5 great Terry Funk matches you should watch
Terry Funk is, without a doubt, one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. The legendary Texan has had a historic run inside the squared circle and faced off against some other all-time greats like Ric Flair, Atsushi Onita, Bret Hart, and more.
A former NWA and ECW World Champion, Funk is also known as one of the most hardcore wrestlers to ever be torn up by barbed wire. The man turned hardcore and deathmatches into art, and his career that spans five decades is full of legendary match-ups.
It's impossible to say what his five best matches are, as it all really depends on your opinions regarding classic wrestling and the more extreme variety. But we'll be looking at five matches from his career that you definitely need to see.
Unfortunately, news broke recently that Terry Funk was dealing with, among other health issues, dementia. Funk's official Twitter account confirmed this today.
We're starting with Terry Funk in the late 90s when he went up against a fellow WWE Hall of Famer.
#5 Terry Funk vs Bret Hart- Terry Funk's WrestleFest
In 1997, Funk put a special event together known as Terry Funk's WrestleFest: 50 Years of Funk. It was a show that had some stellar bouts on it, like Taz vs Chris Candido and Shane Douglas taking on Tommy Dreamer. However, its main event was worth the price of admission alone.
This was a retirement match for Terry Funk, and this was around the time WWF and ECW had a secret working relationship. Funk requested that his final opponent be then WWF Champion Bret Hart, and The Hitman happily obliged. The match was featured in Beyond The Mat and is available on the WWE Network.
Bret Hart started it off by turning boos from the audience into rounds of applause for his opponent, as he said it was an honor to face the greatest to ever do it. While Terry Funk had, at this point, made a huge name as a hardcore wrestler, he's also widely regarded as a fantastic in-ring worker.
Pairing him up with Bret Hart was a stroke of genius, as the two had a stellar 25-minute match. While nowhere near his prime, Terry Funk was still able to go toe-to-toe with the Hitman in an excellent main event. Funk nearly caught Bret in the spinning toe-hold, forcing the WWF Champion to rush to the floor for an escape.
Hart could only gain control when he went after the leg, taking out the knee with a series of kicks. After various knee-breaking attacks, Hart grabbed a chair and wrapped it around Terry Funk's knee, causing severe damage to the legend.
Terry Funk fought back to an eruption from the crowd. Lefts and rights floored Hart, and with each shot, the crowd only grew louder. Funk had Hart nearly beaten several times, and the end saw Funk take Hart down with a belly-to-back suplex with a bridge.
However, Hart got his shoulder up at the last second, leading to Terry Funk being pinned by his own move. Hart won the match and would shake Funk's hand to wrap things up.
While it's definitely not either man's best match, it's a must-watch for several reasons. First off, the WWF Champion was wrestling with ECW talent. Secondly, you had two legends from completely different eras in Bret Hart and Terry Funk in a nearly half an hour main event.
Of course, it was all made better by a loud Texas crowd at the Tri-State Fairgrounds Coliseum rooting for their hometown legend.