Wikipedia

Nailz

Not to be confused with the professional wrestling announcerKevin Kelly.
For other people named Kevin Kelly, seeKevin Kelly (disambiguation).

Kevin Patrick Wacholz(born April 17, 1958) is an American retiredprofessional wrestler.He is best known for his appearances with theWorld Wrestling Federation(WWF) in 1992 under thering nameNailz.He is also known for his appearances with theAmerican Wrestling Association(AWA) in the 1980s as"Mr. Magnificent" Kevin Kelly.[1]

Nailz
Wacholz, circa 1988
Birth nameKevin Patrick Wacholz
Born(1958-04-17)April 17, 1958(age 66)
Bloomington, Minnesota,United States
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)The Convict
Doc Nelson
Kevin Kelly[1]
Kevin the Magnificent[1]
Nails
Nailz[1]
The Prisoner[1]
Thor[1]
Billed height6 ft 5 in (196 cm)[2]
Billed weight302 lb (137 kg)[2]
Trained byBrad Rheingans[1]
Debut1981[1]
Retired2001

Professional wrestling career

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Early career (1982–1986)

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Wacholz started wrestling in 1982 after winning aToughman Contest.He wrestled in various territories in Tennessee, Montreal, Central States, and the Pacific Northwest.

In 1985 he wrestled as Thor forWorld Class Championship Wrestlingin Texas. Had feuds withBobby FultonandBrian Adias.That same year he worked with the same gimmick forBill Watts'Mid-South Wrestling.

In 1986 he worked forNew Japan Pro-Wrestling.

American Wrestling Association (1984–1988)

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Wacholz debut in the American Wrestling Association (AWA) as Kevin Kelly in 1984, as ababyfacemidcarder. By 1986, he was a top heel and challenged for theAWA World Heavyweight Championship.He used the moniker, "Mr. Magnificent" Kevin Kelly.

In 1987, he was managed bySherri Marteland regularly issuedarm wrestlingchallenges. This led to a feud withTommy Rich,who answered one of his challenges on an edition ofAWA Championship WrestlingonESPN.Rich appeared to have the contest won, when Martel interfered on Kelly's behalf. In retaliation, Rich tore off her dress. Rich would then dominate a series of matches between the two.[3]

After Martel left the AWA, Kelly tookMadusa Micelias his manager. He often teamed withNick Kiniskias "The Perfect Tag Team" to contend for theAWA World Tag Team Championship.

He left the AWA in 1988, before it folded in 1991.

Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling (1990)

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In June 1990, Kelly returned to Japan forFrontier Martial-Arts Wrestlingwhere he had a feud withDick Murdoch.

World Wrestling Federation (1989, 1991, 1992)

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Wacholz, still performing under the name Kevin Kelly, received a tryout match on June 6, 1989, at aWWF Superstarstaping in Madison, WI, defeatingTim Horner.[4]A night later he defeated Jim Powers at aWrestling Challengetaping, but was not signed to a contract that year. After the AWA folded, Wacholz received another tryout match, this time at aWWF Superstarstaping on May 6, 1991, defeatingBrian Costello.[5]The following night at aWrestling Challengetaping he defeated Gary Jackson in a dark match.[5]

In early 1992, Wacholz returned to the WWF as Nailz, an ex-convict who, in a series ofpromos,alleged he was abused by former prison guardBig Boss Manduring his incarceration.[6]He also claimed to be innocent of his (unspecified) crimes. Following Big Boss Man'ssquashof Dave Roulette on the May 30 episode ofWWF Superstars of Wrestling,Nailz (dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit) attacked Boss Man, handcuffing him to the top rope before repeatedly hitting and choking him with his own nightstick.[7]Nailz easily defeated numerous jobbers en route to defeating Boss Man's allyVirgilatSummerSlam.[8]He attackedSgt. Slaughterbefore a match that ended in a no contest in September 1992. He continued to feud with Boss Man, who had recovered from Nailz's beating. The feud came to its climax when Big Boss Man defeated Nailz in anightstick matchatSurvivor Series.[8]Before Nailz finished the feud with Boss Man, he began another feud, this time withThe Undertaker.The two had a stare down on the October 24 episode ofSuperstars,a photo of which was used as the cover of the January 1993 issue ofWWF Magazine.[9]He had a few matches losing to WWF ChampionBret Hart.Also he had a short feud withThe Ultimate Warrior.

