Episode 6 – Worked Title Matches

Jiyè 25, 2022 Ken Zimmerman Jr. Podcast

Nan sa a Episode, I will be talking about a pair of worked title matches for the American Heavyweight Wrestling Championship.

Main Content

Fred Beell te yon fò, talented professional wrestler at the turn of the 20th Century. Malgre ke pwisan bati, Beell stood no more than 5’05” ak peze 168 liv. Men,, he improbably defeated Frank Gotch for the American Heavyweight Wrestling Championship on December 1, 1906.

Fred Beell posing for the camera in the early Twentieth Century from the Public Domain

Gotch won the first fall without a problem but the second fall proved controversial. Pou kòmanse dezyèm sezon otòn la, Beell te pran ofansif la epi li frape Gotch plizyè fwa. Gotch te parèt fatigan, yon sitiyasyon etranj pou chanpyon an byen kondisyone. Beell pran Gotch ankò men bite. Tou de mesye yo tonbe sou kabann lan sou planche a difisil.

Gotch frape lou ak tèt li frape etaj la. Beell was not seriously affected. Li byen vit vire Gotch pou dezyèm sezon otòn la. Lutè pwa loud Charley Olsen, ki te sèvi kòm abit pou match sa a, tape Beell sou do li ki endike Beell te pran dezyèm sezon otòn la.

Beell stood to his feet, but Gotch remained prone on the mat. Two police officers, bay sekirite pou evènman an, helped carry the half-conscious champion back to his dressing room for the second intermission.

Nan otobiyografi Gotch la, he said he struck his head on a post. Sepandan, this match does not appear to have taken place in a ring. It is more likely he hit his head on the floor although if there were stanchions around the mat, li te kapab frape youn nan sa yo.

The police officers carried Gotch back to the ring, where Beell pinned him in 50 seconds for the third fall and championship. I suspected Gotch and Beell worked this match because of the fanciful finish and a rematch had already been scheduled for Kansas City, Missouri on December 18, 1906.

8,000 fans crowded into the Kansas City Convention Hall to see Gotch take the title back in two straight falls. Gotch and Beell liked worked the matches for the large payday in Kansas City and to make Gotch look beatable. Fans started to see Gotch as invincible, which made it harder to convince fans to pay to see Gotch crush his opponents.

If you like this post, you may like to be part of our quarterly email newsletter. Sign up for the newsletter and receive the free ebook, Top Ten Legitimate Professional Wrestlers in American, 1870 to 1915.