Rocco Rock
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| Theodore James "Ted" Petty | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Ring name(s) | The Cheetah Kid Colonel DeKlerk Rocco Rock Flyboy Rocco The Rock The Executioner |
| Billed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Billed weight | 251 lb (114 kg/17.9 st) |
| Born | September 1, 1953[1] Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, United States[1] |
| Died | September 21, 2002 (aged 49)[2] Philadelphia, PA |
| Resides | Middlesex, New Jersey |
| Billed from | Compton, California |
| Trained by | Afa Anoa'i[1] |
| Debut | 1979 |
Theodore James Petty (September 1, 1953 – September 21, 2002) was an American professional wrestler better known as "Flyboy" Rocco Rock, one half of The Public Enemy.[2]
Contents |
[edit] Career
Ted Petty started wrestling in 1978 as The Cheetah Kid after graduating from Rutgers University with a degree in nutrition and a brief boxing career.[2]
Petty wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance in 1990, appearing at Starrcade as Colonel DeKlerk. Along with Sergeant Krueger, he represented Africa in a tag team match, but the team lost to The Steiner Brothers.[3]
In 1993, he used the name Rocco Rock and formed a tag team named The Public Enemy with Johnny Grunge, with a gimmick of inner city criminals, or "hoodies". The team first wrestled in the Universal Wrestling Federation and Extreme Championship Wrestling.[2][1] In ECW, the team feuded with Terry Funk and The Gangstas and won the ECW Tag Team Championship four times.[4] Petty's success in 1995 earned him his highest placement in the annual PWI 500, in which he was ranked #90.[5]
In 1996, The Public Enemy signed with World Championship Wrestling, where they won the tag team titles and feuded with The Nasty Boys.[2] They continued to use some of the "extreme" tactics that had made them famous in ECW, including the frequent use of tables in match.[1]
They were briefly in the World Wrestling Federation in 1999 and competed in the short-lived Xtreme Wrestling Federation as the "South Philly Posse" with Jasmin St. Claire as their manager.[2]
Petty was competing as a singles wrestler in the independents when he died of a heart attack on September 21, 2002.[2]
Every year the IWA-Mid South professional wrestling promotion memorializes him by holding the Ted Petty Invitational tournament. Previous winners include AJ Styles, Matt Sydal, Low Ki, Danny Daniels and Mike Quackenbush.
[edit] In wrestling
[edit] Finishing and signature moves
- Drive By (assisted somerault senton, with Rocco Rock being thrown by Johnny Grunge)
[edit] Managers
[edit] Championships and accomplishments
- Main Event Championship Wrestling
-
- MECW Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Johnny Grunge
-
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Johnny Grunge
-
- NWA United States Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Johnny Grunge
- Superstars Of Wrestling
-
- SOW Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Johnny Grunge
- Turnbuckle Championship Wrestling
-
- TCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Johnny Grunge
-
- WCW World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Johnny Grunge
-
- PWI ranked him # 457 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI Years in 2003.[6]
- Other Titles
-
- NWCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Johnny Grunge
- Tri-State Brass Knuckles Championship (1 time)
- WCCA Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- WWWC Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e Wrestler Profiles: Rocco Rock. Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved on 2007-11-30.
- ^ a b c d e f g Power Slam Staff. "Power Slam", What's going down..., SW Publishing, October 2002, p. 6. 55. Retrieved on 2007-07-14. (English)
- ^ Starrcade 1990. Pro Wrestling History. Retrieved on 2007-11-30.
- ^ History of the ECW Tag Team Championship. WWE. Retrieved on 2007-11-30.
- ^ Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 500 - 1995. Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved on 2007-11-30.
- ^ Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Top 500 Wrestlers of the PWI Years. Wrestling Informaton Archive. Retrieved on 2007-11-30.