Altercation with Vince McMahon

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Wacholz was released from his WWF contract in December 1992, after he attackedVince McMahonin his office over a financial dispute,[6][10]whileJohn Nordwatched the door. The incident occurred on December 14 during a house show inGreen Bay, Wisconsin.Bret Hartrecalled in his autobiography that Wacholz "cornered Vince in his office and screamed at him for fifteen minutes". Hart claims he was just down the hall from the office when he heard a loud crash, which was Wacholz "knocking Vince over in his chair, choking him violently".[11]The incident led to a series of lawsuits between Wacholz and the WWF. Wacholz alleged McMahon had given himsteroidson a number of occasions; McMahon denied the claim. Wacholz then filed a wrongful termination lawsuit claiming McMahon sexually assaulted him.[12]The WWF filed a counterclaim against Wacholz, but both suits were later dropped. In 1994, Wacholz testified against McMahon duringhis trial on charges of supplying steroidsto WWF wrestlers. He claimed McMahon had told him to take steroids.[13]However, his testimony was later ruled to be inadmissible after Wacholz openly stated that he had a personal hatred for McMahon while on the stand.

World Championship Wrestling (1993, 1997–1998)

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After getting fired from the WWF, Wacholz appeared atWorld Championship Wrestling's (WCW)Slamboreeevent in 1993 as "The Prisoner" (looking identical to his Nailz persona), losing toSting.[14]

He returned to WCW for several appearances over a six-month period from 1997 to 1998. His return began on October 6, 1997, when he defeatedYuji Nagatain a dark match onMonday Nitro.His last appearance was on April 17, 1998, where he defeatedBarry Darsowat a house show.

Late career (1993–2001)

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After WCW, Wacholz began working in the independent circuit.

From 1993 to 1997 he worked for Pro Wrestling America in Minnesota where he feuded withRoad Warrior Hawk.

He wasWorld Wide Wrestling Alliance's heavyweight champion in 1994. He dropped the title toBrutus Beefcakeon April 16.

He wrestled inJim Crockett's short-lived promotion,WWN,in 1994, as "The Convict". He also wrestled forNew Japan Pro-Wrestlingthat year, as D.O.C. Nelson and Nailz, teaming withRon Simmons.

In 1994, Wacholz appeared inPaul Alperstein'sAmerican Wrestling Federationas Nails (pronounced like "Nailz" ) alongside many WWF wrestlers from the 1980s and 1990s who were also wrestling in that promotion. On November 1, 1997, he lost toJimmy Snukaat World Wrestling Alliance in Fort Lewis, Washington.

His last match was a loss to Matt Burns by disqualification on August 25, 2001, at an independent show in Orrock, Minnesota. After that, Wacholz officially retired from wrestling.

Championships and accomplishments

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References

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  1. ^abcdefgh"Kevin Wacholz profile".OWOW.RetrievedAugust 28,2009.
  2. ^abShields, Brian; Sullivan, Kevin (2009).WWE Encyclopedia.DK.p.218.ISBN978-0-7566-4190-0.
  3. ^Tommy Rich - Kevin Kelly Arm Wrestling Challenge (AWA)onYouTube
  4. ^"1989".thehistoryofwwe.January 16, 2023.
  5. ^abCawthon, Graham (2013).The History of Professional Wrestling: The Results WWF 1990–1999.CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. p. 118.ISBN978-1-4935-6689-1.
  6. ^abReynolds, R.D. (2003).Wrestlecrap: The Very Worst of Pro Wrestling.ECW Press.pp.74–76.ISBN978-1-55022-584-6.
  7. ^Big Boss Man vs. Dave Roulette + Nailz DebutonYouTube,8/29/08
  8. ^abCawthon, Graham (2013).the History of Professional Wrestling Vol 2: WWF 1990 - 1999.CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.ASINB00RWUNSRS.
  9. ^"WWF Magazine January 1993".Complete WWE. Archived fromthe originalon June 25, 2013.RetrievedNovember 23,2010.
  10. ^Santana, Tito(2008).Tito Santana's Tales From the Ring.Sports Publishing LLC. p. 120.ISBN978-1-59670-325-4.
  11. ^Hart, Bret(2008).Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling.Grand Central Publishing.p.301.ISBN978-0-446-53972-2.
  12. ^"Top 15 Shocking Accusations Made Against Vince McMahon".September 18, 2015.
  13. ^Nailz the Wrestler Testifies He Was Told to Use SteroidsThe New York Times (July 12, 1994).
  14. ^Cawthon, Graham (2014).The History of Professional Wrestling Vol 4: World Championship Wrestling 1989-1994.CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.ISBN978-1499656343.
  15. ^Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2000).Wrestling Title Histories(4th ed.). Archeus Communications.ISBN0-9698161-5-4.
  16. ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 500 - 1992".Wrestling Information Archive. Archived fromthe originalon June 7, 2008.RetrievedJuly 14,2008.
  17. ^"Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Top 500 Wrestlers of the PWI Years".Wrestling Information Archive. Archived fromthe originalon July 7, 2011.RetrievedSeptember 15,2010.
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