6.8K shares







Here’s the story of how, almost at random, Ron Simmons became the first-ever African-American WCW World Champion on August 2nd, 1992.

Ron Simmons Makes History

After a stellar college football career that saw Ron Simmons finish ninth in the Heisman Trophy voting, the future Faarooq played football for the Cleveland Browns and then spent some time in the Canadian Football League and the short-lived USFL. He embraced pro wrestling in 1987, going on to form a tag team with Butch Reed: Doom.

Wrestling under masks in the NWA/WCW, the pair captured the world tag team titles and engaged in high-profile feuds with the Four Horsemen, Rock & Roll Express, and Steiner Brothers. The bouts with the latter still hold up today as hard-hitting, extremely athletic affairs.

Trivia: Doom is actually the first team recognized as WCW tag team champions, as the promotion was separating itself from the NWA at the time.

The pair dropped the titles to the Freebirds at WrestleWar 1991, and Ron Simmons subsequently turned babyface, launching a feud with Reed that would culminate in a cage match at the inaugural SuperBrawl. Simmons won and would go on to feud with Cactus Jack and others.

Ron Simmons benefitted greatly when Bill Watts took over WCW as its executive vice president in 1992. Watts’s Mid-South Wrestling program became one of the hottest promotions in the country behind the charisma of the Junkyard Dog, and Watts saw similarities between JYD and Simmons and decided to put the world title on the former Seminole.

Though it must be said: Ron Simmons was much more athletic than JYD.

How Ron Simmons Won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship

Around this time, Vader was running roughshod through WCW and in a program with Sting. At a house show in Baltimore, Maryland, Sting was unable to wrestle the main event against Vader for the world title, having been “injured” at the hands of Jake Roberts earlier in the evening. Watts held a raffle to determine who would face Vader that evening. Seemingly at random, Simmons won the raffle and would go on to defeat Vader for the championship that evening. The win was replayed later that week on WCW’s television program. It was the first time an African-American won a widely recognized version of the world title.

Watch Ron Simmons Win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship:

Was Ron Simmons the First-ever Black Champion in Wrestling?

While Ron Simmons was the first black wrestler to hold a championship in a prominent wrestling promotion, he wasn’t the first to do so in wrestling. Almost 30 years before Ron Simmons’ feat, both Bearcat Wright and later Bobo Brazil (twice) won the WWA (Worldwide Wrestling Associates) World title based out of Los Angeles, California.

The WWA was a promotion that had separated from the NWA (National Wrestling Alliance) but was seen as more as another regional, “outlaw” company. It had working relationships with Japanese talent, specifically the JWA (Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance) and later NJPW (New Japan Pro Wrestling) when it returned to the NWA in 1968 and renamed itself NWA Hollywood Wrestling. The title and its holders (specifically Bearcat Wright and Bobo Brazil) are sometimes mentioned as a World Title comparable to Ron Simmons’ accomplishment, but many modern-day historians disagree with this statement and comparison.

You can read more about the incredible careers of Bearcat Wright and Bobo Brazil in our article, Black Champions and Wrestling Legends.

Ron Simmons’ Run as WCW Champion

WCW’s business didn’t boom under Watts, and five months later, Ron Simmons dropped the title back to Vader. Following his main-event run, Simmons was mired in the mid-card for the rest of his time in WCW.

Life After WCW

He would appear in ECW for a couple of years, and then make his WWE debut in 1996 as Faarooq. He feuded with Ahmed Johnson over the Intercontinental title (though he never won it), and led the Nation of Domination, leading to a feud with a young up-and-comer you may have heard of: The Rock. At the 1998 Royal Rumble, the NOD imploded, with Faarooq eliminating fellow members D’Lo Brown and Mark Henry, leading to a final three of Faarooq, The Rock, and Stone Cold Steve Austin. The Rock eliminated Faarooq, and the feud that had been bubbling just below the surface took off.

From there, Simmons made appearances as the Undertaker’s acolyte, and in a tag team with JBL as the Acolytes (and later the Acolyte Protection Agency). In recent years, he’s most known for his signature “DAMN!” at varying moments on WWE TV. He’s a member of the College Football and WWE halls of fame.

Ron Simmons turned 60 years old on May 15th, 2018. And he could probably still kick your ass.

If you enjoyed this piece, be sure not to miss these recommended articles on our site:

Follow us: Twitter / Facebook / Instagram

The Pro Wrestling Stories Podcast - your favorite stories, in the form of audio!