finally settled in Ohio Valley Wrestling
(OVW) in 1997. He teamed with Dave the Rave and formed the "Suicide Blondes" with Jason Lee. When he retired from active competition in 2000, he was named head trainer at OVW. At the age of 48, Rogers was involved in a car accident which forced him to completely retire from in ring competition. Rogers currently runs a wrestling class at OVW, where he teaches up and coming wrestlers.
One of Rogers' trademark was his berserk reaction after losing a match. Even after being cleanly pinned, Rogers would vociferously protest to the referee that his opponent had cheated. Usually, he would claim that his hair or trunks had been pulled by the other wrestler to score the victory. These claims would be accompanied by a frenzied voice and wild pantomimes of hair and trunk pulling.
Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
. He is currently a trainer for Derby City Wrestling in Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
.
Career
Rip Rogers started wrestling in 1974. He formed the "Convertible Blondes" with Pez WhatleyPez Whatley
Pezavan Whatley was a professional wrestler in the 1980s and early 1990s who wrestled primarily under the ring name Pez Whatley.-Career:...
and Gary Royal
Gary Royal
"Gorgeous" Gary Royal was a professional wrestler in the United States. In the early part of his career, he was a member of the Convertible Blonds, a heel stable with Rip Rogers and Pistol Pez Whatley.-In wrestling:*Finishing moves...
in Angelo Poffo's ICW and won the Tag Team Titles with Royal. As with the three-member version of Demolition defending the WWF World Tag Team Championship with any two of the three members, the Convertible Blondes also used the so-called "Freebird Rule
Fabulous Freebirds
The Fabulous Freebirds were a professional wrestling tag team that attained fame in the 1980s, performing into the 1990s. The team usually consisted of three wrestlers, although in different situations and points in its history, just two performed under the Freebirds name.-History:The Fabulous...
" to defend the ICW Tag Team Championship in this manner. He left the ICW following a dispute with Angelo Poffo's son Randall Poffo better known by his ring name Randy Savage
Randy Savage
Randall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler, best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling .Savage held twenty championships during his professional wrestling career and was a...
.
In 1984, he went to the National Wrestling Alliance
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
(NWA)'s Jim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions was a professional wrestling promotion owned by Jim Crockett, Jr. until the late 1980s. It was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and was the forerunner to World Championship Wrestling .-Early history:...
where he formed "The Hollywood Blonds" with Ted Oates and won the National Tag Team Titles. By early 1986, he was in the Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
area feuding with Dutch Mantel
Wayne Cowan
Wayne Keown is an American professional wrestler, and author better known by his ring name, Dutch Mantel or Dutch Mantell. He currently is semi-retired but still makes occasional wrestling appearances. He was previously with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling as a writer behind the scenes...
.
The Ripper spent most of 1988 and 1989 in Calgary Stampede Wrestling. Strangely given his history and reputation he was mainly a lower to mid card performer. Yet he always seemed to get a rise out of the crowd as an antagonizing heel. Rogers received a small push near the end of his run in Stampede (the territory shut up shop at the end of '89). When he teamed with long time Stampede veteran Kerry Brown
Kerry Brown (wrestler)
Kerry Brown was a Canadian professional wrestler. Brown was best known for working in Stampede Wrestling in the 1980s under his real name, but also wrestled in Puerto Rico and the Maritimes using the ring name Rick Valentine.-Beginning and Canadian promotions:Brown began wrestling in 1979 in...
as part of the Midnight Cowboys tag team. They had a running feud with popular International Tag Team Champs Bad Company, which included Bruce Hart
Bruce Hart (wrestler)
Bruce Dennis Luis Hart is a retired Canadian professional wrestler. The second son of Stu Hart, Hart is a member of the large Hart wrestling family.Hart substitute teaches for the Calgary Board of Education.-Career:...
& Flyin' Brian Pillman
Brian Pillman
Brian William Pillman was an American football player and professional wrestler best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Championship Wrestling....
.
