Ice Train (wrestler) facts for kids

Harold Fitzgerald Hogue (born November 13, 1967) was an American professional wrestler. He was best known by his ring names Ice Train and M. I. Smooth. He wrestled for World Championship Wrestling (WCW). Harold Hogue passed away on January 23, 2024, at the age of 56.

Professional Wrestling Career

Early Days in WCW (1993–1994)

Harold Hogue started his wrestling career in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1993. He used the name Ice Train. His first match was on July 7, 1993, where he won a special handicap match.

Ice Train then made his first appearance on a big event called pay-per-view. This was at the very first Fall Brawl show. There, he defeated a wrestler named Shanghai Pierce. He also teamed up with The Shockmaster and Charlie Norris. They won their match at Halloween Havoc. Ice Train had a great start, but his winning streak ended on January 27, 1994. He lost a match to Ron Simmons.

Time in Europe (1994–1996)

After his first time in WCW, Hogue wrestled in Europe. He joined the Catch Wrestling Association (CWA) from 1994 to 1995, and again in 1996. In 1995, he won a special tournament called the Catch Cup. He beat John Hawk in the final match.

Back to WCW: Fire and Ice (1996)

Ice Train returned to WCW in 1996. He had a tough match against Scott Norton. Both wrestlers were so strong that they knocked each other out! After the match, they shook hands. Norton said they should form a tag team because they wrestled in a similar powerful style.

Their team was called Fire and Ice. Scott Norton was "Fire," and Ice Train was "Ice." They were a very strong team. They easily beat many other teams. They wanted to become the World Tag Team Champions.

At a big event called Slamboree, Ice Train and Norton were put on the same team. They won their first match easily. But they did not win the final battle royal.

Fire and Ice then started a rivalry with The Steiner Brothers. The two teams were very strong. They had several tough matches. At Great American Bash, the Steiner Brothers won. This made them the top challengers for the tag team titles.

After this loss, problems started between Fire and Ice. Scott Norton attacked Ice Train after another match. Their team finally broke up at Hog Wild in August. Norton defeated Ice Train in a submission match. However, Ice Train got his revenge. He defeated Norton in a submission rematch at Fall Brawl in September.

Ice Train as a Single Wrestler (1996–1997)

After Fire and Ice broke up, Ice Train wrestled by himself again. He lost a few matches to Diamond Dallas Page. He also competed in a big battle royal at World War 3. He eliminated two wrestlers and made it to the final ten. But he was eliminated by Kevin Nash and Diamond Dallas Page.

Later, Ice Train had a manager named Theodore Long for a short time. Ice Train started winning matches easily on some WCW shows. He became a regular on shows like Pro.

Another Return to Europe (1997–1998)

Ice Train went back to the Catch Wrestling Association in Europe in 1997. He wrestled in the CWA Internationaler Catch Cup in 1998.

Final Run in WCW (2000–2001)

In 2000, Harold Hogue returned to WCW again. This time, he had a new name: "M. I. Smooth." He joined a group called The New Blood. This group was in a big rivalry with another group called the Millionaire's Club.

M. I. Smooth worked as the personal driver for Commissioner Ernest Miller. He often appeared in funny parts of the show with other members of The New Blood. In early 2001, Smooth started a small rivalry with Kanyon. Kanyon defeated Smooth in a match. But Smooth got his revenge a few days later. He teamed up with Ernest "The Cat" Miller. They defeated Kanyon and Road Warrior Animal.

WCW was bought by another company soon after this. Harold Hogue then retired from wrestling in 2001.

Brief Return to Wrestling (2019)

After 18 years away from wrestling, Ice Train made a special appearance. In December 2019, he wrestled one match in Germany. He faced Dave Taylor. The match ended without a clear winner.

Personal Life

Harold Hogue helped train Toney Freeman. Toney Freeman became a famous bodybuilding athlete.

Championships and Awards

• Catch Wrestling Association
  • Catch Cup (1995)
• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • Pro Wrestling Illustrated magazine ranked him #221 out of the best 500 single wrestlers in 1993. This was part of their yearly PWI 500 list.