Joe Savoldi had a claim at one time as the World Heavyweight Champion, which was a long way away from his humble beginnings in the hills of Italy.  Savoldi immigrated as a pre-teen to Michigan and would later play football under the famous Knute Rockne at Notre Dame.  Savoldi fell into Professional Wrestling and was praised for his dropkick, a unique move at the time.  Under the guidance of Billy Sandow, he beat Jim Londos in controversial fashion (perhaps a double-cross) in 1933 and was recognized in some circles as the Heavyweight Champion.  He would lose that claim in a match to Jim Browning but had high profile rematches against Londos to huge crowds.  He couldn’t beat Londos again but he was a draw for a decade and a half to come.

The Warlord was one of the greatest physical specimens in the history of professional wrestling in terms of strength.  He was not overly mobile or technically gifted but when you tried to imagine what a wrestler would like in the late 80’sand early 90’s it was The Warlord that you imagined.