Sad news for wrestling fans. Ak lost his battle with cancer last night.
I met him once, years ago, in full kayfabe mode, and booed him loudly, like a good little mark.
Super talented performer. His best days in the ring were before my time, but I’ve seen some matches on video. He could shoot, he could work, he could talk. Great feud with Danny Hodge. I remember him mostly as a manager, handling the likes of Kamala, One Man Gang, and others in his Devastation, Inc. stable in Mid-South/UWF, and also in Dallas. Took great bumps as a manager. Guy was an absolute heat machine. He and Michael Hayes are the only two wrestlers I know of that received legitimate, police investigated death threats prior to appearing on Superdome shows. Ak talked about it in several shoot interviews. Essentially, the cops did not want him to appear at all, and insisted that he wear a bullet proof vest under his arabic robes.
From all reports, Ak was a fine man outside of wrestling. Don’t know that I’ve ever heard anyone say a harsh word about him, and that’s pretty rare in the wrestling business.
RIP, General Skandar Akbar. Reckon you’ll be managing Valentine against Wahoo in the main event in Vahalla tonight.