| Nikita Koloff | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Nelson Scott Simpson[1] |
| Born | (1959-03-09)March 9, 1959 (age 66)[1] Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.[1] |
| Alma mater | Minnesota State University Moorhead[1] |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Mr. Wrestling IV Nikita Koloff[1] |
| Billed height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)[1] |
| Billed weight | 275 lb (125 kg)[1] |
| Billed from | Russia Lithuania |
| Trained by | Eddie Sharkey[2] |
| Debut | June 24, 1984[1] |
| Retired | November 8, 1992 |
Nikita Koloff (bornNelson Scott Simpson on March 9, 1959) is an American retiredprofessional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances withJim Crockett Promotions and its successor,World Championship Wrestling between 1984 and 1992, where he was billed from Russia (and, following thedissolution of the Soviet Union, Lithuania). During his career, Koloff heldchampionships including theNWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship,NWA World Tag Team Championship, NWA United States Championship,NWA World Television Championship, andUWF World Television Championship. He was inducted into theGeorge Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2006 and theNational Wrestling Alliance Hall of Fame of 2008.
Koloff was born on March 9, 1959, inMinneapolis,Minnesota, one of four children born to Paige and Olive Simpson. When he was two years old, his father left the family, leaving his mother as a single parent. When Koloff was 10, his family relocated to the suburb ofRobbinsdale. While in junior high school, Koloff began weightlifting. He attended Robbinsdale High School where he played for the Robbinsdale Robinsfootball team as adefensive lineman and on offense[3] was an all-conferencewide receiver.[4] His fellow students included other future professional wrestlersBarry Darsow,Brady Boone,Curt Hennig,John Nord,Rick Rude, andTom Zenk.[5]
Koloff graduated from high school in 1977. He enrolled inGolden Valley Lutheran College where he playedcollege football alongside fellow future wrestlerJoe "Animal" Laurinaitis. He suffered an injury playing football but rehabbed to play forMinnesota State University Moorhead where he suffered another injury.[6]
In 1984, Simpson was going to try out for theUSFL whenRoad Warrior Animal, a professional wrestler from theMinnesota area, called him to ask him to become a professional wrestler. Simpson decided to go with wrestling and was told to shave his head bald and to show up.Jim Crockett, Jr., the promoter of theNWA'sJim Crockett Promotions, renamed him "Nikita Koloff", the Russian Nightmare, and teamed him with "uncle"Ivan Koloff andDon Kernodle, a turncoat American. Koloff was briefly trained byEddie Sharkey.[2] He debuted on June 5, 1984, and won his first match in 13 seconds, with the only edict from Crockett being that should Koloff trip on the ropes, he would be fired on the spot.[1]
Koloff wrestled briefly inPuerto Rico forWorld Wrestling Council (WWC) and engaged in some bouts withHercules Ayala. He returned withIvan Koloff in 1986 and facedInvader I andInvader III at a bighouse show at Juan Ramon Loubriel Stadium inBayamon.
While he learned more about the sport on the road with Ivan and Kernodle, Koloff was booked in very short matches until his skills developed. During television promos, Nikita stood behind Ivan and Kernodle with his arms folded while they took interviews. As his wrestling ability and speaking skills grew, the length of his matches and interviews grew as well. His improvement negated the need for Kernodle to continue teaming with Ivan and, shortly thereafter, the Russians turned on the American turncoat. Koloff went to great lengths to keep the "Evil Russian" gimmick as realistic as possible. He learned Russian and refused to come out of character, even when away from the ring.
With Kernodle out of the picture, Uncle Ivan Koloff introduced a new comrade namedKrusher Khruschev (fellow Robbinsdale High School classmateBarry Darsow). In December 1984, Jim Crockett rewarded the Russians with theNWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship. Three months later, on March 18, 1985, Koloff and Ivan defeatedDusty Rhodes andManny Fernandez to win theNWA World tag team title. Ivan invoked theFreebird rule which dictated that any two of the three could defend the titles. Ivan and Krusher lost the titles toThe Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton andRobert Gibson) on July 9.
Prior to committing themselves with Jim Crocket Promotions, The Koloffs feuded with thenAWA World tag team champions the Road Warriors in both the AWA and the NWA in a brutal series during 1985. One of their encounters was voted Match of the Year runner-up by the readers ofPro Wrestling Illustrated. The feud was often fought in steel cage Russia chain matches, with lights-out stipulations. The Russian 'chain match', using thicker chains than normal chain matches, was considered a Nikita Koloff specialty.
