Ken Lusk, better known by his ring name Ken Mantell, is an American retired professional wrestler, promoter and booker who competed throughout the National Wrestling Alliance in the 1970s and 80s.
21 Facts About Ken Mantell
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Ken Mantell is a former NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion, having defeated Danny Hodge, and won the NWA World Tag Team Championship with Ron Bass in November 1975.
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Ken Mantell worked as the booker of World Class Championship Wrestling during its peak years and, as a promoter, formed the Wild West Wrestling promotion, which merged with World Class when he became part-owner in early 1988.
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Ken Mantell began his career in Florida in 1970, wrestling under his real name.
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Ken Mantell established himself working for Championship Wrestling From Florida and soon began working the NWA Tri-State territory, where he won the NWA United States Tag Team Championship with Tom Jones on August 21,1972, defeating Bobby Hart and Lorenzo Parente.
6.
On December 19,1973, Ken Mantell faced six time and then-current NWA World Junior Heavyweight Champion Danny Hodge in Jackson, Mississippi.
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Hodge, a 1956 Olympic silver medalist, had been champion for almost two years when he was defeated by Ken Mantell, who went on to reign as World Junior Heavyweight Champion for the next year and a half.
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Ken Mantell was a popular title holder and - as a world champion - defended the title throughout the National Wrestling Alliance.
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Ken Mantell feuded with wrestlers including Skandar Akbar in Kansas, Don Fargo in Utah, Bob Orton Jr in Fort Worth and Jack Lanza in Dallas.
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Ken Mantell eventually lost the title to Hiro Matsuda in St Petersburg, Florida on June 14,1975.
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Ken Mantell retired as champion on March 15,1976 after a car accident thus making Mantell the last person to ever defeat Hodge for the championship.
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Five months after losing the World Junior Heavyweight Championship Ken Mantell won gold again, when he and Ron Bass won the NWA World Tag Team Championship in November 1975.
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Ken Mantell then travelled to NWA: Georgia and again found tag team success, winning the NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship with former WWWF World Tag Team Champion Dean Ho on July 2,1976.
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Ken Mantell won the NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship on October 15,1976 in the Los Angeles territory, when he defeated Chavo Guerrero.
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Ken Mantell captured his final title in wrestling on July 25,1980 when he defeated Wahoo McDaniel in a tournament final to become the NWA Mid-South Louisiana Heavyweight Champion in Shreveport, Louisiana.
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Towards the end of his in-ring career, Ken Mantell began to transition to a backstage role, working as a booker and valued "brainstormer" in the territory he was perhaps most famous for wrestling with; World Class out of Dallas and Fort Worth.
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Ken Mantell was highly respected by the locker room and promoter Fritz Von Erich and was often thought of as Von Erich's "go to guy" after the passing of Fritz's son, David, in February 1984.
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Ken Mantell was successful and many former WCCW wrestlers would soon join the UWF, including the Fabulous Freebirds, Chris Adams, Missy Hyatt, Skandor Akbar, the Missing Link, Kamala and the One Man Gang.
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Ken Mantell continued on as a wrestler in Wild West, having notable feuds with wrestlers including Cocoa Samoa.
20.
Wild West Wrestling merged with World Class in 1988 when Ken Mantell became part-owner of World Class after Fritz Von Erich sold his once highly prosperous promotion to his sons Kevin and Kerry and to Ken Mantell.
21.
Ken Mantell has since largely retired from the professional wrestling business.