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Wrestling tournaments of the twentieth century were peppered with unlikely sounding names from all corners of the globe. Some were from no further afield than Blackpool or Bognor. Majid Ackra was the genuine article. A stocky, powerful Pakistani heavyweight, he would stride majestically into the ring wearing his turban and white robe.
Born in 1937 in Lahore he came to Britain in his mid teens and wrestled in the UK during 1960’s and early 1970s. Trained by his father, a famous wrestler in his own right, the old campaigner Jack Atherton was also influential in Majid Ackra’s preparation for the professional arena. Majid joined the paid ranks towards the end of the 1950s. Following a debut against Vic Hessle he went on to compete against wrestlers ranging in style and weight from middleweight champion Clayton Thompson to heavyweight bruiser Johnny Yearsley. Based in Manchester he travelled extensively throughout the country and worked for all the Joint Promotion members.
In 1961 he wrestled in front of the tv cameras for the first time, facing Frank O’Donnell in Hanley, though we are unsure if the match was broadcast. Majid did appear on television around a dozen times with opponents that included Bill Howes, Doug Joyce and Danny Lynch.
Majid Ackra left the UK in 1967 for a three year tour of India and Pakistan, where it was reported he defeated the great Dara Singh, though the former Indian champion must have been past his peak by this time. On his return to Britain in the 1970s Majid was a more rugged, aggressive style of wrestler than the one we had seen a decade earlier. We last saw him in 1979, working for independent promoters in Lichfield.
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