10 Things Wrestling Fans Should Know About Bill Watts

There are countless promoters in the history of pro wrestling, but not all of them can have a big effect on the sport like “Cowboy” Bill Watts did. Initially a pro wrestler, Watts proved to be a successful promoter and booker, putting together an amazing product in the 1980s before moving on to World Championship Wrestling, where he proved to be a controversial figure for a number of reasons.

While not a household name like, say, Vince McMahon, Bill Watts is definitely a crucial figure for wrestling fans to know. Let’s take a look at his entire career including his in-ring days, his work with Mid-South Wrestling, and the controversies that followed.

10 Football Background

Like many pro wrestlers throughout the history of the sport, Bill Watts actually entered the business with a background in American football. A linebacker in high school, Watts ended up playing college football for the University of Oklahoma, though a car accident would derail his college career. One of Watts’ college teammates, however, was Wahoo McDaniel, who played pro football and wrestled in the off-season, and introduced Watts to the squared circle. Watts followed in his fellow Sooner’s footsteps as a two-sport athlete, but ended up quitting the Minnesota Vikings to wrestle full time when he was told he couldn’t do both.

9 A Wrestler Before Becoming A Promoter

After ditching football, “Cowboy” Bill Watts found himself performing for Tri-States Wrestling, which serviced Louisiana, Mississippi, and Oklahoma, and it was in this territory where Watts found the most success. There, he would capture myriad titles during his time with the promotion, including multiple runs with the Tag Team Titles and the North American Championship. But he didn’t just limit himself to the Tri-States territory — he also ventured into California, Florida, New York, Georgia, and even overseas in All Japan Pro Wrestling.

8 Founded Mid-South Wrestling

Bill Watts in Mid-South Wrestling with Jim Ross

In the late 1970s, Bill Watts made a huge career move when he bought Tri-States wrestling from its previous owner, Leroy McGuirk, and renamed it Mid-South Wrestling. Based in Louisiana, Watts expanded MSW’s reach beyond the territory it originally serviced, and even broke away from the National Wrestling Alliance to some extent, though not entirely.

Under Bill Watts, it can’t be understated what a revolutionary product Mid-South Wrestling was, as its TV show is credited for innovating the episodic storytelling format that most modern wrestling shows utilize. On top of that, TV matches were quality efforts and the vibe was more grounded and serious than that of WWE in the 1980s.

7 Took Mid-South National

Mid-South’s distancing itself from the NWA and expansion into other territories was only the beginning of Bill Watt’s ambitions when it came to building his promotion. In 1986, Mid-South Wrestling made a huge step, establishing itself as a national promotion and re-branding yet again under the less-regional name of Universal Wrestling Federation. As part of this expansion, the now-UWF scored deals to make its shows nationally syndicated and amassed on-screen and backstage talent from Texas’ ailing World Class Championship Wrestling.

6 Sold UWF To Jim Crockett Promotions

While the Universal Wrestling Federation was off to a great start, eventually circumstances got the better of it. UWF struggled to compete with larger outfits like Jim Crockett Promotions (later known as WCW) and WWE, and a recession in Oklahoma hurt the promotion financially. UWF was in financial straits, and in 1987 Watts was able to convince a reluctant Jim Crockett Promotions to purchase the Universal Wrestling Federation, leading to WCW gaining much of UWF’s talent pool, including an up-and-comer named Sting.

5 Controversial Vice President Of WCW

A year after Bill Watts sold UWF to Jim Crockett Promotions, JCP sold all its assets to Turner Broadcasting, who rebranded the promotion as World Championship Wrestling. In 1992, Watts himself became a part of WCW, taking a position as Executive Vice President. This run would prove to be a controversial one with fans and those working for WCW alike, as Watts’ sensibilities were were so “old-school” that they came off as retrograde. One questionable decision that defined Watts’ stint with WCW was his banning of top-rope maneuvers, which totally killed WCW’s fledgling Light Heavyweight Division, which boasted high flyers like Japan’s Jushin Thunder Liger and Brian Pillman.

4 Fired From WCW Over Racist Comments

Before he signed on as an EVP in WCW, in 1991 Bill Watts made comments in an interview with Wade Keller of Pro Wrestling Torch that were racist and homophobic. Without repeating the colorful language, Watts cast slavery in a positive light, expressed support for former Georgia governor Lester Maddox who famously refused to serve Black people at his restaurant in the 1960s, and also stated he should have the right to not hire gay people if he didn’t want to.

Soon enough, journalist Mark Madden — who’d later become a color commentator for WCW — told baseball legend Hank Aaron about Watts’ comments, as Aaron had some pull in Turner as a Vice President of the Atlanta Braves. As a result, Bill Watts was fired from WCW after about a year with the company, though Watts denies that that was the reason for his departure.

3 Also Worked With WWE

During his time as an active in-ring competitor, “Cowboy” Bill Watts spent some time in the New York territory run by WWE, back then known as the World Wide Wrestling Federation, in the mid-1960s. There, he enjoyed a 119-day run with the United States Tag Team Championship alongside Gorilla Monsoon and also had some big matches with Bruno Sammartino for the WWE Championship. In the mid-1990s, he returned to the company for a backstage role as WWE’s booker, but that only lasted for a few months, with Watts showing back up again in 2009 to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

2 His Son Erik Followed In His Footsteps

Of Bill Watt’s five children, one of them, Erik, followed in his father’s footsteps, first playing college football before training to become a pro wrestler himself. The younger Watts was hired by WCW only a few months into his in-ring career — and during his father’s run as Vice President — where he was generally considered a failed product of nepotism. That didn’t stop Erik Watts from moving on to myriad other promotions, including WWE, where he was half of the infamous tag team Tekno Team 2000.

1 Wrote A Book

Bill Watt's book, The Cowboy and the Cross

Like many wrestlers with a story worth telling — and like many who don’t — Bill Watts wrote an autobiography covering his life and career. Published in 2006 from ECW Press and co-written with Scott Williams, The Cowboy and the Cross: The Bill Watts Story: Rebellion, Wrestling and Redemption not only covers his pre-wrestling days and his time as performer and promoter, but also Watts’ journey as he became a born-again Christian. Of particular interest to wrestling fans besides the juicy anecdotes is Watts’ in-depth explanation of his approach to pro wrestling psychology that made Mid-South Wrestling so successful.