Harley Race

In the AWA in 1963, Race and Larry Hennig branded themselves as "Handsome" Harley Race and "Pretty Boy" Larry Hennig, portraying a cocky heel tag team with a penchant for breaking the rules to win matches. They quickly became top contenders, and in January 1965, they defeated Dick the Bruiser and the Crusher to win the AWA World Tag Team Championship. Race and Hennig were designated to feud with the Bruiser and Crusher and other top teams for the next several years, and were given three title reigns. Verne Gagne, in particular, was promoted as a hated rival of the team, partnering with several other wrestlers in matches, against Race and Hennig during their AWA run. In October 1967, Gagne was credited with "breaking" one of Hennig's legs, thus giving him some much needed time off from the ring. Race (as the storyline went) was allowed to choose a new partner and retain the AWA World Tag Team Championship. Race's choice was Chris Markoff, but the duo was defeated in their first title defense match against the team of Pat O'Connor and Wilbur Snyder in November 1967. For the next several months, Race teamed with Hard Boiled Haggerty, who over the years presented Gagne with some of his greatest matches. Together, Race and Haggerty often were cast against Gagne and "Cowboy" Bill Watts. In March 1968, after Hennig's return to the ring, he and Race were back together, though the two never won the AWA World Tag Team Championship. Despite his tag team success, Race left the AWA after several years at the top of the division to pursue a singles career in World Championship Wrestling (WCW).

In 1973, Race took the nickname "Mad Dog" and faced WCW World Heavyweight Champion Dory Funk, Jr. in Kansas City. Race emerged from the battle as the new world champion in what was perceived by fans as a stunning upset. Behind the scenes, Funk had pulled out of losing the title to Jack Brisco, citing injuries in a truck accident.

Though Race held the title for only a few months, losing it to Brisco in Houston, Texas, in July, he became a worldwide superstar and perennial championship contender.

Race was determined to eventually regain the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. Race finally got his wish in 1977, facing Terry Funk, who had become the champion since their previous encounters, in Toronto. Race won the title by submission with the Indian death lock, a rarely-used submission move but one that put great pressure on Funk's injured leg. The WCW World Heavyweight Champion once again, Race this time established his dominance, defending the title up to six times a week and holding it for almost five years (excluding extremely short reigns by Tommy Rich, Dusty Rhodes, and Giant Baba). Race feuded with many of the legends of the WCW including Dory Funk, Dusty Rhodes, Dick the Bruiser, Pat Patterson and Angelo Poffo. WCW, AWA and WWF were on good terms at this time, and Race engaged in title versus title matches with WWF Heavyweight Champions Superstar Billy Graham and Bob Backlund, as well as AWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Bockwinkel.

Race, after many victories over Dusty Rhodes and other great wrestlers, lost the title to Rhodes in 1981. Rhodes lost the title to up-and-coming star Ric Flair, though Race was able to defeat Flair in St. Louis in 1983 for his seventh reign as champion, breaking the record previously held by Lou Thesz. What followed was one of the classic angles of the 1980's, which led to the first Starrcade event. Determined not to lose the title again, Race offered a $25,000 bounty to anyone who could eliminate Flair from WCW. Bob Orton, Jr. and Dick Slater attacked Flair, inflicting what appeared to be a career-ending neck injury, and collecting the bounty from Race after Flair announced his retirement. Flair's retirement was a ruse, however, and he eventually returned to action, much to Race's surprise. WCW officials set up a championship rematch, to be titled "Starrcade: A Flare for the Gold". The match was to be held in Flair's hometown of Greensboro, North Carolina, which enraged Race. Race lost the title to Flair in the bloody and memorable Starrcade steel cage match (with Gene Kiniski as the special referee.) Flair jumped on top of Race from the top rope and pinned him to become champion.

Race regained the WCW World Heavyweight Championship for a two-day reign in New Zealand in 1984, after many years, it is now a recognized title change, but his loss to Flair at Starrcade was largely seen as the torch-passing from Race to Flair. Later, Race left WCW.

Race returned to the AWA in 1984 to wrestle Curt Hennig. The confrontation was fueled by Larry Hennig confronting his former tag team partner at the end of the match. Race also wrestled former AWA World Heavyweight Champion Rick Martel as part of WrestleRock in April 1986.

