Bob Backlund was the last of the great old school wrestling champions. A man out of time, Backlund inherited a WWWF where his biggest fan and supporter was promoter Vince McMahon, Sr. Senior felt that the young, athletic and good looking Backlunds brand of clean cut, morally uncomplicated mat wrestling would wow the fans in the same way that Superstar Billy Grahams muscles, charisma and badass attitude had. Put simply, he was wrong. Backlund did do a credible job of holding the WWF title (they renamed it during his run), serving as World Wrestling Federation Champion for an impressive five-year stretch. However, Bob never reached the heights of popularity that the mighty Bruno Sammartino had and, once Vinces son had bought the company, Superstar Graham copycat Hulk Hogan inherited the belt and wrestling was changed forever. Because of this, Bob Backlunds place in wrestling history is often callously overlooked by fans and historians alike. A genuinely great wrestler, a successful, long-term drawing card and a supreme athlete, Backlund was a totally credible champion. In fact, if wrestling was decided by mat skills, Backlund quite possibly would have ruled the WWF roost for a damn sight longer than the 5 years he did. Backlunds polished ring presence and crisp, precise moveset told of an accomplished amateur background, whilst his ring psychology revealed a man who knew how to win a fight with just about anyone. In any previous era, Bob Backlund could have served as a wrestling Champion with distinction. He was, after all, a man cut from the same cloth as stars of the past like Verne Gagne, Jack Briscoe and Lou Thesz. He just happened to be born twenty years too late.
I am a professional author and lifelong comic books/pro wrestling fan. I also work as a journalist as well as writing comic books (I also draw), screenplays, stage plays, songs and prose fiction.
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Oh yeah - I'm about to become a Dad for the first time, so if my stuff seems more sentimental than usual - blame it on that!
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Latcho Drom,
- CQ
