MARK STARR PASSES AWAY

Former WCW wrestler Mark Starr, real name Mark Ashford-Smith has passed away, PWInsider.com has confirmed. Starr was 50 years old. We have not yet confirmed a cause of death.

Starr broke into the business in the mid-1980s with his brother, who wrestled as Chris Champion (and later Yoshi Kwan) working in Florida, the Continental scene and Memphis. In Memphis, the brothers teamed as Wildside and worked the 1988 Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup. The pair held different versions of the Memphis Tag belts.

When Mike Graham, Dusty Rhodes and Steve Keirn launched the PWF in Florida in the late 1980s, Starr worked there and held the promotion's Tag Team belts several times.

Starr toured Japan for FMW, where he held a version of the AWA Light Heavyweight championship, the version that FMW recognized after the promotion closed. Starr also made some appearances for WWF in a preliminary capacity.

Starr signed with WCW in the mid 1990s, where he was used as an undercard competitor putting over bigger stars during the Monday Night Wars era. He was one half of the Men at Work tag team with the late Chris Kanyon and worked the remainder of his career for WCW, retiring in 1998 after injuring his back.

Our deepest condolences to Starr's friends, family and fans during this sad time.

If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here!