Episode 107 – To Replace the King
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In this episode, I discuss the race to replace Frank Gotch in 1915, Ad Santel in Japan, AI in wrestling, and a personal update.
Update
Further information about Ad Santel’s trip to Japan in 1921.
AI assisting in wrestling creative.
Joe Stecher with his championship belt in 1915 (Public Domain)
Main Content
On July 15, 1915, Joe Stecher wrestled Charlie Cutler for the American Heavyweight Wrestling Championship in Omaha, Nebraska.
During the summer of 1915, Aleksander “Alex” Aberg and Stecher were trying to replace Frank Gotch as World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion. Gotch retired after defeating George Lurich in April 1913.
Stecher dominated the match with Cutler to setup an anticipated match with Gotch. However, Gotch broke his leg in training putting an end to Stecher’s and Martin “Farmer” Burns’ plan for Gotch to pass the torch to Stecher.
Despite the match falling through, fans accepted Stecher as the new World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion. This development left Aberg out in the cold.
Aberg made a strong case for world champion recognition by dominating both the spring and fall versions of the 1915 New York International Wrestling Tournament. The contestants wrestled under Greco-Roman wrestling rules, by then a fringe wrestling style in the United States. Being seen as a Greco-Roman wrestling specialist hurt Aberg’s chances of being accepted by American wrestling fans.
Stecher held the World Championship until April 1917 when Stecher lost a contest to Earl Caddock. Before Stecher could secure a rematch, Caddock joined the army during World War I. Stecher finally secured the rematch in 1920.
Personal Update
I discuss why I almost did not test for 5th degree black belt this year.
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