Terry Funk : The Hardcore Pioneer’s Long-Lasting Legacy

WWE Hall of Famer and wrestling legend Terry Funk Died at the age of 79. WWE shared the news of his passing. In the world of professional wrestling, Terry Funk made his name as the True Hardcore Legend.
His career spanned over five decades, and he wrestled for many promotions such as WWE/WWF, WCW, NJPW, ECW, and TNA. He battled with many big names, such as Ric Flair and Mick Foley.Raven, Edge. Terry Funk vs. Ric Flair’s “I Quit Match” is still considered a classic to this day. Also, he was involved with Texas Death Match Jack Aka Mick Folly.
His last match in WWE was back in 2006 at ECW One Night Stand, where he teamed up with Tommy Dreamer and Beulah McGillicutty against Mick Foley, Edge, and Lit in a hardcore match.After that, he wrestled for several Indian promotions until 2017.

WWE pays tribute to the The Hardcore Pioneer Terry Funk on Smackdown

Early Life and Career of Terry Funk

Terry Funk Born on June 30, 1944, in Hammond, Indiana, Terry Funk was destined to be a part of the wrestling world. Terry’s father, Dory Funk Sr., is a wrestling promoter. Following in his father’s footsteps, Terry Funk began his wrestling journey in the 1960s.
He formed a tag team with his brother, Dory Funk Jr. Five years later, in 1975, Funk Defeated battled with Jack Brisco as he defeated Brisco and won his first NWA World Championship in Miami. He had a 14-month Tital reign where he battled with Dusty Rhodes and Giant Baba.

He also works at the MidSouth Coliseum in Memphis, Tennessee, where he has some iconic matches with WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler.

WWE career of Hall of Famer Terry Funk

Terry Funk first joined WWE in the Rock and Wrestling Era with his brother Dory Funk Jr. They also headlined Wrestlemania 2, where he defeated tag team champions Tito Santana and Junkyard Dog.
He also battled with Hulk Hogan a few times in 1986. Terry Funk left the company in 1986. A decade later, Funk returned to WWE in a Royal Rumble match in 1997.
Later that year on Raw, he played a masked “Chainsaw Charlie” character teaming with Mick Foley. He was also involved with Hell in a Cell Match: The Undertaker vs. Mankind, aka Mick Foley.
After that, Funk returned to the WWE a few years later and confronted Mick Foley. At ECW One Night Stand, he teamed up with Tommy Dreamer against Mick Foley and Edge for a hardcore match. Foley injured Funk’s left eye with barbed wire, and Funk was taken backstage. He later returned to the match (with a bloody cloth tied over his eye) to hit Foley with a flaming 2×4 wrapped in barbed wire.

In 2009, Terry Funk and Dory Funk Jr. were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame by his long-time friend Dusty Rhodes, and in 2013, Mick Folly was inducted into the Hall of Fame by Terry Funk.

WCW career of  Terry Funk

Terry Funk I left WWE in April 1986 after leaving WWE. Funk I joined WCW in 1989. After joining WCW, he challenged Ric Flair for an NWA World Heavyweight Championship at the Great American Bash. He battled with Flair, and Ric Flair won the match by reversing a small package into one of his own, but shortly after, he was attacked by Gary Hart and The Great Muta. Sting came to aid Flair, and the two brawled with Funk and Muta to close the show.

Then two of them have an iconic “I Quit Match” at Clash of the Champions where Terry Funk lost the match when he said “I Quit” after Flair put his legendary Figure Four Leg lock.

The Match considers an all-time classic 5-star rating from Wrestling Observer Radio’s Dave Meltzer and the wrestling world. In 1994, Terry Funk wrestled Tully Blanchard to a double disqualification at Alamboree.
In 1994, Funk joined the International Wrestling Association of Japan promotion, where he battled in IWA’s most famous event, the King of the Death Match Tournament. In the final match, Terry Funk wrestled Cactus Jack, aka Mick Foley.
in a Ropes Barbed Wire Exploding Barbed Wire Boards and Exploding Ring Time Bomb Death Match (Texas Death Match).

ECW Career Hardcore Pioneer Terry Funk

In the late 90s, Funk Funk transitioned from traditional matches to hardcore wrestling, for which he became famous. He wrestled several hard-core matches.
at ECW’s first pay-per-view, Barely Legal, in April 1997, where he defeated Raven and won the ECW World Heavyweight Championship. He defended his championships and successfully retained the title multiple times. In August 1997, he lost his championship.to Sabu in a barbed wire match at Born to Be Wired pay-per-view.

In September 1997, Terry Funk’s “WrestleFest” was both his show and a celebration of the careers of Terry, his father, and his brother. CW owner Paul Heyman presented Terry with the ECW Championship that declared him the lifetime ECW World Heavyweight Champion.

Independent Circuit Career of Terry Funk

Later in 2000, Terry Funk wrestled regular matches for Ring of Honor. Wrestling Funk had many matches with the likes
of CM Punk, he did special matches such as a No Ropes Barbed Wire match and a Death Match. On September 11, 2010, Funk served as an enforcer at the ringside of Tyler Black and Roderick Strong’s ROH World Championship bout at Ring of Honor’s Glory By Honor IX event.

Additionally, he competed in a Legends Battle Royale at WrestleReunion in January 2011 until Roddy Piper eliminated him. On October 1, 2011, Funk engaged in a “no holds barred contest” with Jerry Lawler for Northeast Wrestling. At AWE’s “Night of Legends” event on October 15, 2011, he squared off against his friend and protege Tommy Dreamer.

Funk stated in a subsequent interview that he believed this might be his final match. At the age of 68, he declared his retirement from professional wrestling on January 12, 2013. However, he returned to All Japan Pro Wrestling on October 27, 2013, for a tag team match alongside Dory Funk. He continued to make sporadic appearances, teaming with Tommy Dreamer in matches like House of Hardcore 3 in November 2013.

At events like a Tokyo Gurentai independent event in December 2014 and an attendance at AIW’s event in October 2015, Funk’s presence persisted. On October 24, 2015, at USA Championship Wrestling, he competed against Jerry Lawler, who prevailed through disqualification.

On September 17, 2016, Funk declared his retirement once more at House of Hardcore 17. On September 22, 2017, for Big Time Wrestling. Again, he made a comeback by joining The Rock N’ Roll Express in a six-man tag match against Doug Gilbert, Jerry “The King” Lawler, and Brian Christopher.

WWE Hall of Famer and wrestling legend Terry Funk, known as the True Hardcore Legend, has passed away at the age of 79. Over a career spanning five decades, he left an indelible mark on the world of professional wrestling.