Emanuel "Manny" Fernandez (July 27, 1954) is an American professional wrestler under the ring name Manny Fernandez.
Professional wrestling career
Fernandez had success 1979, becoming Florida Heavyweight Champion after a feud with Terry Funk. He also formed a tag team with Dusty Rhodes, and they won the NWA World Tag Team Championship from Ivan Koloff and Don Kernodle. They feuded with them and Ivan's "nephew" Nikita Koloff until losing the title to the Koloffs in early 1985.
Fernandez soon became involved in a feud with Arn Anderson after being attacked by Anderson and laid out. He teamed with Thunderbolt Patterson to feud with Arn and Ole Anderson.
In late 1985, he started helping Jimmy Valiant in his war against Paul Jones and his Army. He formed a team with Valiant called the "B and B Connection" ("Boogie Woogie" and "Bull"). He had some matches against Abdullah the Butcher and The Barbarian. He also formed a tag team with Hector Guerrero in 1986 called The Latin Connection. In the summer of 1986, Fernandez accepted Jones' money and turned on Valiant starting a feud between the two. Later in the year, Jones also brought in Rick Rude. Pairing Fernandez and Rude together, the duo defeated The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson) for the NWA World Tag Team Championship. They feuded with the Express and kept the titles until June 1987 when Rude left the promotion, which was resolved with a "phantom title change".
Fernandez teamed with Ivan Koloff for the rest of the summer and left for the Mid-Southern promotion in late 1987. He was soon in the American Wrestling Association (AWA) feuding with Wahoo McDaniel after he attacked Wahoo and destroyed his headdress. The two veterans, who had feuded briefly in the NWA, engaged in an "Indian Strap match" at the AWA pay-per-view SuperClash III. After that feud ended in late 1988, Fernandez headed to Puerto Rico's World Wrestling Council (WWC) where he stayed through 1991 and then he headed to the independent circuit.
Personal life
Before wrestling, Fernandez attended Lincoln High School in San Jose, California. He was an All-League (Santa Teresa Athletic League) linebacker in football and a league champion in wrestling at 191 lbs. Fernandez graduated from Lincoln High in 1973.
He was also an All-American offense guard for the San Jose City College Jaguars football team under coach Jim Wheelahan. He also played football at West Texas State University. He played professional football in the NFL for three years.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Flying Burrito (Flying forearm smash)
- Managers and valets
- Paul Jones
- El Profe
- Natasha
- Skandor Akbar
- Nicknames
- "The Ragin' Bull"
- Entrance Music
- "Beat It" by Michael Jackson (1985)
Championships and accomplishments
- Eastern States Wrestling / Eastern Shores Wrestling
- ESW Heavyweight Championship (1 time, first)
- International Wrestling Association
- IWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Mid-Atlantic version) (1 time)
- NWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Dusty Rhodes (1) and Rick Rude (1)
- PWI ranked him # 188 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.
- PWI ranked him # 88 of the 100 best tag teams during the "PWI Years" with Dusty Rhodes.
- SCW Southwest Brass Knuckles Championship (1 time)
- SCW Southwest Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- SCW Southwest Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Chavo Guerrero Sr. (1) and Al Perez (1)
- SCW World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Chavo Guerrero Sr.
- WWC North American Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- WWC Puerto Rico Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
