Michael DiBiase (December 24, 1923 – July 2, 1969) was an American professional wrestler also known by his ring name "Iron" Mike DiBiase. The adoptive father of professional wrestler "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase, he was married to Ted's mother Helen Hild (also a professional wrestler), and was the grandfather of Mike, Ted Jr., and Brett DiBiase.
| Iron Mike DiBiase | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Birth name | Michael DiBiase |
| Born | December 24, 1923 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | July 2, 1969 (aged 45) Lubbock, Texas, U.S. |
| Spouse(s) | |
| Children | Ted DiBiase (adopted son) |
| Family | Ted DiBiase Jr. (adopted grandson) Mike DiBiase (adopted grandson) Brett DiBiase (adopted grandson) |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Mike DiBiase Miguel Lopez |
| Billed height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)[1] |
| Billed weight | 230 lb (104 kg)[1] |
| Billed from | Italy |
| Debut | 1950 |
Amateur wrestling career
editAs an amateur wrestler, DiBiase, representing the US Navy, was the 1946 AAU champion in the UNL (open or heavyweight) division. He then wrestled at the University of Nebraska, and competed at UNL in the NCAA tournament in 1947 and 1948, losing his first round match both years.
Professional wrestling career
editDiBiase made his professional debut in 1950. In 1963, DiBiase became the 131st and last knockout victim of light heavyweight boxer Archie Moore.[2] One of DiBiase's most notable matches was a Texas Death Match against Dory Funk Sr, which according to Terry Funk lasted for four hours and 10 minutes, having taken in 32 falls.
Death
editDiBiase died in the ring on July 2, 1969, in Lubbock, Texas, following a match with Man Mountain Mike as the result of a fatal heart attack.[3] Harley Race performed CPR on DiBiase and then rode in the ambulance with him. DiBiase was pronounced dead at the hospital.[4] He was buried at the Sunset Cemetery in Willcox, Arizona. Ted DiBiase confirmed that his father had a huge cholesterol buildup and was genetically predisposed to heart disease.[5]
Championships and accomplishments
edit- American Wrestling Association
- AWA Midwest Heavyweight Championship (3 times)[6]
- AWA Midwest Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Bob Orton (1) and The Avenger (1)[7]
- George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
- Class of 2006[8]
- Central States Wrestling
- Championship Wrestling from Florida
- Fred Kohler Enterprises
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (Chicago Version) (1 time) – with Danny Plechas[12]
- NWA Rocky Mountain
- NWA Rocky Mountain Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[13]
- NWA Rocky Mountain Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Freddie Blassie and Juan Garcia[14]
- NWA Tri-State
- Pacific Northwest Wrestling
- Southwest Sports, Inc.
- NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Texas version) (1 time)[17][18]
- NWA Texas Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Danny Plechas[19][20]
- Western States Sports
- NWA International Tag Team Championship (Amarillo version) (1 time) – with Danny Plechas[21][22]
- NWA North American Heavyweight Championship (Amarillo version) (3 times)[23]
- NWA North American Tag Team Championship (Amarillo version) (4 times) – with Danny Plechas (2), Dr. X (1), and Fritz Von Erich (1)[24]
- NWA Southwest Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[25]
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (Amarillo version) (4 times) - with Art Nelson (1) and Danny Plechas (3)[26]
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (Amarillo version) Tournament (1957) - with Danny Plechas[26]
- Worldwide Wrestling Associates
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Mike Dibiase profile". OWW.
- ^ Archie Moore
- ^ "Inductee: Mike Dibiase". National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ DiBiase, Ted (1997). Every Man Has His Price: The True Story of Wrestling's Million-Dollar Man. Multnomah Publishers. p. 57. ISBN 1-57673-175-8.
- ^ Truitt, Brandon. "Shoot Interviews: Ted DiBiase". KayfabeMemories.com. Archived from the original on November 20, 2011. Retrieved April 16, 2009.
- ^ AWA Midwest Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ AWA Midwest Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ "Hall of Fame Inductions Report: Bret Hart, Larrry Hennig, Mike DiBiase, Dory Funk Sr., Bop Roop". PWTorch. July 6, 2006. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
- ^ NWA Central States Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA Florida Brass Knuckles Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA Southern Heavyweight Title (Florida) history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA World Tag Team Title (Chicago/Indianapolis) history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ Rocky Mountain Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ Rocky Mountain Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2006). "(Texas) Dallas: NWA Texas Brass Knuckles Title". Wrestling Title Histories (4th ed.). Archeus Communications. p. 271. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- ^ "Texas Brass Knucks Title [East Texas]". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
- ^ Will, Gary; Duncan, Royal (2000). "Texas: NWA Texas Tag Team Title [Von Erich]". Wrestling Title Histories: professional wrestling champions around the world from the 19th century to the present. Pennsylvania: Archeus Communications. pp. 275–276. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- ^ "NWA Texas Tag Team Title [E. Texas]". wrestling-titles.com. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
- ^ NWA International Tag Team Title (Amarillo) history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ Hoops, Brian (March 5, 2017). "Daily Pro Wrestling History (03/05): The Hardy Boyz win WWF tag team gold". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
- ^ NWA North American heavyweight Title (Amarillo) history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA Southwest/North American Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ NWA Southwest Junior Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ a b "National Wrestling Alliance World Tag Team Titles [W. Texas]". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
- ^ WWA/NWA Americas Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ WWA World Heavyweight Title history At wrestling-titles.com
- ^ WWA World Tag Team Title history At wrestling-titles.com
External links
edit- Iron Mike DiBiase's profile at Cagematch.net , Wrestlingdata.com , Internet Wrestling Database
