Peter Sauer
Peter Sauer | |
---|---|
Born | (1900-02-02)February 2, 1900 Norka, Volga Region, Russia |
Died | September 11, 1949(1949-09-11) (aged 49)[1] Valley County, Idaho, U.S. |
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | Masked Marvel Peter Sauer Pete Sauer Ray Steele |
Billed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
Billed weight | 210 lb (95 kg) |
Peter Sauer (February 2, 1900 – September 11, 1949), was an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Ray Steele. He was born and raised in Norka, a German colony in Russia, in 1900 before immigrating to Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1906. A highly skilled and dangerous catch wrestler, Steele was known for his extensive knowledge of submission holds.[2]
After a successful amateur wrestling career, Steele then started wrestling in the carnivals, where he honed his catch wrestling skills. Upon turning pro, he relocated to California and became a regular workout partner of fellow catch wrestler Ad Santel. On 16 May 1934, he wrestled Orville Brown to a 30-minute draw.[3] He gained some notoriety in 1936 when he faced heavyweight boxing contender Kingfish Levinsky in what is considered an early mixed martial arts (MMA) contest, which Steele won in 35 seconds. Steele's biggest accomplishment in the sport was winning the National Wrestling Association's World Heavyweight Championship from Bronko Nagurski in St. Louis, Missouri, on March 7, 1940. Steele would hold the belt for over a year before losing it back to Bronko Nagurski on March 11, 1941, in Houston, Texas.
Sauer served as a mentor and coach to many young stars, including Lou Thesz before his death of a heart attack[4] in September 1949. Thesz considered Sauer to be one of the finest wrestlers he ever knew.
Championships and accomplishments
- George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
- Class of 2002
- National Wrestling Association
- World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- Midwest Wrestling Association (Ohio)
- MWA World Heavyweight Championship (Ohio version) (1 time)
- Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
- Pioneer Era (Class of 2008)
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter
See also
References
- ^ "Wrestling Game Mourns Ray Steele". Classic Wrestling Articles. Retrieved 16 August 2015.
- ^ "Ray Steele". National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
- ^ LoW Orville Brown Wrestling History: "A second thirty-minute draw was the final result of a match against Ray Steele in St. Louis on May 16th."
- ^ Wray, J. G. "Wrestling Mourns Ray Steele" St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Sept. 13, 1949)
External links
- Profile at WrestlingMuseum.org
- Profile at VolgaGermans.net
- Peter Sauer's profile at Cagematch.net , Wrestlingdata.com
- v
- t
- e
- Danny Hodge
- Hiro Matsuda
- Lorenzo Parente
- Joe McCarthy
- Sputnik Monroe
- Roger Kirby
- Ramón Torres
- Dr. X
- Ken Mantell
- Wrestling Pro
- Pat Barrett
- Ron Starr
- Nelson Royal
- Chavo Guerrero
- Al Madril
- Steve Keirn
- Les Thornton
- Jerry Stubbs
- Terry Taylor
- Gerald Brisco
- Joe Lightfoot
- Tiger Mask
- The Cobra
- Hector Guerrero
- Mike Davis
- Denny Brown
- Hiro Saito
- Gary Royal
- Steve Regal
- Scott Armstrong
- Les Anderson
- Rock The Hunter
- Masayoshi Motegi
- The Great Sasuke
- Último Dragón
- Jushin Liger
- El Samurai
- Shinjiro Otani
- Logan Caine
- Vince Kaplack
- Tony Kozina
- Rockford 2000
- Rocky Reynolds
- Mike Thunder
- Jason Rumble
- Jimmy Rave
- Star
- Brother Love
- Chris Draven
- Jerrelle Clark
- Black Tiger
- Tiger Mask
- Mike Quackenbush
- Craig Classic
- Kevin Douglas
- Chase Owens
- Jason Kincaid
- Ricky Morton
- Steve Anthony
- John Saxon
- Arrick Andrews
- Mr. USA
- Barrett Brown
- Homicide
- Kerry Morton
- Colby Corino
- Joe Alonzo
- Alex Taylor (current)
This biographical article relating to professional wrestling in the United States is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- v
- t
- e