Fred Ottman
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Fred Ottman is an American professional wrestler best known for his stints in both the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling.
Career
Early career
Ottman made his pro debut in 1984, later settling into the Memphis territory, where he made his first big impact as Big Bubba the Belt Collector (not to be confused with Big Bubba Rogers, AKA Ray Traylor) in a feud with Jerry Lawler. After leaving Memphis, he headed to Florida Championship Wrestling and became US Steel (later changed to Big Steel Man when the real US Steel Corporation threatened legal action) and feuded with Dusty and Dustin Rhodes.WWF career
Ottman later wrestled with the WWF as Tugboat, where his character developed a close friendship with Hulk Hogan, and assisted Hogan in his feud with Earthquake. He would later become Typhoon, after he attacked the Bushwackers during a six-man tag team match. As Typhoon, he and Earthquake entered the tag team ranks as The Natural Disasters. They would hold the WWF Tag Team Title in 1992.The Shockmaster incident
The Shockmaster incident was one of the most infamous moments in pro wrestling. In 1993, WCW had signed Ottman from the WWF, and he was to make his debut in a match alongside three very popular WCW stars: Sting, Dustin Rhodes, and Davey Boy Smith. He would be their mystery partner in the upcoming eight-man tag match against the heel team, Sid Vicious, Big Van Vader, and Harlem Heat (comprised of brothers Booker T and Stevie Ray) at Fall Brawl.When Sting and Smith were about to unveil their mystery partner, they did so during a live interview in front of the WCW audience together with Sid and Harlem Heat. Sting would say, "All I have to say is... our partner is going to shock the world because he is none other than... The Shockmaster!" The camera zoomed in on a particular section of the set where two torches set off a small pyrotechnics explosion in front of a paper wall. The Shockmaster was supposed to make his entrance by crashing through that wall in his new attire, consisting of a replica Star Wars Stormtrooper helmet covered in glitter, a pair of jeans and a long black vest.
As the camera was in for a close up, he tripped and fell through the paper wall. When he hit the floor, his helmet rolled off long enough for audiences to see who it was before he managed to put it back on [link]. Even the announcers were speechless. The Shockmaster resumed his entrance as if nothing had happened, and he continued walking up to Sid and Harlem Heat.
The interview ended with Shockmaster verbally threatening the four heels with, "They call me The Shockmaster. You've ruled the world long enough, Sid Vicious. Come on, you want a piece of me?" The heels were clearly trying to stop themselves from laughing while he delivered his threat. The Shockmaster's voice was a prerecorded tape that was provided by Ole Anderson. Anderson used the same voice effects as he did for another infamous WCW storyline, the Black Scorpion.
Later, WCW attempted to salvage the incident by introducing a new character called the "Super Shockmaster." This was intended to be the Shockmaster's nephew, who would then refer to the Shockmaster as "Uncle Fred." After that point, the Shockmaster was portrayed as a klutz until the character was eventually abandoned.
Return to the WWF
A year after the Shockmaster incident, Ottman returned to the WWF, reprising his Typhoon character. He had little success, and by the end of the summer, he left the company again.Later career
In 2000, he appeared in the short-lived WXO promotion. Ottman returned to the WWF in 2001 (as Tugboat) for the gimmick battle royal at WrestleMania X-Seven.Championships and accomplishments
- 1-Time WWF World Tag Team Champion (with Earthquake)
- 1-Time FCW PWF Heavyweight Champion
- 2-Time AWA Southern Tag Team Champion (with Jerry Lawler and Goliath)
- 1-Time NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Champion
- 1-Time CWA International Heavyweight Champion
- 1-Time CPW Tag Team Champion (with Brett Sawyer)
- 1-Time IAW Tag Team Champion (with Ax)
- 1-Time SWS Tag Team Champion (with Earthquake)
- Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) ranked him # 490 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.
External links
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