Continuing to improve, Koloff became a big enough heel to get a match against NWA World ChampionRic Flair atThe Great American Bash 1985 on July 6. Koloff lost to Flair and was even attacked by a fan during the match, but he established himself as a superstar in the wrestling business. According to Koloff, it was his favourite match of his career.[7]
The Koloffs went on to regain the NWA World Tag Team title from the Rock 'N Roll Express three months later, on October 13, but lost it to the same opponents on November 28 atStarrCade 1985 in asteel cage match.
In 1985 and 1986, Koloff wrestled several matches forCapitol Sports Promotions inPuerto Rico as part of a talent exchange, facingHercules Ayala on several occasions. During one bout, Koloff sustained a cut to the arm when an audience member threw aspark plug at him.[8]
In spring of 1986, Koloff started one of the biggest, most anticipated feuds in the history ofJim Crockett Promotions when he attackedNWA United States Heavyweight ChampionMagnum T. A. Following an incident where Magnum hit on-screen NWA PresidentBob Geigel for demanding an apology after T.A. started a brawl with Nikita during a contract signing (which started when the Koloffs berated Magnum's mother, who was present), T.A. was stripped of his title. The two were then booked in a best-of-seven series, which took place duringThe Great American Bash 1986 tour. The winner of the series would be declared champion. Koloff and T.A. wrestled all summer, ending up tied after six matches with one no contest. The final match took place on August 17 and featured run-ins by Kruschev and Ivan and several false-finishes. Nikita defeated T.A. to win the title.
The following month, Koloff defeatedWahoo McDaniel to unify his US Title with Wahoo'sNWA National Heavyweight Championship on September 28. He was readying to embark on a feud withRon Garvin that would last through the upcomingStarrcade 1986. The idea of headbooker Dusty Rhodes was for Koloff to reignite his feud with Magnum T. A. the following year. The plan called for T.A. to defeat Ric Flair for theNWA World Championship at StarrCade 86; after a short program of rematches with Flair, T. A. would begin a long program with Koloff that ran throughThe Great American Bash Tour of 1987.[9] As of the beginning of October, Rhodes had not decided whether to give Koloff the title at some point during the feud.
In October 1986, Magnum T. A. was involved in a career-ending car accident. Dusty Rhodes saw an alternate opportunity. The Soviet PremierMikhail Gorbachev had been growing in popularity throughout the country with his political reform ofGlasnost andPerestroika. The era of evil Russian heels was coming to an end. Rhodes decided to strike while the iron was hot, booking Koloff to become a face and his greatest ally againstThe Four Horsemen. The historic moment took place on October 24 inCharlotte, North Carolina. Rhodes needed a partner to take onOle Anderson andJ. J. Dillon in a cage match. The fans in Charlotte erupted when Koloff entered the cage to help Rhodes. Koloff stated that even though he and Magnum T. A. had a bitter rivalry, T.A. had earned his respect, and that Nikita would work to earn the respect of the American people. This evening established Koloff as one of the top faces in the NWA.[10]
Immediately after his face turn, Koloff resumed his quest for Ric Flair's NWA World Title and came very close to winning it on several occasions. Flair's Four Horsemen comrades bailed him out almost every time.[9] The two fought to a double disqualification at StarrCade '86 on November 26. After StarrCade, Koloff was firmly established as one of the NWA's most popular stars. On 1987, Krusher, who left the NWA for the World Wrestling Federation, asked Koloff to join him. However, Koloff declined the offer because he felt loyalty to the promotion and he didn't want to start a new gimmick.
Throughout the early months of 1987, Koloff continued to defend the United States title against members of the Four Horsemen andPaul Jones' Army, which now included "Uncle" Ivan. In March, as part of his ongoing feud with Ivan andDick Murdoch, Koloff's neck was "injured" by a Murdochbrainbuster on the concrete floor (of course this was a work). On April 11, Koloff and Dusty Rhodes won thesecond-annual Jim Crockett, Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament, defeating the Four Horsemen team ofTully Blanchard andLex Luger in the finals.
As the1987 Great American Bash tour got under way, the feud between Koloff, Rhodes,The Road Warriors, andPaul Ellering versus The Four Horsemen and J. J. Dillon was booked as the centerpiece. The tour began and ended with two revolutionary matches created by Rhodes, known asWarGames: The Match Beyond. The team ofThe Super Powers andThe Legion of Doom emerged victorious in both contests.
