| Gary Fletcher | |
|---|---|
| Ring name(s) | Man Mountain Mike |
| Billed height | 6'4" |
| Billed weight | 600+ pounds |
| Born | September 15, 1940 |
| Died | April 30, 1988 South Berwick, ME |
| Trained by | The Great Bolo |
| Debut | 1968 |
Gary Fletcher, best known by his ring name Man Mountain Mike, was an American professional wrestler who wrestled mostly on the west coast.
Contents |
Fletcher was discovered by Al Lovelock, who wrestled as The Great Bolo. Lovelock trained Fletcher as a wrestler, and Fletcher made his wrestling debut in 1968.
He wrestled as a tag team with Haystacks Calhoun, who also weighed over 600 pounds. Their combined weight was over 1200 pounds in the ring.[1]
Mike was wrestling with "Iron" Mike DiBiase on July 2, 1969 in Amarillo, Texas, when DiBiase suffered a fatal heart attack in the ring during the match. DiBiase was pronounced dead at the hospital.[2] DiBiase's death was not related to professional wrestling; he died as a result of high cholesterol.[3]
Mike later wrestled in British Columbia, where he had a series of matches against Don Leo Jonathan in 1970 and 1971.[4] Mike wrestled for Championship Wrestling from Florida in the early 1970s. He participated in many battles royal and, because of his size, was difficult for opponents to throw over the top rope and eliminate. As a result, the promotion billed him as "the acknowledged king of battles royal" and promoted many of these matches as "featuring Man Mountain Mike".[5][6] On one occasion in 1972, his participation led to a feud with Buddy Colt, as Colt caused Mike to be eliminated from a battle royal.[7]
While competing for NWA Hollywood Wrestling, Mike won the NWA Americas Tag Team Championship with tag team partner Butcher Brannigan on August 31, 1974 at the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles, California.[8] At that time, Brannigan was feuding with Porkchop Cash,[9] Cash teamed up with Victor Rivera to face the champions, who dropped the title belts to the challengers.[8]
Man Mountain Mike toured Japan as a wrestler in 1975. He had a series of matches against Antonio Inoki. Mike was unable to defeat Inoki in singles matches or in tag team competitions.[10] He later wrestled for the World Wide Wrestling Federation. He competed in both singles and tag team matches, which included teaming with Crusher Blackwell on February 20, 1976 in a loss to WWWF Tag Team Champions Louis Cerdan and Tony Parisi.[11]
After retiring from the ring, Mike opened Man Mountain Mike's Drycleaners, as well as a taxi service; he also drove a school bus. He developed blood clots due in part to diabetes and died in 1988.[12]
The ring name Man Mountain Mike was later used in the Canadian Maritimes by Mike Shaw, who also competed for the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling as Bastion Booger and Norman the Lunatic, respectively.[13]