Hercules Ayala

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
"Ruben Cruz" redirects here. For the Spanish footballer, see
Rubén Cruz Gil
.

Hercules Ayala
Ayala (top) in a match against Carlos Colón (bottom)
Birth nameRuben Cruz
Born(1950-07-14)July 14, 1950[1]
Bayamón, Puerto Rico[1]
DiedJanuary 22, 2020(2020-01-22) (aged 69)
St. Albert, Alberta, Canada[1]
Spouse(s)Susan Cruz
Children3
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)El Sansón Boricua
Hercules Ayala
Hercules Ayala Cortez
Hercules Cortez
Ruben Ayala
Billed height6 ft 1 in (185 cm)[2]
Billed weight265 lb (120 kg)[2]
Trained byAngelo Savoldi
Debut1970
Retired2004

Ruben Cruz (July 14, 1950 – January 22, 2020) was a Puerto Rican professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Hercules Ayala. He competed in Canadian and international wrestling promotions including the eastern Canadian Grand Prix Wrestling, the Calgary-based Stampede Wrestling, New Japan Pro-Wrestling in Japan and World Wrestling Council in Puerto Rico.[1]

Professional wrestling career

Born in

World Wide Wrestling Federation for a brief time.[1]

In December 1976, Ayala and

Stampede International Tag Team Championship with Jim Neidhart.[1] In addition to Stampede, he wrestled for Lutte Internationale. In January 1987, he defeated David Shultz for the Canadian International Heavyweight Championship, but lost it to Abdullah the Butcher approximately one month later.[1]

After returning to Puerto Rico, he began working for the Capital Sports Promotion (later renamed to

Carlos Colon over the WWC Universal Heavyweight Title and hired Chicky Starr
as his manager. His feud with Carlos Colon reached its peak when Ayala attacked Nancy Coates, Carlos Colon's wife, at a WWC banquet award ceremony. On January 6, 1989, he lost a loser leaves town match to Colon and disappeared from the territory.

In 1992, he worked as booker in Puerto Rico for the American Wrestling Federation, where he reunited with manager Chicky Starr and was the AWF champion until he lost the championship to

Huracán Castillo Jr
.

Between 1995 and 1996, he made some appearances at the World Wrestling Council and feuded against Bronco l.

In 2011, Hercules Ayala returned to the World Wrestling Council and dedicated the 2011

WWC Anniversary Card
to him.

He was also inducted to the

Prairie Wrestling Alliance Hall of Fame
.

Personal life

Cruz met his wife Susan while he was wrestling in Canada.[1] They had two children together, and Cruz had a son from a previous relationship as well as two daughters.[1] After retiring from professional wrestling, Cruz settled in St. Albert, Alberta, and worked for a fencing company. He is the godfather to fellow wrestler Ángel Acevedo's daughter.[1] He died on January 22, 2020.[3]

Championships and accomplishments

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Oliver, Greg. "The strengths of Hercules Ayala". SLAM! Wrestling. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved December 18, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ^
    ISBN 978-0-7566-4190-0
    .
  3. ^ @CACReunion (January 23, 2020). "We heard this morning that Ruben..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  4. ^ "AWF World Heavyweight Title". Wrestling Data. Archived from the original on October 16, 2021. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  5. ^ "AWF World Tag Team Titles". Wrestling Data. Archived from the original on October 16, 2021. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  6. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  7. ^ "National Wrestling Alliance World Tag Team Title [E. Texas]". Wrestling-Titles. Archived from the original on December 16, 2016. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
  8. ^ Oliver, Greg (January 15, 2013). "SLAM! Wrestling Canadian Hall of Fame: Hercules Ayala". SLAM! Wrestling. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved February 18, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  9. ^ "European Wrestling Union World Super Heavyweight Title". Wrestling-Titles. Archived from the original on June 29, 2019. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  10. ^ Hoops, Brian (January 19, 2019). "Pro wrestling history (01/19): Ric Flair wins WWF title in 1992 Royal Rumble". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  11. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  12. ^ wrestling-titles.com. "Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Title". Archived from the original on April 16, 2011. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
  13. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  14. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  15. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  16. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  17. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  18. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .
  19. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4
    .

External links
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hercules_Ayala&oldid=1217482247"