Rocco Rock
| Rocco Rock | |
|---|---|
 Rocco Rock in March 2002 | |
| Born | September 1, 1953[1] Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, United States[1] |
| Died | September 21, 2002 (aged 49)[2] Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | The Cheetah Kid[1][3] Colonel DeKlerk[1] The Leopard Mask[3] Rocco Rock[1] Flyboy Rocco The Rock The Executioner |
| Billed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[3] |
| Billed weight | 250 lb (110 kg)[3] |
| Billed from | Compton, California |
| Trained by | Afa Anoa'i[1] |
| Debut | 1978[1] |
Theodore James Petty (September 1, 1953 – September 21, 2002) was an American professional wrestler better known as "Flyboy" Rocco Rock, one half of The Public Enemy.[2]
Career
Ted Petty started wrestling in 1978 as The Cheetah Kid after graduating from Rutgers University with a degree in nutrition and a brief boxing career.[2]
Petty wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance in 1990, this is a taco test appearing at Starrcade as Colonel DeKlerk. Along with Sergeant Krueger, he represented South Africa in a tag team match, but the team lost to The Steiner Brothers.[4]
In 1993, he used the name Rocco Rock and formed a tag team named The Public Enemy with Johnny Grunge, with a gimmick of inner city criminals, or "hoodies". The team first wrestled in the Universal Wrestling Federation and Extreme Championship Wrestling.[1][2] In ECW, the team feuded with Terry Funk and The Gangstas and won the ECW Tag Team Championship four times.[5] Petty's success in 1995 earned him his highest placement in the annual PWI 500, in which he was ranked #90.[6]
In 1996, The Public Enemy signed with World Championship Wrestling, where they won the tag team titles and feuded with The Nasty Boys.[2] They continued to use some of the "extreme" tactics that had made them famous in ECW, including the frequent use of tables in match.[1]
They were briefly in the World Wrestling Federation in 1999 and competed in the short-lived Xtreme Wrestling Federation as the "South Philly Posse" with Jasmin St. Claire as their manager.[2]
Petty was competing as a singles wrestler in the independents when he died of a heart attack on September 21, 2002.[2] He was 49 years old.
Every year the IWA-Mid South professional wrestling promotion memorializes him by holding the Ted Petty Invitational tournament. Previous winners include A.J. Styles, Matt Sydal, Low Ki, and Mike Quackenbush.
In wrestling
- Signature moves
- Corner sitout powerbomb
- Diving elbow drop
- Diving leg drop
- Diving splash
- Front dropkick[7]
- Hip toss
- Somersault senton, usually through a table[8]
- Spinebuster
- Swinging neckbreaker
- Moonsault, sometimes through 1 or 2 tables
Championships and accomplishments
- Cauliflower Alley Club
- Other honoree (1995)
- Eastern Championship Wrestling / Extreme Championship Wrestling
- ECW World Tag Team Championship (4 times) – with Johnny Grunge
- Hardcore Hall of Fame (2002)
- i-Generation Superstars of Wrestling
- i-Generation Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Johnny Grunge
- Main Event Championship Wrestling
- MECW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Johnny Grunge
- National Wrestling Alliance
- World
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Johnny Grunge
- National
- NWA United States Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Johnny Grunge
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- PWI ranked him #457 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003[10]
- Superstars of Wrestling
- SOW Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Johnny Grunge
- Turnbuckle Championship Wrestling
- TCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Johnny Grunge
- TWA Brass Knuckles Championship (1 time)[11]
- Universal Wrestling Alliance
- UWA Heavyweight Championship (2 times, first)[11]
- UWA Tag Team Championship (1 time, first) - with Johnny Grunge[11]
- Universal Wrestling Association
- UWA Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[11]
- World Championship Wrestling
- WCW World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Johnny Grunge
- Other titles
- NWCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Johnny Grunge
- WCCA Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- WWWC Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Wrestler Profiles: Rocco Rock". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
- ^ a b c d e f g Power Slam Staff (October 2002). "Power Slam". What's going down... SW Publishing. p. 6. 55.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ a b c d Loverro, Thom (2006). The Rise and Fall of ECW. Pocket Books. p. 28. ISBN 978-1-4165-1058-1.
- ^ "Starrcade 1990". Pro Wrestling History. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
- ^ "History of the ECW Tag Team Championship". WWE. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
- ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 500 - 1995". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
- ^ World Championship Wrestling, TNT (1998-04-13). "Rocco Rock Vs. Goldberg". WCW Monday Nitro.
- ^ World Championship Wrestling, TNT (1997-08-04). "High Voltage Vs. Public Enemy". WCW Monday Nitro.
- ^ "Public Enemy profile". OWOW. Retrieved 2009-08-14.
- ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Top 500 Wrestlers of the PWI Years". Wrestling Information Archive. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
- ^ a b c d Royal Duncan & Gary Will (4th Edition 2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
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