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Paul Ellering

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Paul Ellering
Paul Ellering in 2011
Birth namePaul Ellering
Born (1953-08-22) August 22, 1953 (age 71)
Melrose, Minnesota[1]
Alma materSouth Dakota State University
Children3
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Paul Ellering[2]
Mr. Dot Com
The Body Doc
Trained byVerne Gagne
Eddie Sharkey
DebutDecember 25, 1977[3]

Paul Ellering (born August 22, 1953) is an American professional wrestling manager currently signed with WWE and formerly a weightlifter, professional wrestler and dog musher. Ellering spent most of his wrestling career managing the Road Warriors (Animal and Hawk), working with them from 1983 to 1991 and again on occasions between 1992 and 1997. In addition to being their on screen manager he actually handled the team's affairs outside the ring as well, including contract negotiations and travel arrangements. Ellering and the Road Warriors were inducted into both the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and the WWE Hall of Fame in 2011. Five years later, in June 2016, he returned to the ring at NXT TakeOver: The End as the manager of The Authors of Pain, a heel tag team making their debut.

Prior to becoming a manager he was a professional wrestler, but due to injuries retired in 1983 to become a full-time manager, only wrestling on special occasions. In the late 1990s he was involved in a storyline where he actually turned on the Road Warriors and managed Disciples of Apocalypse as they fought the Road Warriors. After retiring from full-time activity in wrestling, he raced in the Iditarod and John Beargrease sled dog races.

Early life

Before entering the wrestling business, Ellering was an accomplished weightlifter, setting a world record in the deadlift at 745 pounds (338 kg).[4]

Professional wrestling career

Early career

Ellering was trained in Minneapolis, Minnesota at a camp run by American Wrestling Association (AWA) owner and promoter Verne Gagne and wrestler/trainer Eddie Sharkey in the mid 1970s. According to Ellering's RF Video shoot interview, of the thirty-plus trainees in the camp, only himself and later AWA mid-card wrestler Steve Olsonoski (a.k.a. Steve O) made it through the camp. Ellering would later go on to wrestle in singles and tag teams for Gagne in the AWA, Bill Watts's Mid-South promotion, and for Jerry Jarrett's Memphis promotion, where he was paired with manager Jimmy Hart. His notable feuds were with Jesse Ventura as a face, and as a heel with Jerry Lawler and Jimmy Valiant, from whom he won the AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship.

Mid-South Wrestling

While wrestling for Mid-South Wrestling, Ellering severely injured his knee in a match with Robert Gibson, reinjuring it after returning to the ring, which ended his full-time wrestling career. Georgia booker Ole Anderson recognized his speaking ability, however, and gave him a job as a manager.[1]

Jim Crockett Promotions (1987–1990)

Although primarily a manager, Ellering has stepped between the ropes as a competitor, notably at the 1987 NWA Great American Bash in which he joined the Road Warriors, Nikita Koloff, and Dusty Rhodes to face The Four Horsemen and their manager James J. Dillon in the first ever WarGames match. Ellering would also face Teddy Long in a 'Hair vs. Hair' match at the World Championship Wrestling Capital Combat event in 1990, coming away with a victory.

World Wrestling Federation (1992; 1998–1999)

Ellering is best known for managing The Road Warriors, also known as the Legion of Doom, from 1981 until 1997 during their stints in the American Wrestling Association, the National Wrestling Alliance, New Japan Pro Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation in 1992.[2] Ellering was also the real-life manager for the team; he booked their matches, lined up their flights, set up hotel reservations, and kept track of their expenses.[2]

Throughout 1998 he managed the Disciples of Apocalypse, who were then feuding with the Legion of Doom; according to Ellering and Animal on the Road Warriors DVD, Ellering had a hard time working with another team against Hawk and Animal, and had difficulty ripping on his former team on the microphone. By the end of his second WWF run, though, he was back to managing the LOD, most notably on Sunday Night Heat, during a tag-team battle royal for a shot at the tag titles later in the night at WrestleMania XV, though they were unsuccessful.

Return to WWE

WWE Hall of Fame (2011)

In 2011, Ellering was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, along with the Road Warriors, by "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes.

NXT (2016–present)

Ellering made his return to WWE programming at NXT TakeOver: The End on June 8, 2016, revealing himself as the manager of a debuting Authors of Pain (Akam and Rezar), after their attack on American Alpha.[5]

Personal life

Ellering on Fourth Avenue in Anchorage during the ceremonial start of the 2006 Iditarod.

After retiring from professional wrestling, he traveled to Alaska to become a sled dog racer, participating in the Iditarod.[6] In 2000 he came in 54th place[7]

He currently owns and operates The Historic Rock Tavern in Grey Eagle, Minnesota, on Big Birch Lake. He has three children: Rebecca, Rachael and Saul. His daughter Rachael won the bronze medal at the 2014 World Powerlifting Championships.[8] She made her professional wrestling debut in December 2015.[9] Though not signed to a contract, she made her WWE debut against Alexa Bliss in WWE NXT in 2016, with the episode airing on May 11, 2016.[10]

In wrestling

Championships and accomplishments

  • International Wrestling Alliance
  • IWA Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Terry Latham

References

  1. ^ a b Meltzer, Dave. Tributes II: Remembering More of the World's Greatest Professional Wrestlers. p. 136. ISBN 1-58261-817-8.
  2. ^ a b c Oliver, Greg (October 19, 2003). "Road Warrior Hawk dead at 45". SLAM! Wrestling. Retrieved 2010-03-04.
  3. ^ Wessel, Ann (March 21, 2016). "Catching up with pro wrestler 'Precious' Paul Ellering". Associated Press. St. Cloud Times. Retrieved July 24, 2016 – via Minnesota Public Radio.
  4. ^ http://whatculture.com/wwe/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-paul-ellering?page=2, Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  5. ^ Caldwell, James. "6/8 "NXT Takeover" Results – CALDWELL'S Complete Live Report on "The End"". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  6. ^ "Blind musher to run Iditarod". Sports Illustrated. March 3, 2005. Retrieved 2010-03-04.
  7. ^ "Paul Ellering - Musher Career Summary - Race Archives - Iditarod".
  8. ^ "Ellering doesn't shy away from past". TMCNET.com. 2009-12-28. Retrieved 2010-07-06.
  9. ^ Meltzer, Dave (December 21, 2015). "December 21, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Conor McGregor wins UFC Featherweight title, Roman Reigns WWE Champion". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Campbell, California: 55. ISSN 1083-9593.
  10. ^ "Daughter of a WWE Hall Of Famer makes her debut at Thursday's NXT tapings - Wrestling News". 29 April 2016.
  11. ^ http://www.pwinsider.com/ViewArticle.php?id=103369
  12. ^ "Lawler, McMahon, Road Warriors among PWHF Class of 2011". Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum. 2010-11-26. Retrieved 2010-11-28.
  13. ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Award Winners : Manager of the Year". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2007-10-14.

Media related to Paul Ellering at Wikimedia Commons

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