Mick Foley And 9 Other Wrestling Legends Who Worked For The UWF

A few years before Eric Bischoff tried to put WWE out of business, a different kind of promoter attempted to go head-to-head with Vince McMahon. His name was Herb Abrams. He had no experience, an expensive habit, and an insane idea that his newfound company, the Universal Wrestling Federation, would soon rule the industry.

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Oddly enough, Abrams was provided with a platform to present his crazed vision when SportsChannel America gave him a national television slot and a show known as the UWF Fury Hour. And just like that, WWE had a competitor, no matter much anyone scoffed at Abrams' less-than-subtle wrestling scene. And Abrams wasn't afraid to go out and sign the stars. He made promises while he powdered his nosed. He had grand visions and high-strung delusions. The promotion was in complete disarray from its start in 1990 until its demise in 1996. Over that time, the promotion was home to a number of wrestling legends.

10 Mick Foley

Mick Foley made a name for himself early on by playing a maniac with a seemingly ultra-high tolerance for pain. And naturally, Abrams wanted him. Foley was still young and not quite established, so he took the opportunity to try his hand at this new UWF promotion.

Foley even worked the Blackjack Brawl, a supercard event that was televised lived from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. An event Abrams believed would fill the building but was only attended by about six hundred people. It would go down in history as the UWF's final event.

9 Bruno Sammartino

It's almost a guarantee, especially in this new age of the short attention span social media wrestling fan, that Bruno Sammartino's WWE Championship reign of 2,803 days will never be broken. It's a record that will stand the test of time as Sammartino's legacy will live on.

But as part of that legacy, it's hard to forget Sammartino's time in the UWF, where he worked as a commentator. Of course, his role in this controversial promotion came shortly after scathing criticism of WWE for their storyline vulgarity. Herb Abrams must have made Sammartino an offer he couldn't refuse.

8 Bam Bam Bigelow

Bam Bam Bigelow took big man wrestling to a new level. To watch a man his size look so light on his feet was a jolt to the senses. Was a Bigelow match all some kind of hallucination, or did he really just do that? It is truly a shame that WWE didn't do more with Bigelow.

In 1991, Bigelow was brought into the UWF, another star signing for the company. Bigelow even holds a special place in the promotion's history, having worked the main event at Beach Brawl, the lone UWF pay-per-view, for the inaugural SportsChannel Television Championship.

7 Steve Williams

With a nickname like "Dr. Death," it's no wonder Steve Williams was such a feared figure in professional wrestling. He looked like a man who never flinched once in his life, and despite not gaining much notoriety in WWE, Williams will go down as one of the greats.

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At Beach Brawl, Williams stepped into the main event to face Bam Bam Bigelow for the UWF SportsChannel Television Championship. It was a match that could have been a show-stealer on any other stage but lasted a little longer than seven minutes at the pay-per-view, with Williams winning the belt to close the event.

6 Lou Albano

The importance of the professional wrestling manager has been diminished these days. Except for Paul Heyman, few can truly help advance their managed wrestlers' careers. But this wasn't always the case. Cite Lou Albano for any evidence required to back up this theory.

Albano was a force in the eighties and even helped WWE crossover into the mainstream when the company partnered with MTV. But by 1991, Albano was largely out of the spotlight. Of course, this didn't stop Herb Abrams, who hired the former manager to conduct an interview segment for the UWF.

5 Ivan Koloff

Even though Ivan Koloff was a Canadian wrestler, he was billed as "The Russian Bear," which was a fitting nickname for a man who looked like came straight out of the woods. He was scary the way scary was supposed to be, living the gimmick the way it was supposed to be lived.

Later in his career, Koloff was lured into the UWF, adding another recognizable name to its roster. He worked the Beach Brawl pay-per-view in a match that lasted less than three minutes. It was an easy payday for the legend.

4 Bob Backlund

Bob Backlund was a classic case of organic heel heat. He wasn't supposed to be hated but the fans decided to turn on him. Back then, Backlund was what John Cena would become in the 2000s. He was a long-reigning WWE Champion who eventually dropped out of sight, and was believed to be done with professional wrestling.

And then along came Herb Abrams and the UWF. Backlund was brought back from obscurity to wrestle Ivan Koloff at Beach Brawl, where he emerged victorious in a less-than-thrilling match. Nevertheless, it was the UWF that helped get Backlund back into the business.

3 Bob Orton Jr.

When a cowboy wears a cast long after his arm has healed, it's going to be a bad day for whoever is on the other side of the ring from him. And that was Bob Orton Jr. He played dirty, he played mean, he paired himself up with Roddy Piper, bringing the havoc along wherever they went.

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In 1992, while working for the UWF, Orton became the inaugural Southern States Champion, which was one of many titles being promoted by the company. It appeared as though Herb Abrams believed that more belts would bring in more attention but all he managed to do was oversaturate the product.

2 Paul Orndorff

Paul Orndorff rose to prominence in the eighties, during what was considered to be a massive surge for professional wrestling. Orndorff worked numerous nights with Hulk Hogan as a familiar face in the main event scene, but unfortunately, never won the WWE Championship.

In the UWF, Orndorff became the Southern States Champion and held the belt for a few months. But the title was vacated when Orndorff decided to leave the promotion. The championship remained vacant for almost two years until Herb Abrams resurrected the title and tried again, as he was known for doing.

1 André the Giant

A lot of things have been said about the erratic behavior of Herb Abrams. And while his vision of putting WWE out of business was never anything more than a pipe dream, it's hard to deny that he put on his best pair of cowboy boots and rode into town guns blazing.

Abrams even managed to bring in professional wrestling's biggest attraction, André the Giant. The one-time appearance of André on UWF programming was enough to cause Vince McMahon to come running with his checkbook waving. So if nothing else, at least Abrams helped André get paid.