In May 1986, Race entered the WWF managed by Bobby "the Brain" Heenan, bleaching his hair blond and billing himself again as "Handsome" Harley Race. During a time when the WWF did not recognize the existence of other promotions and the accomplishments a wrestler made there, WWF officials came up with a solution to recognize his wrestling pedigree by having him win the King of the Ring tournament. After this, he referred to himself as "King" Harley Race, coming to the ring in a royal crown and cape, to the ceremonial accompaniment of the tenth movement (known as "The Great Gates of Kiev"). After winning a match, Race would make his defeated opponent "bow and kneel" before him. Usually Heenan would assist the defeated opponent to "bow and kneel" by grabbing their hair and forcing them to bow before Race.

He participated in a notable feud with the Junkyard Dog, culminating in a match at WrestleMania III at the Pontiac Silverdome, in which Race cleanly pinned JYD after a textbook belly-to-belly suplex. As per the stipulations of the match, JYD was required to bow to Race as the winner, but after he bowed and Race got up, JYD grabbed the chair he was sitting on and attacked Race before leaving with The King's cape to a standing ovation. Race would spend 1987 feuding with Hulk Hogan and Jim Duggan, who during a televised confrontation took Race's crown and robe, though Race later attacked Duggan, and then took them back. The latter of his feud with Duggan was highlighted by an extended brawl at the 1987 Slammy Awards. In early 1988, he suffered an abdominal injury in a match against Hogan in which he tried to hit Hogan, prone on a table at ringside, with a swan dive headbutt. Hogan moved out of the way and Race impacted the table inwards. The metal edge forced its way up into Race's abdomen giving him a hernia. Following this incident and during his recovery, the WWF ran an angle where they acknowledged his injury, and his manager Heenan vowed to crown a new king. Race left the WWF in early 1989, following a brief comeback from hernia surgery and an attempt to regain his crown from the new King, Haku, at the Royal Rumble.

Race made his return to WCW at The Great American Bash on July 7, 1990 when he defeated former WCW World Heavweight Champion Tommy Rich. He began making appearances on house shows and immediately would fill in for Ric Flair in several tag team matches, pairing up with Barry Windham against Lex Luger and Sting. Race would continue a program with Rich through the rest of the summer, as well as facing Brian Pillman and Wendell Cooley. In September, he received several United States Heavyweight Championship title shots against then champion Lex Luger. In October, Race renewed his rivalry with the Junkyard Dog in two matches on the WCW house show circuit and finished the year facing Michael Wallstreet. During a house show match in St. Joseph, Missouri on December 7, 1990, Race sustained a shoulder injury and would ultimately retire from active competition.

Race made his first subsequent appearance six months later as a guest referee during a house show on June 14, 1991 in St. Louis, Missouri. One year after making his initial return on The Great American Bash in 1990, Race returned at the 1991 The Great American Bash to become the adviser/manager to Luger. Excelling as a manager as he had as a wrestler, he immediately lead Luger to the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. He managed Luger throughout his title run.

In 1992, Race began to add other wrestlers to a stable that would include Big Van Vader, Super Invader and Vinnie Vegas. The stable was short-lived, and after Vader defeated Sting for the WCW World Championship on July 12, 1992 he became Race's primary charge.

Race returned to the ring a final time on a trio of Florida house shows (November 26, 1993 in Davie, Florida, November 27 in Orlando, Florida and November 28 in Jacksonville, Florida), when he substituted for an injured Vader to face Flair. His former rival would come out victorious on each occasion. These would be the last wrestling matches of his career.

After losing the title at Starrcade in December 1993, Vader quickly became Race's sole stable member again. Race continued to manage Vader in the following months in rematches against Flair, and on May 22, 1994, he was inducted into the WCW Hall of Fame during the Slamboree PPV. He continued to appear at Vader's side through the rest of the year.

Race would make one last return to WCW television in October 1999 as the ring announcer for the Bret Hart versus Chris Benoit tribute to Owen Hart match in his hometown of Kansas City.

Race returned to WWE television in 2004 shortly after being inducted into their Hall of Fame. On an episode of *Raw*, Randy Orton confronted Race and spat in his face, to go with Orton's "Legend Killer" persona. Race returned again for *Raw*'s *WWE Homecoming* episode in October 2005, marking the show's return to the USA Network. Race, along with the other legends who were in the ring, gave Rob Conway a lesson in respect.

At the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2007 ceremony on March 31, 2007, Race and Dusty Rhodes were "inducted" into the Four Horsemen by Ric Flair and Arn Anderson. On the August 8, 2008 episode of *Monday Night Raw*, Race sat in the front row and was acknowledged by commentators Michael Cole and Jerry "The King" Lawler.

On August 1, 2019, Race passed away.