Wayne Bridges
William Woodbridge (5 July 1936 – 8 March 2020) known professionally as Wayne Bridges was a British
Biography
Bridges started his career in wrestling in 1964. During his career, he became half of the
After Quinn defected to All Star and the BWF, Joint Promotions stripped him of the title and awarded it to Bridges for a win over "Mississippi Mauler" Big Jim Harris at Wembley Arena.[1] Bridges was presented with a red/white/blue title belt which he defended during 1982 on television against challengers such as Pete Roberts, often drifting into villainous tactics to succeed. Quinn meanwhile continued to claim the title, represented by the original black title belt, until he lost his version to Tony St. Clair in Hanley in 1982.[1] Bridges then defected to All Star and the BWF, confronting rival claimant St. Clair on S4C's Welsh-language wrestling TV show. After several inconclusive unification matches between the two, in 1984 Bridges reverted to blue-eye and defeated Quinn,[1] who had regained his version from St. Clair,[1] to unify the titles.[1]
In early 1986 Bridges left All Star, taking his striped belt with him. Quinn won a four-man tournament on satellite TV channel
In 2016 Wayne Bridges was inducted into the British Wrestlers Reunion Hall of Fame at the 25th Annual Reunion receiving the award from Roy St Clair. His wife Sarah Bridges was the final ever inductee into the Hall of Fame (posthumously) in January 2022 shortly before the Reunion ended after thirty years.
After wrestling
In retirement he became the host of the British Wrestlers Reunion, a role he held for 25 years until his death. Bridges' wife Sarah was a professional bodybuilder and competed around the world, winning many titles before retiring and becoming a judge, most notably of the Arnold Classic in the USA. Sarah Bridges died on 22 November 2021 aged 53. Wayne Bridges died on 8 March 2020 at the age of 83.
Links
http://www.britishwrestlersreunion.com
http://www.wrestlingheritage.co.uk
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "World Heavyweight Title (Great Britain)".
- ^ "1988 Bills & Results". www.britishwrestlingarchive.co.uk. Archived from the original on 13 April 2009. Retrieved 19 April 2022.