Where is ivan koloff

In those kayfabe pre-Internet days, to say folk were shocked would be an understatement. A few even cried. And although Ivan Koloff lost the belt a mere three weeks later to Pedro Morales in the very same arena, he would ultimately headline that hallowed venue an amazing 13 times, making him arguably, with the exception of Superstar Billy Graham , the biggest WWF heel draw of the modern era. Now while some folk point to WWE pettiness, as Ivan was reportedly part of a concussion lawsuit against the now WWE, at what point does achievement and dollars generated sway them regardless?

And he repeated that accomplishment during his territory-wide run versus Bob Backlund when on August 28, , a double main-event of Ivan Koloff vs. Backlund and Superstar Graham vs. But when you talk about Ivan, it goes far beyond just main-events and sellouts. Such is the respect that they have for him. A tremendous worker, a powerhouse, and having an all-time great gimmick all were part of the allure, but the timing was perfect as well. A fierce competitor in the ring who was able to anger and excite!

RIP to one of best villains in our business, Ivan Koloff pic. Koloff spent the later years of his life in charity work for organizations like the Children's Miracle Network, St. Koloff died one day after another inordinately vivid "heel," George "The Animal" Steele, who died Friday at age Although he turned from the ring to the pulpit, Koloff embraced his fame in retirement, using it to his advantage in preaching the Gospel.

One of his ministries, in fact, was named "Bearing Witness. The Bear Facts," it's both percent entertainment and percent real. For the next three years, he wrestled around the Toronto area, eventually quitting his regular job to wrestle in the north-western area of Canada. There, Perras acquired much wrestling experience, and from there he made his first trip to Japan. Koloff lost the championship 21 days later to Pedro Morales , essentially being used as a " transitional champion " as he was used to move the title from Sammartino to Morales without having the two fan favorite work against each other , much like Stan Stasiak and The Iron Sheik would be in later years.

After the loss, Koloff remained a contender for the title, but never reclaimed it, and left the WWWF in Koloff would also be the first opponent to ever challenge for the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship in a steel cage match in a rematch loss against Sammartino.

He fought in the WWWF from —, — and During the s and s, Koloff found success in the National Wrestling Alliance , winning many regional tag team and singles titles in the Georgia, Florida, and Mid-Atlantic territories.

The Russians which also included Krusher Kruschev were a top villainous group from to , and Nikita, under Perras' training and mentoring, and by association, became a hated villain in his own right, and would go on to have a successful singles career of his own.

Perras spent the rest of his years in Winterville, North Carolina with his wife, Renae and had four adult children. He would remain active in various charities.