| Tonga 'Uli'uli Fifita | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Ring name(s) | Prince Tonga King Tonga Tonga Fifita Haku King Haku Meng Super Zym |
| Billed height | 185 cm (6 ft 1 in) |
| Billed weight | 142 kg (313 lb) |
| Born | February 3, 1959 Nukuʻalofa, Tonga |
| Resides | Kissimmee, Florida |
| Trained by | Giant Baba |
| Debut | 1978 |
Tonga 'Uli'uli Fifita (born February 3, 1959 in Nuku'alofa, Tonga), is a professional wrestler and actor, for both World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Events 1112 - Ramon Berenguer III of Barcelona and Douce I of Provence marry uniting the fortunes of those two states The year 1959 ( MCMLIX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Nukualofa, population 22400 ( 1996) is the Capital, chief Port and largest city of Tonga. The Kingdom of Tonga is an Archipelago in the south Pacific Ocean comprising 169 islands 36 of them inhabited stretching over a distance of about 800 kilometres (500 miles Kissimmee (kɪˈsɪmi with the accent on the second syllable is a city in Osceola County, Florida, United States. Shohei Baba ( Baba Shōhei, January 23 1938&ndashJanuary 31 1999 was a Professional wrestler and co-founder of All Japan Pro Wrestling. Year 1978 ( MCMLXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar) Events 1112 - Ramon Berenguer III of Barcelona and Douce I of Provence marry uniting the fortunes of those two states The year 1959 ( MCMLIX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Nukualofa, population 22400 ( 1996) is the Capital, chief Port and largest city of Tonga. Professional wrestling, or pro wrestling, is a non-competitive professional Sport, where all matches are scripted by the promotion's booking staff An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works World Wrestling Entertainment Inc ( WWE) is a publicly traded privately controlled integrated media (focusing in Television, Internet, In WCW, he used the name Meng; in the WWF, he used the names King Tonga, King Haku, and Haku. He was known by his wrestling peers as the toughest backstage fighter of his era.
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Growing up in the South Pacific island of Tonga, Fifita attended Tonga College, and at the age of 14, he was part of a group of teenagers sent by the King of Tonga to Japan to study Sumo. Tāufaāhau Tupou IV King of Tonga, GCMG, GCVO, KBE, KStJ ( 4 July 1918 &ndash 10 September 2006 For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. is a competitive Contact sport where two Wrestlers ( rikishi) attempt to force one another out of a circular ring ( Dohyo) or to touch the ground After moving to Japan in 1974, he competed under the shikona (sumo name) of Fukunoshima. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. A shikona (Japanese 四股名 or 醜名 is a Sumo wrestler's stage name or more precisely Ring name. He made his debut in November 1974 and reached a highest rank of Makushita 27. Professional Sumo is divided into 6 ranked divisions. Wrestlers are promoted and demoted within and between these divisions based on the merit of their win/loss records However, in 1975 the stablemaster who recruited him died, and he and five other Tongan wrestlers got entangled in a dispute with his successor, which led to him being forced to retire by the Sumo Association in 1976. The Japan Sumo Association (日本相撲協会 or Nihon Sumō Kyōkai is the body that operates and controls professional Sumo wrestling in Japan. [1]
Under the guidance of two other former sumotori who had turned to puroresu, Genichiro Tenryu and Takashi Ishikawa, he joined their home promotion, All Japan Pro Wrestling. Professional wrestling in Japan is commonly referred to as in Japanese, short for "professional Genichiro Tenryu (天龍源一郎 Tenryū Gen'ichirō) real name Genichiro Shimada (嶋田源一郎 Shimada Gen'ichirō, born February 2 is a former professional wrestler and Sumo wrestler from Fujishima, Higashitagawa District, Yamagata Prefecture, Japan. ( AJPW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established in 1972 Early in his career, he also refereed matches in the Amarillo territory. Nevertheless, this merely served as a springboard for him to wrestle all over the world. He made a name for himself outside the ring as the toughest wrestler of his era. This developed throughout several incidents and has been validated through comments by various wrestlers and people involved in the business. Tonga 'Uli'uli Fifita (born February 3 1959 in Nuku'alofa Tonga) is a Professional wrestler and Actor, for both World
