# Bill Verna

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**Bill Verna** (born 1929), also known as **Big Bill Verna**, is an Australian [professional wrestler](/source/Professional_wrestler). He wrestled throughout the world during his 20-year career, especially in his adopted country of [Great Britain](/source/Great_Britain), winning the All European Championship and the British Empire/Commonwealth Heavyweight Championship during the 1950s. One of the first major *[heels](/source/Heel_(professional_wrestling))* in [Joint Promotions](/source/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_Kingdom#Joint_Promotions), he was mentioned by "Exotic" [Adrian Street](/source/Adrian_Street) as one of the wrestlers who helped shape [professional wrestling in Britain](/source/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_Kingdom).[1][unreliable source?]

## Biography

Bill Verna was born in [Perth, Western Australia](/source/Perth,_Western_Australia) in 1929.[2][unreliable source?] He moved to Belgium in 1947 and adopted freestyle wrestling as his profession.[3][unreliable source?] When he became a pro wrestler, he weighed around 224 pounds, and stood 5 feet and 10 inches in height. He trained for two to three hours each morning and raised his weight to 280 pounds.[3][4][unreliable source?] After settling in Britain, he traveled the world to wrestle but continued to return to Britain to face such wrestlers as Billy Two Rivers, Gord Nelson, and [Paul "Butcher" Vachon](/source/Paul_Vachon).[5][6][7] He also faced, but was defeated by, [Lou Thesz](/source/Lou_Thesz) in a match that took place in [Brighton](/source/Brighton), [East Sussex](/source/East_Sussex).[2] In 1948, he wrestled in the main event at a show at Happy World Stadium in Singapore. In the sixth round, he was knocked out by [Dara Singh](/source/Dara_Singh).[8] He then wrestled a series of matches against Jagindar Singh, defeating him in the main event of a show on 4 September and again on 16 October.[9][10] The following January, he was again knocked out during a match in Singapore. Competing against Jejl Goldstein, he was hit and fell out of the ring and on to a fan at ringside.[11] Two months later, he collapsed during a match; as a result, his opponent, King Kong, was awarded the victory.[12]

Verna fought more than 2000 wrestling bouts.[3] In 1952, he won the All European Championship. Bill married a Singaporean in 1954 while he was living in Belgium.[3] In the mid-1950s, he wrestled in Pakistan as a [face](/source/Face_(professional_wrestling)). During this time, he was outspoken against the Pakistani media, as he objected to them always depicting local wrestlers controlling matches against foreign wrestlers.[3] While he was competing, Verna's best friend was [Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Famer](/source/Wrestling_Observer_Newsletter_Hall_of_Fame) [Bert Assirati](/source/Bert_Assirati), although the two had matches in which both wrestlers made each other bleed quite a bit. Verna explained in an interview that neither man held back because they did not want the fans to "complain that they did not enjoy the fight".[13][unreliable source?]

While competing against Pakistani wrestler [Akram Pahalwan](/source/Akram_Pahalwan), Verna's opponent suffered a dislocated left shoulder that forced Pahalwan to take a break from wrestling.[14][unreliable source?] Verna later held the British Empire/Commonwealth Heavyweight Championship in the 1950s before [dropping](/source/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Drop) the title to [Geoff Portz](/source/Geoff_Portz) during a match in [Newcastle, New South Wales](/source/Newcastle,_New_South_Wales) in 1959.[15][16] He also defeated Phil Siki, the heavyweight champion of the West Indies, in a match at Cambridge Road Baths.[17] In the summer of 1960, he headlined wrestling events held at the [California Ballroom](/source/California_Ballroom) in bouts against Francis Sullivan and Ray Hunter.[18] In the 1960s, Verna appeared regularly on televised wrestling programs in Britain. These were some of the earliest televised matches broadcast in the United Kingdom and, between 1961–62, were promoted by [Joint Promotions](/source/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_Kingdom#Joint_Promotions). Among his opponents included Frankie Townsend[19] and Bill Rawlings.[20] He wrestled as a [heel](/source/Heel_(professional_wrestling)) and gained the hatred of many fans.[4] In March 1966, Verna agreed to serve as a last minute replacement for the "flu-struck" [Wayne Bridges](/source/Wayne_Bridges) in his match against Dennis Mitchell at [Royal Albert Hall](/source/Royal_Albert_Hall). Verna scored a submission victory in the second round but was knocked out by Mitchell in the next round.[21][22]

