Jacob "Jaap" Grobbe (January 28, 1924 – December 15, 2010), better known as Hans Mortier, was a Dutch professional wrestler best known for his stint in the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) and his feud with WWWF Champion Bruno Sammartino in the 1960s.
Professional wrestling career[]
Before becoming a professional wrestler, Grobbe worked as a professional body builder. His first wrestling match was in Tacoma in 1946 against Abe Yourist. He later wrestled out of Columbus, Ohio, in the late 1940s and early 1950s using under the ring name Al Haft. Grobbe went around the world fighting in New Zealand, Australia as the Great Zorro, South Africa, and France. He at one time held the European Championship. By the early 1960s, Grobbe returned to the United States.
In the 1960s, Grobbe signed a contract with the World Wide Wrestling Federation where was managed by Wild Red Berry. He feuded with Bruno Sammartino for Samamrtino's WWWF Championship. The feud would go through areas like Boston Gardens, Madison Square Garden, and Philadelphia Spectrum. In 1964 he also teamed up with his storyline brother Max, played first by Gil Voiney and later by Jack Berry. Their feud included a Texas Death match in Philadelphia.
Personal life[]
After World War II, Grobbe went overseas to the United States to be stationed at a United States Military base. There he learned several languages, including English, French, German, Dutch, and Afrikaans. He also became a police officer for six months in Tacoma, Washington.
Mortier died on December 15, 2010, in the Netherlands due to natural causes.
In wrestling[]
- Finishing and signature moves
- Teams and stables
- Mortier Brothers with Max Mortier
- Managers
Championships and accomplishments[]
- International Wrestling
- Montreal World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- National Wrestling Alliance
- Championship Wrestling from Florida
- Mid-Pacific
- NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship (1 time) with Johnny Barend
- NWA Big Time
- NWA Western States
- NWA Amarillo North American Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (Amarillo version) (1 time) with Kurt von Poppenheim
