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A Star Was Born
When Stratford’s Chris Adams joined the ranks of the professional matmen in 1978 it was soon apparent that the judoka apparel was no gimmick. Adams was a former national judo champion who turned to wrestling after being chosen for the 1976 Olympics judo squad but had not been selected to compete.
Introduced to wrestling by his friend, Jackie Turpin, it was watching Dynamite Kid in action that inspired Chris to graduate to the professional ranks. Peter Kaye helped prepare Chris for his professional debut (against Kaye himself) and quickly established himself as a fan’s favourite, doubtless helped by so many of his early bouts having his reliable mentor, Kaye, in the opposite corner. With added confidence he was soon matched against other established villains John England, Sid Cooper and Mark Rocco. Adams style worked best against the rule benders.
To say that he was given a “push” is something of an understatement as he was given national exposure in no fewer than seven televised contests between July and December in the year he made his professional debut. We can think of no one else who rose from the ranks of tackling trusty Peter Kaye in his tv debut and went on to oppose Mick McManus in both single and tag combat in a matter of weeks. Whilst we do not dispute Adams talent and believe he could have been a main eventer in any post war period the development of his short UK career is characteristic of much that was wrong with British wrestling in the late seventies – little formal wrestling training, tv over-exposure, an overly rapid rise through the ranks, judo matches, entanglement in the Big Daddy routine, and gimmick contests such as the one in which he threw McManus the required ten times without being thrown himself.
In 1980 Japanese visitor to the UK, Yasu Fuji, encouraged Chris to try his hand in the United States. In 1981 Chris Adams began wrestling in America, where he later moved. He found success in the United States, but that was the beginning of another tragic tale which led to his untimely death in a gunshot incident in October, 2001.
Expanding Horizons by Graeme Cameron
He made his American debut in January 1981, just as Vince McMahon Jr was beginning to expand the WWF promotion into a national one. Many of the regional promotions were in decline. Adams worked for 17 months for the Los Angeles promotion. This had once been one of the biggest promotions in America but was now in its dying days. Adams won several titles, including being NWA American Heavyweight and tag team champion twice each, the second time teaming with Ringo Rigby. That promotion closed and Adams moved on to the Pacific Northwest promotion in Oregon in May, 1982 for 11 months, also a promotion with its best days behind it which was now struggling. He made a contribution there without being a featured performer. He also spent a short time in Mexico where he briefly held the Mexican-based WWF Light Heavyweight title
Adams again moved on to the Dallas-based World Class Championship Wrestling in 1983 The promoter was Jack Adkisson, better known as Fritz Von Erich. The promotion had existed in Eastern Texas under various names and promoters since the Fifties. This is where Adams really found his niche. Gary Hart was the creative force behind Adams’ success in Texas. It was Hart who brought in Adams to the WCCW promotion and it was Hart who paired him with Gino Hernandez. It was Hart’s skill as matchmaker and advisor that was behind Adams’ (and other wrestlers) success in this promotion He made a significant contribution as both a singles and tag team wrestler without often featuring in the main event. He won every title in this promotion, some multliple times.
He remained in this promotion until its closure in 1994, except for a stint in 1987 with the Louisiana/Oklahoma based UWF where he held the tag team title with Terry Taylor but WCCW was where he really made his mark. He will be best remembered for his 1984 matches with “Gorgeous” Jimmy Garvin. The two went to war nearly 80 times. Adams defeated Garvin for the WCCW American title and two would trade the titles twice more, holding it three times each Adams won it a fourth time a couple of years later, defeating Kerry Von Erich. Of interest to UK readers would be his victory over the now “Lord” Al Hayes in a Judo Match
Adams will also be remembered in this promotion for his 1985 partnership with Gino Hernandez as “The Dynamic Duo”. Hernandez was a charismatic and skilled performer who many thought would go on to great things. With Adams providing the skill and Hernandez the charisma, the two became a formidable villain tag team. They held the American tag team title twice, having numerous battles with various combinations of the Von Erich brother and also The Fantastics (Tommy Rogers and Bobby Fulton). Adams went to major promotion World Championship Wrestling where was mainly used as preliminary wrestler. During his career, he made four trips to Japan for their tournament season.
Chris Adams: Born 10th February, 1955; died 7th October, 2001
Page added: 13/08/2023
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