Also during The War Games, Flair and Blanchard reaggravated Koloff's neck injury by delivering two spike piledrivers. Theworked injury set up the pretext for dropping the US Title to Lex Luger. On July 11, 1987, Koloff faced Luger in asteel cage match and was defeated after being hit with a chair. This ended Koloff's reign of nearly 11 months, which still stands today as the fifth longest U.S. title reign in the more than 33-year history of the title. Dusty Rhodes booked Koloff to rebound quickly, winning theNWA World Television Championship from Tully Blanchard on August 27.[11]
In the fall of 1987, Jim Crockett Promotions acquiredBill Watts'Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF). Dusty Rhodes decided which members of the UWF roster to retain and how best to use the infusion of new talent that he now had access to on an exclusive basis, beginning with a cross-promotional program between NWA Television Champion Koloff andUWF Television Champion,Terry Taylor. The feud began when Taylor, alongside his fellow members of Hot Stuff International, Inc. -Eddie Gilbert andRick Steiner- attacked Koloff and stole his championship belt. Koloff and Taylor were booked to face each other in a unification bout atStarrCade '87, but Koloff vowed to get his TV belt back before the match. During aTBSWorld Championship Wrestling (WCW) broadcast leading up to what would be Jim Crockett's first foray intopay-per-view, Taylor and Gilbert jumped Koloff again, beating him unconscious, and draping his version of the TV title across his limp body. On November 26, Koloff and Taylor battled in what would be the only NWA/UWF unification bout at theUIC Pavilion inChicago. In front of his first pay-per-view audience, Nikita became the undisputed Television Champion by defeating Taylor on November 26. He still has the UWF belt as a trophy from that night.
Koloff lost the NWA TV Title toMike Rotunda ofThe Varsity Club on January 30, 1988. During this period, Koloff had altered his appearance somewhat, dropping some muscle mass (Koloff usedanabolic steroids during the early part of his career but stopped when he saw where they were leading - he lost his muscle mass due to taking time off to take care of his wife, Mandy) and growing his hair out into a crewcut. He was given the singles main event when he wrestled NWA World ChampionRic Flair at the final Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament. Koloff defeated Flair by disqualification so the title was retained by Flair. He then lost toBarry Windham in the finals of the tournament for the vacant NWA United States Championship, before beginning a feud withAl Perez and teaming withSting to feud with the Four Horsemen. During the year, he legally changed his name to 'Nikita S. Koloff'.
In the fall of 1988, Koloff was quickly losing interest in professional wrestling for personal reasons. His wife Mandy was suffering fromHodgkin's disease and died in the summer of 1989. After Ivan himself turned face when manager Paul Jones went against him, Koloff helped Ivan briefly against Jones' henchmen, the masked Russian Assassins, and then he took a sabbatical on November 27. A booked showdown atStarrCade '88 in December was to pit Ivan and Koloff against the Russian Assassins. Koloff's departure resulted in theJunkyard Dog substituting for him as Ivan's partner. The Russian Assassins were victorious.
Eventually, Koloff eased back into the business part-time. He returned to WCW/NWA as a special guest referee atWrestleWar '89 in match for theNWA World Tag Team Championship betweenThe Road Warriors andMike Rotunda and"Dr. Death" Steve Williams. Rotunda & Williams were disqualified for attacking Koloff, and later stripped of the titles.
Despite some people's beliefs, Nikita was never offered any sort of contract with WWF. He met Vince McMahon only twice: first time while working out in a gym inLas Vegas, Nevada (they shook hands and said "hello") and again at Road Warrior Hawk'sfuneral.
In late 1989, Koloff began wrestling withVerne Gagne's AWA (as a part of a talent share with the NWA) in his native Minnesota. The promotion was in its twilight and given Nikita's stature, Gagne positioned Nikita to challenge thenAWA World Heavyweight ChampionLarry Zbyszko almost immediately. Koloff continued wrestling in the NWA and the AWA for the remainder of the year and the first half of 1990, headlining numerous television broadcasts and Twin Wars '90, the last major event with the AWA under Gagne. Koloff also wrestled briefly inHerb Abrams'Universal Wrestling Federation, in no way affiliated with the original UWF of Bill Watts, where he reignited a feud with 'Uncle' Ivan.