In 1989, he wrestled for the World Wrestling Council
World Wrestling Council
The World Wrestling Council is one of Puerto Rico's two main professional wrestling promotions, the other one being the International Wrestling Association....
in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
as one of their top heels with partner Abbuda Dein.
He was back in the NWA in time for it to be renamed World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
(WCW) in 1991 and he lost several matches to Brian Pillman
Brian Pillman
Brian William Pillman was an American football player and professional wrestler best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Championship Wrestling....
.He later substituted for Pillman, being the scapegoat in the ill-fated Yellow Dog angle. His biggest win was at WCW BattleBowl in 1993 where he teamed with Road Warrior Hawk
Road Warrior Hawk
Michael James Hegstrand was an American professional wrestler. He is best remembered as Road Warrior Hawk, one half of the tag team known as the Road Warriors or The Legion of Doom , with Road Warrior Animal.-Early life:While living in Chicago, Hegstrand met Joe Lauranaitis, who would be later...
and defeated Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith
Davey Boy Smith was a British professional wrestler, better known as "The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith, who was born in Golborne in North West England, United Kingdom. Smith is known for his appearances with Stampede Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling...
& Stevie Ray
Lane Huffman
Lane Steven Huffman is a retired American professional wrestler who is better known as Stevie Ray. He is best known as being part of the tag team Harlem Heat with his younger brother Booker T...
then named Kane. By late 1991, he had left WCW for the Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation was a professional wrestling promotion based in Dallas, Texas. It started in June 1991 and folded in September 1994. At one time its shows were presented on the ESPN television network. On many weeks, the promotion provided programming five days a week airing at 4 p.m...
where he joined The Cartel, which included Scotty Anthony
Scott Levy
Scott Anthony Levy , better known by his ring name Raven, is an American professional wrestler, wrestling producer, wrestling writer, and occasional author and actor currently working for Juggalo Championship Wrestling , where he is co-holder of the JCW Tag Team Championship, as well as other...
, Makhan Singh
Mike Shaw
Mike Shaw was a professional wrestler who was best known for his stint in World Championship Wrestling as Norman The Lunatic, and as Bastion Booger in the World Wrestling Federation...
and Cactus Jack
Mick Foley
Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
. They were the top heels for several months and he created a lot of havoc while there.
After that run, he occasionally wrestled in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, wrestling for a time with a promotion in Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
known as Circle City Wrestling. He finally settled in Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
(OVW) in 1997. He teamed with Dave the Rave and formed the "Suicide Blondes" with Jason Lee. When he retired from active competition in 2000, he was named head trainer at OVW. At the age of 48, Rogers was involved in a car accident which forced him to completely retire from in ring competition. Rogers currently runs a wrestling class at OVW, where he teaches up and coming wrestlers.
One of Rogers' trademark was his berserk reaction after losing a match. Even after being cleanly pinned, Rogers would vociferously protest to the referee that his opponent had cheated. Usually, he would claim that his hair or trunks had been pulled by the other wrestler to score the victory. These claims would be accompanied by a frenzied voice and wild pantomimes of hair and trunk pulling.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Rear naked choke
- Bridging German suplex
- Signature moves
- Belly to back suplex
- Bodyscissors
- European uppercut
- HeadbuttHeadbuttA headbutt is a strike with the head, typically involving the use of robust parts of the cranium as areas of impact. Effective headbutting revolves around striking a sensitive area with a less sensitive area, such as striking the nose of an opponent with the forehead...
- TrainedAthletic trainerAn athletic trainer is a certified, health care professional who practices in the field of sports medicine. Athletic training has been recognized by the American Medical Association as an allied health care profession since 1990....
- Ryan Nemeth
- Alex Silva
- ManagersManager (professional wrestling)In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
- Brenda Britton
- Max Andrews
- NicknameNicknameA nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
s- "Hustler" Rip Rogers
- "Roaring" Rip Rogers
- "The Foul–Mouthed Ripper"
Championships and accomplishments
- Big Time Wrestling
- BTW Ohio Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Bobby Fulton
- Central States WrestlingHeart of America Sports AttractionsHeart of America Sports Attractions, also known as the Midwest Wrestling Association, Central States Wrestling and the World Wrestling Alliance, was an American professional wrestling promotion that ran shows mainly in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa...
