$1000 Challenge

Black Angus was at my side throughout most of his stay here in the United States. For the better part of this time, he listened to me and gained the respect of many opponents. All of them feared his strength in the ring. They also feared the man Angus for what I had made out of him. He was a living, breathing monster that commanded attention in the ring.

From the Pacific Northwest to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, from the borders of Mexico to the lands of the frozen north we call Canada, Angus forged a fire that could not be put out. He battled opponents much larger then himself, and, sometimes, promoters would sneak in a ringer that had beaten every man in the territory. He was successful in just about every kind of match that I had a hand in putting together.

Sometimes, Angus would be reluctant to take someone's challenge without asking me for my advice. He had a small mind that could be maneuvered at the drop of a hat. An example of that was when Angus had a night off and was in New York at a television station for the matches held there.

Ivan Koloff, The Russian Bear, had made short work of his opponent with his patented "Russian Bear Hug." He then got on the microphone and challenged anyone to break free from the hold. His standing offer of a thousand dollars to ANYONE that could break free from the bear hug was bait that Angus could not leave alone.

From the audience came Angus, all by himself, and he came to ringside with a thousand dollars in cash in hand. He looked at the huge man with a much shorter beard than his and completely shaven head and began hurling insults at him. With a single stroke of a pen, the unknowing Angus signed a contract to meet Ivan at a later date. They would meet in an arena to be chosen, and the winner would take the $2,000 purse.

You can't blame Angus for believing that he could break the bear hug, as it was in the arsenal of winning moves that he used in the ring himself with my guidance. No one had broken the bear hug once applied by Koloff in the two years he had been in the Northeast. Koloff made no bones about his strength and tenacity. He told Angus that he would be making a down payment on a new Mercedes Benz with the $1,000 Angus posted once they met.

Koloff went on to say to Angus and the matchmakers at ringside that he would break Angus in half, and that he would have to sign off on any injuries that he would receive. As they entered the ring, both men were shaking their arms in an attempt to loosen any knots their muscles had gotten in pre-bout warmups. The two huge gladiators came nose to nose and began to play mind games with each other. They tried to outwit each other into thinking there was fear in the mind of one another.

Angus did not see what I did from ringside. He couldn't foresee the difficulty he was allowing himself to be subjected to. All Angus thought of is how easy it was going to be taking the bounty of $1,000 from the man with CCCP on his trunks.

The referee called for the bell to ring, and the Russian Bear called out to Angus, "Are you ready to be broken in half?" Angus replied with a huge forearm to Koloff's chest. The atmosphere was not pleasant in the ring, and the combatants had to be separated again and again. Finally, Angus had to stand there and scream out, "READY," and allowed Ivan Koloff, who had been busted open, to grab him around the chest like a giant Boa Constrictor. I screamed out to Angus to hit and kick and do anything he could so that the money would be ours.

According to the contract that I had with Angus, I got 35% of his money for my services. It was in my best interests for him to break this bear hug put on him. Ivan would not have had the chance to put that hold on Angus in a regular match, unless Angus had been unconscious. Angus began to take my advice after about three minutes and brought the tree trunk arms he possessed against the chest of Ivan Koloff. This would have brought the end to any hold put on by any other opponent. Ivan was a reject of that theory and just kept tightening up more with each move that Angus did.

The two men grunted and strained against each other with sweat pouring off huge muscles. The veins in their arms were at the point of bursting, and the huge chests bellowed out with each breath of air they took in. It seemed like there was not going to be a winner in this battle that had been going on now for almost 15 minutes.

Finally, Angus could no longer endure the mighty arms of Ivan Koloff and his pushing tactics against the chin and chest of Ivan, and he began to shake in a spasmodical fashion. That was all that Ivan needed, and he cinched up even more on the now fainting Angus. I tried to climb on to the ring apron but was met with the resistance of the referee in charge.

It was only a moment later that Angus was completely knocked out and Koloff continued to shake Angus like a rag doll in the ring. It took the actions of four wrestlers called from the back dressing room area to pry Koloff from Angus. Much to the dismay of yours truly, the $2,000 purse had to be given to Koloff. I tried to get my hands on the money and was thrown over the top rope to the arena floor. They carried Angus out on a stretcher, and later, in the hospital, he found out that he was $1,000 poorer and had four broken ribs for his trouble. It also cost him 35% more for my troubles.

Angus learned two big lessons that night---you don't dismiss the strength of Ivan Koloff nor his Russian Bear Hug, and you rely on your manager to handle matters.

Percival A. Friend, Retired
The Epitome of Wrestling Managers