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Pez Whatley
Birth name Pezavan Whatley
Born (1951-01-10)January 10, 1951
Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States
Died January 18, 2005(2005-01-18) (aged 54)
Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States
Cause of death Heart attack
Alma mater University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s) Pez Whatley
Shaska Whatley
Shaska
Willie B. Hert
Pistol Pez Whatley
Billed height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Billed weight 245 lb (111 kg)
Billed from Chattanooga, Tennessee
Trained by Saul Weingeroff
Debut 1973
Retired 1998

Pezavan Whatley (born January 10, 1951 – died January 18, 2005) was an American professional wrestler. He was very well-known for his time wrestling in a league called NWA Mid-America.

Pez Whatley's Wrestling Journey

Early Life and Sports

Pez Whatley played football and wrestled in high school. He went to Notre Dame High School in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Later, he wrestled for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC). He was the first African-American wrestler at UTC.

Starting His Career

Whatley began his wrestling career in 1973. Before that, he was a power lifter for a short time. He wrestled for a group called Sheik's Big Time Wrestling. After that, he mainly wrestled in Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee.

Memorable Moments in Georgia

While wrestling in Georgia Championship Wrestling, Pez Whatley had some exciting moments. Once, he was challenged by a wrestler named Junkyard Dog. This happened before a match against Buzz Sawyer. Junkyard Dog slapped Whatley, which made him so angry that he pinned Buzz Sawyer twice in one TV show!

Whatley also had a rivalry with Paul Ellering's Legion Of Doom. This included matches against Jake "The Snake" Roberts. He even had a big match for the United States Heavyweight championship against Greg Valentine. Pez Whatley was one of the most popular wrestlers in Georgia.

Moving to Florida

In 1984, Whatley moved to Florida Championship Wrestling. There, he won the Southern Title two times. He was also part of a group called the "Convertible Blondes." This group included Rip Rogers and Gary Royal. It was funny because Pez Whatley didn't actually dye his hair blonde!

One of Whatley's most famous moments in ICW was the "Mop Head" story. Whatley had to wear a mop wig after losing a match to Ron Garvin. The rules said he had to keep wearing it until he won another match. This led to a long rivalry with Garvin. It also meant Whatley had a long streak of losing matches. Many times, he lost because Garvin would attack Whatley's opponent. This story lasted for several months until Whatley finally won a match.

Time with NWA

In 1985, Pez Whatley joined NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions. He often teamed up with Jimmy Valiant. They wrestled against members of Paul Jones' Army. Whatley would often spit on his opponents during matches. He eventually lost a "hair vs. hair" match to Valiant and had his head shaved bald.

In 1986, Dusty Rhodes was the NWA Champion for a short time. During a TV interview, Whatley said he wanted to be the first black NWA Champion. This made the announcers look a bit uncomfortable.

Later Career and Retirement

In late 1987, Whatley left Paul Jones' group. He started teaming with Tiger Conway Jr. as "The Jive Tones." They didn't have much success together. Whatley then left for Florida in 1988. He was part of Kevin Sullivan's group in Florida. Soon after, he moved to Alabama.

In Alabama's Southeast Championship Wrestling, Whatley wrestled as "Willie B. Hert." He became one of the top good guys, or "faces," for the company.

In the early 1990s, Pez Whatley had a short time wrestling in Japan for UWFi. He also worked for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). He was an "enhancement talent" from January 1990 to April 1991. This meant he helped make the WWF's top stars look strong. He did win a few matches at live events, especially against Buddy Rose, Paul Diamond, and The Genius.

Whatley then made occasional appearances in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) throughout the 1990s. He was also an enhancement talent there. He appeared at the 1995 and 1996 World War 3 events. He retired from wrestling in 1998. After that, he worked backstage for WCW and helped train new wrestlers at the WCW Power Plant.

Pez Whatley was honored by being added to the WWE Hall of Fame in 2021. He was included as a "legacy member."

Pez Whatley's Passing

While working for WCW in the late 1990s, Pez Whatley went to the hospital for bronchitis. Doctors found out he had heart failure. He was even pronounced dead two times while waiting for a heart transplant. In 2003, he had a heart attack. On January 15, 2005, he had another heart attack. He passed away in the hospital in Chattanooga on January 18, 2005. He had four children.

Championships and Awards

Pez Whatley achieved many things in his wrestling career:

  • All-American Wrestling
    • AAW Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
  • Championship Wrestling from Florida
    • NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Florida version) (2 times)
  • Georgia Championship Wrestling
    • Omni Thanksgiving Tag Team Tournament (1983) – with Butch Reed
  • International Championship Wrestling
    • ICW United States Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
    • ICW United States Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Rip Rogers
    • ICW United States Tag Team Championship Tournament (1980) – with Rip Rogers
  • NWA Mid-America
    • NWA Mid-America Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Ray Candy
  • Pro Wrestling Illustrated
    • PWI ranked him # 345 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.
  • Universal Wrestling Association
    • UWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
  • Western States Sports
    • NWA Western States Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Abe Jacobs
  • WWE
    • WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2021)
  • Other titles
    • NCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Sam McGraw
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