- NWA Central States Television ChampionshipNWA Central States Television ChampionshipThe NWA Central States Television Championship was the secondary singles chamoionship for the Heart of America Sports Attractions / Central States Wrestling promotion from 1977 until the promotion ceased to exist in 1988. -Title History:-See also:...
(1 time)
- Georgia Championship WrestlingGeorgia Championship WrestlingGeorgia Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion whose self-titled TV program aired in the 1970s and 1980s on Atlanta, U.S., superstation WTBS. Though based in Atlanta, the company also ran live wrestling shows throughout its geographic "territory" of Georgia Georgia...
- NWA National Tag Team ChampionshipNWA National Tag Team ChampionshipThe NWA National Tag Team Championship was the major tag team title in the NWA-affiliated Georgia Championship Wrestling from 1980 until 1986.The championship was introduced in November 1980 when Georgia Tag Team Champions the Fabulous Freebirds won a tournament to determine the first champions,...
(1 time) – with Ted Oates
- International Championship WrestlingInternational Championship WrestlingInternational Championship Wrestling was an independent professional wrestling promotion based in Lexington, Kentucky that operated from 1978 until 1984. It was run by WCW Hall of Famer Angelo Poffo, the father of Randy Savage and "The Genius" Lanny Poffo...
- ICW United States Tag Team ChampionshipICW United States Tag Team ChampionshipThe ICW United States Tag Team Championship was the top tag team championship in International Championship Wrestling.-Title history:...
(2 times) – with Ricky Starr (1) and Pez WhatleyPez WhatleyPezavan Whatley was a professional wrestler in the 1980s and early 1990s who wrestled primarily under the ring name Pez Whatley.-Career:...
(1)
- NWA Mid-AmericaNational Wrestling AllianceThe National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
- NWA Mid-America Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA Mid-America Heavyweight ChampionshipThe NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling title defended in the US states of Tennessee and Alabama.The title began in 1957 and lasted first 1980 when it was first abandoned when Jerry Jarrett took over the Mid-American titles from Nick Gulas...
(1 time)
- Ohio Valley WrestlingOhio Valley WrestlingOhio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
- OVW Heavyweight ChampionshipOVW Heavyweight ChampionshipThe OVW Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling heavyweight championship owned by the Ohio Valley Wrestling promotion. The title was introduced on August 17, 1997 at an OVW live event, then known as the NWA-OVW Heavyweight Championship due to OVW's relationship with the National...
(3 times) - OVW Southern Tag Team ChampionshipOVW Southern Tag Team ChampionshipThe OVW Southern Tag Team Championship is the tag team titles of Ohio Valley Wrestling. Created in 1997, the first champions were Nick Dinsmore and Flash Flanagan. As of 2011, the current champions are Ted McNaler and Adam Revolver, known as The Elite in their fourth reign...
(3 times) – with Dave the Rave (2) and Jason Lee (1)
- Southeastern Championship WrestlingContinental Championship WrestlingContinental Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion based out of Knoxville, Tennessee from 1974 until 1988 and Dothan, Alabama from 1978 to 1990, managed by Ron Fuller. When Fuller sold the promotion to David Woods, it changed name to the Continental Wrestling Federation...
- NWA Southeast United States Junior Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
- World Wrestling CouncilWorld Wrestling CouncilThe World Wrestling Council is one of Puerto Rico's two main professional wrestling promotions, the other one being the International Wrestling Association....
- WWC Caribbean Heavyweight ChampionshipWWC Caribbean Heavyweight ChampionshipThe WWC Caribbean Heavyweight Championship is a secondary title contested for in the Puerto Rican professional wrestling promotion, the World Wrestling Council ....
(1 time) - WWC World Tag Team ChampionshipWWC World Tag Team ChampionshipThe WWC World Tag Team Championship is the tag team title contested for in the Puerto Rican professional wrestling promotion, the World Wrestling Council.-Title history:-External links:***...
(2 times) – with Abbuda Dein