Never realized Chris Taylor was...

[jeffr_ideal 216]

One of Rick Flair's earliest pro wrestling matches. 

 

Edited December 29, 2017 by jeffr_ideal

[Peso 176]

Heard he had a pull-up hustle.  He wasn't going to beat Medved, but he was good!

[AnklePicker 252]

Thought they said on the Flair documentary on espn that that was Flair's first ever pro match.

[Buckeyebison 83]

Wow, Chris Taylor make it look very easy. He was with 400 lbs and could move very easily. Extreme rare for 400 Lber to move like that. Only two others with that weight could move well- Tab Thacker and Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson.

 

I really would have liked to see him alive. Too bad that he and Tab died young. Is there any more Chris Taylor videos- Iowa State, Olympics, etc? I already have seen him getting pinned by German in Greco-Roman, I had to applaud that German. Nobody could do that to 400 lbs Chris Taylor.

 

It is said that the referee gave the match away to Medved and was suspended by the committee. Wish we could have seen the fair match between Medved and Taylor.

[gimpeltf 677]

Second/third periods compressed, I think 

 

I thought the officiating issue was more with the bout between Medved and Douraliev so that the Bulgarian would finish ahead of Taylor. The score in the video was a pretty good footsweep.

[TobusRex 808]

Wow, Chris Taylor make it look very easy. He was with 400 lbs and could move very easily. Extreme rare for 400 Lber to move like that. Only two others with that weight could move well- Tab Thacker and Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson.

 

I really would have liked to see him alive. Too bad that he and Tab died young. Is there any more Chris Taylor videos- Iowa State, Olympics, etc? I already have seen him getting pinned by German in Greco-Roman, I had to applaud that German. Nobody could do that to 400 lbs Chris Taylor.

 

It is said that the referee gave the match away to Medved and was suspended by the committee. Wish we could have seen the fair match between Medved and Taylor.

 

Figured you needed a little information on "that German".  Dietrich was one of the best in the world for a long time before his match vs Taylor. Interestingly although he pinned Taylor he still didn't place: but Taylor finished 3rd at that Olympics.

 

Here's a snippet from Wikipedia: "

Wilfried Dietrich (14 October 1933 – 3 June 1992) was a German heavyweight wrestler. Between 1956 and 1972 he took part in five Olympics and six world championships, often entering both the freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling contests – a feat unmatched by any other wrestler. He won five Olympic and five world championship medals, becoming Olympic (1960), world (1961) and European champion (1967). Between 1955 and 1962 he won all his freestyle bouts.^"  

 

^{https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilfried_Dietrich}

[TobusRex 808]

Gable/Taylor were roomies at the '72 Olympics. Taylor supposedly told Gable "I crap bigger than you". Later he called Gable to the toilet and PROVED It....

 

(Note: dramatic license has been taken with this posting)

[Billyhoyle 1,256]

Figured you needed a little information on "that German". Dietrich was one of the best in the world for a long time before his match vs Taylor. Interestingly although he pinned Taylor he still didn't place: but Taylor finished 3rd at that Olympics.

 

Here's a snippet from Wikipedia: "

Wilfried Dietrich (14 October 1933 – 3 June 1992) was a German heavyweight wrestler. Between 1956 and 1972 he took part in five Olympics and six world championships, often entering both the freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling contests – a feat unmatched by any other wrestler. He won five Olympic and five world championship medals, becoming Olympic (1960), world (1961) and European champion (1967). Between 1955 and 1962 he won all his freestyle bouts.^"

 

^{https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilfried_Dietrich}

The throw was in Greco. Taylor won in their freestyle bout and placed in freestyle. Edited January 2 by Billyhoyle

[stp 370]

The Professional wrestling referee union must be really weak.  

[JohnnyThompsonnum1 80]

Per contract, Chris Taylor was the highest paid professional wrestler in the world in 1974.  His $100,000 contract with Vern Gagne and the AWA was the highest guaranteed money that a professional wrestler in the United States had ever been guaranteed up to that point. 

Other professional wrestlers were making that sort of money and better, such as Andre The Giant. However, the money he and others made was based on a percentage of the house. You were paid based on the number of keesters in the seats and how many of those keesters the promoter felt were their based on your presence. 

Chris Taylor in many regards was the guy that began the idea of contracts and guaranteed money in professional wrestling. 

Edited January 11 by JohnnyThompsonnum1

[TobusRex 808]

Fitting, since Taylor actually knew how to wrestle :D Too bad he died so young, heard he was a really cool guy.

[JohnnyThompsonnum1 80]

Fitting, since Taylor actually knew how to wrestle :D Too bad he died so young, heard he was a really cool guy.

Per the book, "The Gentle Giant" Chris during all of his life, always made time for kids.  Regardless of where he was, how tired he was, or how it might make him/his team/others late, if a kid wanted to shake his hand/get a picture/get an autograph he always made sure they got to. 

 

 

[gimpeltf 677]

From the Lehigh Bio of Mike Danjczek (our HWT in72)

 

Mike Danjczek Bio: Waiting a long time to crack the lineup, Mike made the most of his move to light hwt, placing 3rd in the EIWA losing only to NCAA runner-up Dave Joyner of Penn St. Amazingly, he had six bouts vs. NCAA finalists, including two of America's greatest hwts, Greg Wojciechowski of Toledo and Chris Taylor, Iowa St. 

His post-meet interview in Ames,IA, after getting decked by Taylor was pure 'Danzo.' Asked how it felt to face the 450 pounder, Mike dead-panned: "He caught me." Waiting just long enough to allow local writers to recover from their shock, he added: "Somewhere between here and I-45." And they couldn't print the next sentence- He caught me and pinned my a&&!

Today, he's beloved for his remarkable speeches and for running the Children's Home of Easton.