In the early 1980s, Fifita, taking the name King Tonga, wrestled in Canada for Frank Valois' International Wrestling promotion based Montreal. Montreal, or Montréal in French ( pronounced in French, in English) is the largest city in the Canadian province of Quebec The heel Tonga was managed by former wrestler Tarzan "The Boot" Tyler. Tonga feuded with the top stars of the promotion, including Dino Bravo. Adolfo Bresciano ( August 6, 1949 - March 11, 1993) was an Italian -born Canadian professional wrestler, A face turn appeared to be in the offing, as Tonga interfered in a tag match, attacking Road Warrior Animal and Paul Ellering during a bout with Jos Leduc and Jacques Rougeau, Jr. A miscommunication in another tag match with partner Butch Reed led to Reed and Tyler attacking Tonga. Joseph Aaron "Joe" Laurinaitis (born January 26 1960) is an American professional wrestler, better known by his Ring name "Precious" Paul Ellering (born August 22, 1953) is a retired Professional wrestling manager. Michel Pigeon (August 31 1944 – May 1 1999 and Pigeon trained under Stu Hart in Calgary, Alberta. Jacques Rougeau (born June 13, 1960) is a former French - Canadian professional wrestler from Saint-Sulpice Quebec, Butch Reed (born Bruce Reed on July 11 1954) is a professional wrestler best known for his stints in the World Wrestling Federation Tonga formed a team with his until-then rival Dino Bravo, and the two became successful, including a win over the Road Warriors at the Montreal Forum. The Road Warriors were a Professional wrestling Tag team famously composed of Michael "Hawk" Hegstrand and Joseph "Animal" Laurinaitis
In 1986, King Tonga, in his rookie year in the World Wrestling Federation, became a star by bodyslamming Big John Studd on WWF Championship Wrestling. World Wrestling Entertainment Inc ( WWE) is a publicly traded privately controlled integrated media (focusing in Television, Internet, John William Minton ( February 19, 1948 – March 20, 1995) was an American professional wrestler and Actor, WWF Championship Wrestling was the original TV show of the World Wrestling Federation. He made a name for himself as Haku in the WWF as half of "The Islanders" with Tama. The Islanders were a Professional wrestling Tag team. The members were Haku and Tama and they wrestled in the World Wrestling Federation Sam Fatu (born October 11 1965) is a professional wrestler best known under the name of The Tonga Kid. The team had a classic feud with the British Bulldogs that was started when the Islanders, along with manager Bobby Heenan, kidnapped the Bulldogs' mascot, a Bulldog named Matilda. For the tag-based game see British Bulldogs (game. as the British Bulldog Raymond Louis Heenan (born November 1, 1944) better known as Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, is a former American Professional The Bulldog, colloquially known as the British Bulldog or English Bulldog, is a medium-size breed of Dog that originated in England
In 1988, upon King Harley Race's departure from the WWF, Haku was given Race's crown and robe and rechristened "King Haku. Harley Leland Race (born April 11 1943) is a retired American professional wrestler and current promoter " He would later lose the "crown" to Hacksaw Jim Duggan. James Stuart Duggan (born January 14, 1954) and in WCW he was a 1 time WCW United States Heavyweight Champion and a 1 time He would later go on to form the tag team known as The Colossal Connection with André the Giant and win the WWF Tag Team Championship. This article refers to the band For the wrestling term see Tag team. The Colossal Connection were a Professional wrestling Tag team of André the Giant & Haku that competed in the World Wrestling Federation André René Roussimoff (May 19 1946 &ndash January 27 1993 best known as André the Giant, was a French professional wrestler and Actor The World Tag Team Championship is a Professional wrestling world tag team championship in World Wrestling Entertainment. Afterward, he formed a tag team with The Barbarian.
