WWE Wrestling Hall of Fame – “Valiant Brothers”
Few people knew how the world of professional wrestling will look like in 2010 when they watched the sport a couple of decades ago. But it was the Valiant Brothers who gave them a slightly similar taste in the 1970’s and 1980’s. This pair of handsome wrestlers weighed around 490 pounds, combined.
The Valiant Brothers saw the height of both love and hate in the world of professional wrestling. It was the attitude and appearance of these two which made them extremely famous in the United States and across the globe. The Valiant Brothers had blonde hair along with a flamboyant attitude whenever they walked into the ring. Valiant Brothers considered themselves as the best in ring and considered all other wrestlers as inferior species. Both men entered the world of professional wrestling when many other fighters and tag teams were trying their luck but surely no one was as dominating as the Valiant Brothers.
It was Jimmy Valiant who first entered the world of professional wrestling with another Hall of Famer and future owner of American Wrestling Association (AWA), Verne Gagne. Johnny Valiant followed his brother to the wrestling world and together, these brothers joined forces to become one of the greatest wrestling tag teams of all time. This future champion tag team became famous as The Valiant Brothers. Together, the Valiant Brothers won several regional tag team championships before entering the world of World Wrestling Federation (Later WWE) in the early 70’s.
The Valiant Brothers were such a dominating force in the ring that they seemed unbeatable by many professional wrestlers and tag teams. They captured their first World Tag Team Title Championship in 1974 and held the title for more than a year. Today, it seems unbelievable to hold the tag team title for such a long period of time. Another brother “Gentleman” Jerry joined the family profession when he entered the world of professional wrestling. It was in 1979 when the Valiant Brothers again became the World Tag Team Wrestling Champions. However, the tag team of Valiant brothers consisted of Johnny Valiant and Jerry Valiant. The combination of tag team didn’t really matter because all Valiant Brothers were powerful and dominating enough to beat their rivals. It was the legendary Hall of Famer Captain Lou Albano who guided this team to win the championship gold in the tag team circuit.
Then came the time when the original team of Valiant Brothers parted their ways forever. Johnny went on to manage the legendary wrestler and fighter Hulk Hogan who became one of the greatest wrestlers of all time and had famous rivalries with Andre ‘the Giant’. Johnny guided many great tag teams to prominence. Many famous tag teams including the Dream Team of Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake), Dino Bravo and Demolition, Wayne Bloom and Mike Enos took inspiration and guidance from Johnny.
On the other hand, Jimmy decided to stay in the ring and fight for a longer period. Jimmy moved to Memphis, Tennessee, where he had a lengthy rivalry with future Hall of Famer, Jerry “The King” Lawler. Jimmy then decided to join NWA where he became one of the most dominating wrestlers. Jimmy became famous as the “Boogie Woogie Man” and fought with another great wrestler, Paul Jones. Before moving into semi-retirement in 1990’s, Jimmy became one of the most famous wrestlers in southern United States as it was said that he has no parallel.
Though Jimmy and Johnny parted ways in WWF and achieved success in their respective fields, they were always remembered as part of the great Valiant Brothers. It was in 1996 on the night before Wrestle Mania when the reigning tag team Champions of that time, Owen Hart and British Bulldog inducted the Valiant Brothers in Hall of Fame. Valiant Brothers will always be remembered for their great fighting skills, their attractive looks and their dominant attitude in the ring. Valiant Brothers surely changed the style and course of professional wrestling for generations to come.
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