Dory Funk Jr.

Dorrance Earnest Funk Jr. — known to the world as Dory Funk Jr., "The Long Tall Texan" — was one of professional wrestling's most complete performers: a technical master, a world champion, and, perhaps most enduringly, a teacher whose students reshaped the sport for generations. Born on February 3, 1941, in Hammond, Indiana, he grew up inside the Texas wrestling world built by his father, Dory Funk Sr., and would one day stand alongside his brother Terry as the only pair of brothers in history to each hold the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. Before lacing up his boots, Funk was a college football player at West Texas State University, helping the Buffaloes win the Sun Bowl in 1963. That same year he made his professional wrestling debut, beginning a career that would stretch across more than six extraordinary decades. On February 11, 1969, in Tampa, Florida, Funk defeated Gene Kiniski to capture the NWA World Heavyweight Championship — a title he would hold for 1,563 days, a reign second only to Lou Thesz in the history of that storied belt. He carried the championship with quiet dignity, drawing out the best in every opponent he faced, billed from "The Double Cross Ranch" in Amarillo and famous for his devastating spinning toe hold and the Texas cloverleaf submission he is credited with inventing. In 1973, Funk began what would become a lifelong love affair with Japanese wrestling, making approximately 70 trips to Japan for All Japan Pro Wrestling through 1997 and becoming a legend on both sides of the Pacific. His tag bouts with Terry — including a 1980 Tokyo Sports Match of the Year alongside Giant Baba and Jumbo Tsuruta — remain benchmarks of the era. Away from the ring, Funk poured his knowledge into the next generation. The Funking Conservatory, his wrestling school in Ocala, Florida, produced WWE Hall of Famers and champions including Kurt Angle, Edge, Christian, the Hardy Boyz, Mark Henry, and Mickie James. Soft-spoken, warm, and possessed of a characteristic Texas drawl, he was described by everyone who knew him as a gentle giant — a man who loved puppies, loved Ocala, and loved the people of professional wrestling without reservation. He published his autobiography, "The Last of a Great Breed," in 2022, and wrestled his final match on August 24, 2024, in Japan, at the age of 83. Inducted into the NWA Hall of Fame in 2006 and the WWE Hall of Fame in 2009, Dory Funk Jr. passed away on August 4, 2026, leaving behind a wife, Marti, three children, five grandchildren, and a sport he helped build.