In WCW, Fifita served as Meng, initially the bodyguard for Col. Rob Parker. Robert Fuller (born Robert Welch on May 14 1951) is a Professional wrestler and manager. During this time, he faced Sting in a losing effort for the vacated United States title at The Great American Bash '95. The World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE United States Championship is a Professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment. The Great American Bash was an annual summer Professional wrestling Pay-per-view event produced by the National Wrestling Alliance 's Jim Crockett Meng later joined the Dungeon of Doom forming a tag team named the Faces of Fear with his old partner The Barbarian. The Dungeon of Doom was the name of a Professional wrestling stable in World Championship Wrestling that existed from 1995 to 1997 The Faces of Fear was the tag team of Sione Vailahi and Uliuli Fifita. Sione Havea Vailahi (born September 6, 1958) is a professional wrestler best known under the name of The Barbarian. He was touted as being a former bodyguard to the Emperor of Japan. The of Japan is the country's Monarch. He is the head of the Japanese Imperial Family. Meng's finishing maneuver was the feared Tongan Death Grip, a nerve grip on the Adam's apple applied to a standing victim who would drop into a prone position and experience the full effect of the hold. Professional wrestling holds include a number of set moves and pins used by competitors to immobilize their opponents or lead to a Submission.
Meng spent much of 1997 facing mainly lower and mid-card performers before starting a small rampage of a winning streak in the summer of 1998. Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) This lead to his main event World Championship match with Goldberg on the August 10 edition of Monday Nitro. The World Championship Wrestling (WCW World Heavyweight Championship was a Professional wrestling world championship in World Championship Wrestling William Scott Goldberg 2 time United States Heavyweight Champion In early 1998 Goldberg defeated the likes of Brad Armstrong at SuperBrawl VIII Events 612 BC - Killing of Sinsharishkun, King of Assyrian Empire WCW Monday Nitro was a weekly Professional wrestling program produced by World Championship Wrestling. Goldberg, too, had culminated an impressive winning streak and retained his World title that night. In the spring of 1999, when Ric Flair was the (kayfabe) president on WCW programming, the barbaric Meng would often annihilate Flair's enemies per his instructions. Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) Richard Morgan Fliehr According to WWE and PWI Flair is an eight-time National Wrestling Alliance (NWA Champion, six-time WCW Champion In Professional wrestling, kayfabe (ˈkeɪfeɪb KAY-fayb) refers to the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" that is the portrayal of professional Later on, Meng had a short-lived feud with Sting and occasionally faced uppercard stars like Lex Luger and WCW Champion Bret Hart. Lawrence Wendell Pfohl (born June 2, 1958) 5 time United States Heavyweight Champion, He held the title until NWA's first Pay-per-view Bret Sergeant Hart (born July 2 1957 is a retired Canadian professional wrestler and Actor. He also participated in matches for the newly introduced WCW Hardcore Championship toward the end of 1999. The World Championship Wrestling (WCW Hardcore Championship was a title in World Championship Wrestling. Meng finally won the title at the Sin pay-per-view on January 14, 2001. Sin was a Professional wrestling Pay-per-view (PPV event produced by World Championship Wrestling (WCW that replaced WCW's January PPV event Events 1129 - Formal approval of the Order of the Templar at the Council of Troyes. Year 2001 ( MMI) was a Common year starting on Monday according to the Gregorian calendar. It was then vacated when he appeared in the WWF shortly before the sale of WCW, making him the last man to hold the belt.
Fifita re-debuted as Haku as a surprise entrant in the 2001 Royal Rumble. Royal Rumble (2001 was the fourteenth annual Royal Rumble Professional wrestling Pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation At the time he jumped ship to the WWF, he was the reigning WCW Hardcore Champion, but this was never mentioned by WWF, nor was the Hardcore title referred to again on WCW programming. After the Rumble, he formed a tag-team with Rikishi, but the team did not last long due to Rikishi's injury. Solofa Fatu Jr (born October 11 1965) is a Samoan- American professional wrestler, best known under the ring name Rikishi. Haku was left to wrestle on the lower card shows like Sunday Night Heat. WWE Heat (formerly known as WWE Sunday Night Heat and capitalized as WWE HEAT) was a Professional wrestling show for He was eventually released from WWF. He still wrestles on occasion in the independent scene. In Professional wrestling, the independent circuit or indy circuit refers to the many independent promotions which are much smaller than major televised
Fifita made a name for himself outside the ring as the toughest wrestler of his era and is known for allegedly biting off noses, and knocking people out with one punch, slap, or headbutt. Even renowned hardman Bad News Brown said in interviews that Fifita was without a doubt the most vigorous. Allen James Coage ( October 22 1943 &ndash March 6 2007) also known as Bad News Brown and Bad News Allen, was an [2] Bill Goldberg has also called him the toughest man he's been in the ring with. His one time manager, Bobby "The Brain" Heenan said in a shoot interview that Haku was "the toughest man I've ever met in my life. Raymond Louis Heenan (born November 1, 1944) better known as Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, is a former American Professional " In 1987, Haku had a backstage fight with Jesse Barr (who wrestled at the WWF as Jimmy Jack Funk) which allegedly resulted in Fifita gouging one of Barr's eyeballs out, causing Barr to later wear a glass eye. The ComBat was an Aluminium Cricket bat and the subject of an incident that occurred at the WACA cricket ground in Perth in December 1979. Ferrin Barr Jr, better known as Jesse Barr, is an American former professional wrestler best known for his performances in the 1980s under his own An ocular prosthesis or Artificial eye (a type of Craniofacial prosthesis) replaces an absent natural Eye following an Enucleation, evisceration After this fight, Fifita had a reputation that steered wrestlers away from backstage confrontations.
