6 great matches featuring pro wrestling stars who passed on in 2018
Nothing lasts forever, and the only things you can count on as inevitable are death and taxes.
Death hit the world of pro wrestling rather hard in 2018, taking many beloved wrestling stars into its unforgiving grip. Some of the deaths were tragic, others due to natural causes, but all of them left a gaping hole in the hearts of many wrestling fans.
Looking back, we can choose to give in to the despair that these legends are no longer with us. Or, alternatively, we can look back fondly upon their great wrestling matches and the legacies they left behind.
Some of the names who departed the world in 2018 have been wrestling legends who have dominated the sport and played a crucial role in making the industry what it is today.
Here in this list, we take a look at those superstars who we lost in 2018, along with a great match featuring their unique talents and personas..
#1 Nikolai Volkoff
Real Name: Josip Hrvoje Peruzović
Country of origin: Yugoslavia (Croatia)
Trained by: Stu Hart in the infamous Hart Dungeon.
Josip Hrvoje Peruzovic was born in the then-Soviet Republic of Yugoslavia. A gifted athlete from an early age, he entered the world of weightlifting and was on the national team. He emigrated to Canada in the late 1960s, where he would receive training from none other than Stu Hart.
Not many know that Josip was actually the second man to bear the Nikolai Volkoff gimmick; the first was journeyman wrestler Steve Gobb. However, there's no question as to who had the better run with the character.
Nikolai Volkoff is actually Peruzovic's second gimmick; Originally he was part of a tag team called the Mongols, and his ring name was Bepo. The Mongols had some success, winning the WWWF tag team titles on one occasion. As Volkoff, he would also reign as tag team champion in the then-WWF, teaming with Iron Sheik.
Perhaps Volkoff is best known for his dulcet tones; He often sang the Soviet national anthem before his matches, and his voice was so lyrical and strong that the fans were mesmerized into silence -- despite this being the height of the Cold War and anti-Communist propaganda in the United States.
We remember Nikolai Volkoff with this classic match against an obscure bleached blonde wrestler known as Hulk Hogan -- perhaps you've heard of him? Volkoff challenges the Hulkster for the WWF championship on Saturday Night's Main Event.
The run up to the event was once again, the much fabled USA vs USSR storyline and you can clearly tell who the fans were backing in this encounter.