Koloff returned to WCW on February 24, 1991, atWrestleWar. He attacked Lex Luger, claiming he had "stolen" the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship from him in 1987 and that he wanted it back. AtSuperBrawl I on May 19, 1991, Koloff accidentally hitSting with a chain while interfering in a tag team match betweenSting and Lex Luger andThe Steiner Brothers. Koloff and Sting went on to face one another in aRussian Chain match atThe Great American Bash on July 14 which was won by Koloff. The feud came to an abortive end in August 1991 when Koloff left WCW to focus on running his gym, "Nikita's Fortress of Fitness," inConcord, North Carolina.
Koloff returned to WCW in February 1992, saving Sting from an attack byThe Dangerous Alliance. He explained on WCW's syndicated shows that he had seen the error of attacking Sting. AtWrestleWar on May 17, 1992, Koloff teamed with Sting,Ricky Steamboat,Barry Windham, andDustin Rhodes to face The Dangerous Alliance in a WarGames match. Koloff went on to feud withRick Rude over Rude'sWCW United States Heavyweight Championship. In late-1992, he began feuding withBig Van Vader, with the two men facing one other atHalloween Havoc on October 25. During the bout, Koloff sustained aherniated disc in his neck, leading him to retire from professional wrestling. Koloff worked some house shows against Rick Rude and Vader until his last match losing to Vader on November 8.
Koloff became aborn-again Christian in 1993. He now runs a ministry. He also runs his own small wrestling promotion, the Universal Wrestling Alliance UWA as an outreach of his ministry.
He made a few appearances forNWA:TNA in 2003 as a masked man called "Mr. Wrestling IV" who attackedDusty Rhodes. He finally unmasked but ended up helping Rhodes against theSports Entertainment Xtreme stable.[12]
On July 15, 2006, Koloff received theFrank Gotch Award from theGeorge Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame at the International Wrestling Institute and Museum inWaterloo, Iowa, for contributing to the positive public image of wrestling.
On March 3, 2024, Koloff was shown in the crowd during Sting's retirement match atAEW'sRevolution alongsideMagnum T.A. andScotty Riggs.[13]
Koloff was originally billed as being a Russian. He was billed as the nephew of fellow faux-RussianIvan Koloff, from whom he took hisring name.[14] He was nicknamed "The Russian Nightmare", a play onDusty Rhodes' nickname, "The American Dream".[15] He was also known as "The Russian Road Warrior" due to his power and ferocity, which was compared toThe Road Warriors.[16][17] Following thedissolution of the Soviet Union, Koloff was billed fromLithuania.[18] To enhance the verisimilitude of his character, Koloff learned to speakRussian.[19][17]
Koloff had an "evil" appearance with a black singlet, shaved head, and goatee.[6] His character has been described as "wrestling's equivalent of theDrago character inRocky IV...big, strong, scary and Russian.[20] His finishing move was the "Russian Sickle", aclothesline.[4]
Koloff has written three books. He has acted in a small number of films and television episodes, as well as appearing on an episode ofAmerica's Funniest People in which his daughter won the $10,000 grand prize. His character appeared in the 2004 videogameShowdown: Legends of Wrestling as well as the 2021 game Retromania Wrestling.
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Stuck in the Past | Bartender | |
| 2009 | C Me Dance | Biker | |
| 2013 | Preacher's Daughters | Himself | Reality series |
| 2018 | Pastor Greg's Reboot - Hope for Christmas | Jake | Short film |
Nikita married his first wife, Mandy Smithson, on September 20, 1988. She died fromHodgkin's disease on June 14, 1989.[21] At herfuneral he met Mandy’s longtime friend and his future wife, Victoria.[citation needed] They married on August 17, 1990. The couple had two daughters together, Kendra, who was born in June 1992, andKolby, who was born in May 1996, while Victoria had two daughters (Teryn and Tawni) from her previous relationship. Nikita and Victoria were divorced on April 23, 2007.
Koloff legally changed his name to Nikita Koloff in 1988.[22]
Nikita is a member of a religious group called Fellowship of the Sword and serves as an East Coast representative.
1 Koloff defeatedWahoo McDaniel to unify the title with theNWA United States Heavyweight Championship. The title was also won afterGeorgia Championship Wrestling was purchased byJim Crockett Promotions.
2 Koloff defeatedTerry Taylor to unify the title with theNWA World Television Championship. The title was also won afterBill Watts'Universal Wrestling Federation promotion was purchased by Jim Crockett Promotions.
,Wrestlingdata.com,Internet Wrestling Database| International | |
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| National | |