In the book Arn Anderson: 4 Ever, Anderson cites an event where Fifita pushed a cowboy through two sets of doors with one hand - and a conversation with The Barbarian about who was tougher. Martin Anthony Lunde (born September 20 1958) better known by his Ring name Arn Anderson, is a former American professional wrestler The Barbarian just shook his head when Anderson asked who would win in a fight between him and Fifita and stated "Meng's the man. "
He also had an altercation with Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake after Beefcake complained to WWF management that Tonga slapped him too hard during a match. Edward Harrison Leslie (born April 21 1957) is an American professional wrestler, best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation After WWF management informed Tonga, he immediately went to the locker room and grabbed Beefcake out of the shower, and began choking him, lifting him two feet off the floor. Other wrestlers were hesitant to break it up, so finally Hulk Hogan (who Tonga had respect for) was called in and was able to calm Tonga down. Terrance "Terry" Gene Bollea (born August 11 1953 better known by his Ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Actor, and retired professional
In an interview with Alex Marvez, Fifita was asked about one of his legendary fights. Fifita stated his favorite was one that "cost him a lot of money. " He was at the Baltimore Airport Hilton bar with Sivi Afi when five men started laughing at them and said, "You guys are the fake wrestlers on TV. " In response Fifita replied, "I’ll just show you how fake it is," and reached over and grabbed one man while three others jumped on him. As they repeatedly punched him, Fifita bit the nose of the man he initially grabbed and spat it out. They saw him spit out their friend's nose, and before he could fight them, they quickly evaded. Months later, he saw on the news that he was being sued $2. 5 million for the incident. [1]
Fifita is married to Dorothy Koloamatangi. They have a daughter, Vika; a son, Tevita; and two adopted sons, Pate and Taula. His son Tevita played football as a defensive end for the University of Texas at El Paso. American football, known in the United States and Canada simply as football, is a competitive Team sport known for mixing strategy with Defensive end ( DE) is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football. The University of Texas at El Paso, popularly known as UTEP, is a public, coeducational University, and it is a member of the University His parents are Kelepi Fifita (father) and Atiola Vikilani Fifita (mother). Among Fifita's first-cousins is Australian Wallabies rugby player Tatafu Polota-Nau. The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in Rugby union. Tatafu Polota-Nau (born 26 July 1985 is an Australian rugby union player
He appeared in the 1978 Sylvester Stallone movie Paradise Alley. Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone (born July 6 1946 is an American Actor, director, producer and Screenwriter. Paradise Alley is a 1978 movie about three brothers (known as the Carboni Boys) in Hell's Kitchen, New York City in the 1940s who become involved in
He also appeared in a Little Caesars commercial alongside Goldberg. Little Caesars is a Pizza restaurant chain in the United States. William Scott Goldberg 2 time United States Heavyweight Champion In early 1998 Goldberg defeated the likes of Brad Armstrong at SuperBrawl VIII
He was the best man at The Rock's wedding.
He appeared on the VH1 series Hogan Knows Best, and can be seen throwing Brooke Hogan into the family swimming pool. VH1 (known as VH-1 Video Hits One from 1985 to 1994 and VH1 Music First until 2003) is an American Cable television Hogan Knows Best was an American Television show centered around the family life of Professional wrestling legend Hulk Hogan Brooke Ellen Bollea (born May 5 1988 better known by her Stage name Brooke Hogan, is an American pop Singer and Television personality A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is an artificially enclosed Body of water intended for Swimming or