| Craig Pittman | |
|---|---|
| Ring name(s) | Sgt. Craig Pittman[1] |
| Billed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)[1] |
| Billed weight | 250 lb (110 kg)[1] |
| Born | March 7, 1959 [1] |
| Trained by | WCW Power Plant[1] The Assassin[1] Terry Taylor[1] |
| Debut | 1994 (WCW)[1] |
Craig Pittman (born March 7, 1959) is a retired United States Marine and professional wrestler.[1] He served in the Marine Corps until the early 1990s. He then wrestled professionally as Sgt. Craig "Pitbull" Pittman in World Championship Wrestling. After leaving WCW in 1997, he continues to wrestle in independent promotions where has remained since 2004.
Prior to his professional career Pittman was a successful amateur wrestler. Also, in 1995 he fought in two mixed martial arts bouts.
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Pittman joined the United States Marine Corps and achieved the rank of sergeant.[1] He was a wrestler in the Marines and won several championships. His biggest victories came in the 1989 and 1991 USA Senior Greco-Roman Championships, in which he won the heavyweight division.[1][2][3] He also placed seventh in the heavyweight division at the 1989 FILA Greco-Roman World Championships.[4]
After leaving the military, Pittman trained as a professional wrestler at the WCW Power Plant under Terry Taylor and The Assassin.[1] Pittman made his wrestling debut as Sgt. Craig Pittman, a heel character, on February 5, 1994.[5] During his run he made famous the saying, "The beatings will continue until morale improves". He won his first match by pinning Brian Anderson just before the time limit expired.[6] In his first pay-per-view appearance, at Slamboree 1995, Craig Pittman defeated Mark Starr by Submission. His second pay-per-view appearance, at the 1995 Great American Bash, resulted in a loss to "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan by disqualification.[1][7]
Pittman feuded with Cobra in 1995.[1] According to the storyline, he had been Cobra's commanding officer during the Gulf War. During a mission, he left Cobra behind, which led to Cobra seeking revenge in WCW.[8] This feud led to a match at 1995's Fall Brawl, in which Pittman defeated Cobra by submission.[1][9] Eventually, Pittman turned face when he hired Teddy Long to be his manager.[1] In November 1995, Pittman also appeared at WCW's first World War 3 pay-per-view. In a sixty-man battle royal, he became the forty-second wrestler eliminated when Hugh Morrus threw him over the top rope.[1]
In 1996, Pittman wrestled mainly as a mid-carder, losing most of his matches to main event wrestlers.[1] He made two final pay-per-view appearances in 1996. The first came at Slamboree 1996 as part of a "Lethal Lottery" tournament. In a storyline in which wrestlers were supposedly assigned partners in a random drawing, Pittman teamed with Scott Steiner in a loss to Rick Steiner and The Booty Man.[10] Pittman also appeared at 1996's World War 3 as part of the sixty-man battle royal, which was won by The Giant.[11]
Pittman left WCW in the late 1990s for the National Wrestling Alliance's Mid-Atlantic area.
Pittman also had two mixed martial arts bouts. He fought in Vale Tudo Japan 1995 a mixed martial arts competition that took place in Japan on April 20, 1995. The tournament was ultimately won by Rickson Gracie. Pittman won his first fight against ninjitsu practitioner Wayne Emons by arm triangle choke. His lost his second fight against Yuki Nakai, a 150 lb shooto practitioner, by armbar. Vale Tudo Japan 1995 was well documented in the documentary Choke, a 98 minute film by filmmaker Robert Goodman which follows three of the participants (Rickson Gracie, Todd Hays and Koichiro Kimura) as they prepared for and fought in the event.
| Result | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 1-1 | Yuki Nakai | Submission (Armbar) | Vale Tudo Japan 1995 | April 20, 1995 | 2 | 7:32 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 1-0 | Wayne Emons | Submission (Arm Triangle Choke) | Vale Tudo Japan 1995 | April 20, 1995 | 1 | 2:12 | Tokyo, Japan |