Juan Hernandez

A couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with one of the legends in our business. He was also a legend in another sport, that being Karate.

Juan Hernandez, "Mr. Karate," made the trip to Newton, Iowa with Chief Paul Farber and myself to honor the Class of 2001 in the Wrestling Hall of Fame. He had a chance to meet with greats like Lou Thesz, Tim Woods, Baron Von Raschke, Jason "Wolfman" Sanderson, Danny Hodge, and Verne Gagne, to name a few.

He also had a chance to rub elbows with Red Bastien and Karl Lauer of the Cauliflower Alley Club. His greeting with them was very humble and honest. They were so impressed with his credentials and background that they will be honoring him in Las Vegas at the Riviera Hotel at the yearly get together of the Cauliflower Alley Club.

Juan seemed to be in a daze the rest of the evening and all the way back to the Chicago area the following day. It was as if he were getting back into the ring again to do battle. It did my heart good to see someone that I have become a friend of to be honored for who they are, that being a down to earth person.

Juan was born on October 11, 1965 in Chicago and was one of seven children. He learned a good work ethic at a very early age, and he wanted to be the best at whatever he tried for.

At the age of 12, he witnessed a karate exhibition at his school and was awestruck by the sport and its athletes. Juan signed up for the classes and training that were offered at the school and began to train for his future.

Before his first year was out, he was on the competitive tours. At age 16, he became the American Karate Association United States Champion. He remained the champion from 1981 through 1986. It was during that reign that he also won the Karate International World Championship.

In 1985, the Karate Tournaments "dried up the prize money," and Juan realized that he could not eat the Gold Medals and trophies, and thus he dedicated his life to the church. Juan had strong desires to follow his dedication to God, and he became a Pentecostal Minister.

At first, he was a youth pastor, and, eventually, he developed into a full service pastor. Juan is a pastor at the New Life Family Christian Center Church, which operates one of the largest food pantries in the Chicago area.

In 1986, Juan, with the help of "Freebird" Buddy Roberts, created Chicago International Wrestling and did quite well. The late Bruiser Brody commented that Juan would do great in the business because of his natural ability and good work ethics.

Juan began to train for the mat wars of professional wrestling under the guidance of not only Buddy Roberts and Brody, but also under the special tutelage of Ox Baker. He learned very quickly and became a main event master wherever they appeared.

Juan teamed with wrestling greats like Jimmy "Boogie Woogie Man" Valiant, Cowboy Bob Orton, Buddy Roberts, and many more. He had some epic battles with Ox Baker, who had turned on him after becoming his friend, and also with Ivan Koloff. He also teamed with a young upstart called "The Commando," who would later become the Undertaker in the WWF.

Other wrestlers that had their start with Juan in Chicago were The Godfather, Al Snow, Action Jackson, the Sudan Warrior, and Tim Kelly, just to name a few.

In 1988, he came out of retirement and competed with the U.S. Karate Team. Juan is still a 5th degree Black Belt holder.

In 1993, tragedy struck, as Juan was in Chicago on a cold wintry day and slipped on some ice and broke his neck as he struck a curb. He began a long road to recovery and looked to the church and God to help him through this turbulent time in his life.

As he healed, he continued to promote and began to train and pass along his knowledge of the wrestling business to many young talented people.

In November 2000 he met Chief of Police Paul Farber. They became good friends in training sessions, and it was Juan that paired him up with one of his students, Cameron Cage. They have been very successful to date and look forward to many years of association together.

Juan Hernandez, Martial Arts Champion, Karate Master, Wrestler, Promoter, Pastor, and a FRIEND. I will be doing more stories on this man in the future.

Percival A. Friend, Retired
The Epitome of Wrestling Managers