In Pakistan, where Verna spent most of his career, the journal *Ash Shuja* featured Verna in a 1955 story. He was said to be "appreciated and admired as a player throughout the world". It also stated that he was "acknowledged with great respect among the famous wrestlers of the world".[13]

## Championships and accomplishments

- **Other titles** - All European Championship (1 time)[3] - [British Empire/Commonwealth Heavyweight Championship](/source/British_Empire/Commonwealth_Heavyweight_Championship) (1 time)[15]

## References

1. Street, Adrian. ["My Tribute to 'The Gladiators' of the Golden Age of British Professional Wrestling"](http://www.fighttimes.com/magazine/magazine.asp?article=297). Fight Times Magazine. Retrieved 2009-06-23.

1. ["A Legend in Our Midst"](http://www.wrestlingheritage.co.uk/alegendinourmidst.htm). Wrestling Heritage. Retrieved 2009-06-23.

1. Azam, Farid & Mike Hallinan. ["Continuing Page on Wrestling"](https://archive.today/20091026041829/http://www.geocities.com/worlddwebb/wrestling_in_pakistan/). Wrestling in Pakistan. Archived from [the original](http://www.geocities.com/worlddwebb/wrestling_in_pakistan/) on 2009-10-26. Retrieved 2009-06-23.

1. ["1950: A World Champion on the Loose"](http://www.wrestlingheritage.co.uk/1950.htm). Wrestling Heritage. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20070823153425/http://www.wrestlingheritage.co.uk/1950.htm) 23 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2009-06-23.

1. Nevada, Vance. ["Billy Two Rivers"](https://web.archive.org/web/20150919155158/http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/ResultsArchive/Wrestlers/tworivers-billy.html). SLAM! Wrestling. Archived from [the original](http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/ResultsArchive/Wrestlers/tworivers-billy.html) on 19 September 2015. Retrieved 2009-06-23.

1. Nevada, Vance. ["Gord Nelson"](https://web.archive.org/web/20150611133206/http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/ResultsArchive/Wrestlers/nelson-gord.html). SLAM! Wrestling. Archived from [the original](http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/ResultsArchive/Wrestlers/nelson-gord.html) on 11 June 2015. Retrieved 2009-06-23.

1. Nevada, Vance. ["Paul Vachon"](https://web.archive.org/web/20150919155258/http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/ResultsArchive/Wrestlers/vachon-paul.html). SLAM! Wrestling. Archived from [the original](http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/ResultsArchive/Wrestlers/vachon-paul.html) on 19 September 2015. Retrieved 2009-06-23.

1. "Dara Singh KO's Bill Verna". *[The Straits Times](/source/The_Straits_Times)*. 1948-09-19. p. 10.

1. "Jagindar Beaten". *The Straits Times*. 1948-09-05. p. 10.

1. "Dam Singh Wins". *The Straits Times*. 1948-10-17. p. 11.

1. "Verna Knocked Out of Ring". *The Straits Times*. 1949-01-30. p. 11.

1. "Great World Wrestling". *The Straits Times*. 1949-03-06. p. 10.

1. "The Iron Man". *Ash Shuja*. January 1955. p. 8.

1. Azam, Farid. ["Bholu Brothers of Wrestling"](https://web.archive.org/web/20090903064447/http://geocities.com/worlddwebb/bholu_brothers/). Wrestling in Pakistan. Archived from [the original](http://www.geocities.com/worlddwebb/bholu_brothers/) on 3 September 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-11.

1. ["British Empire/Commonwealth Heavyweight Title"](http://www.wrestling-titles.com/europe/uk/bec-h.html). Wrestling Titles. Retrieved 2009-06-23.

1. ["Wrestler Profiles: Geoff Portz"](https://web.archive.org/web/20090719112151/http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/profiles/g/geoff-portz.html). Online World of Wrestling. Archived from [the original](http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/profiles/g/geoff-portz.html) on 19 July 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-23.

1. ["Another 'no contest' at the Baths"](http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_6784/is_2006_Dec_12/ai_n28392511/). *[Huddersfield Daily Examiner](/source/Huddersfield_Daily_Examiner)*. 2006. Retrieved 2009-06-23.

1. ["1960"](http://www.california-ballroom.info/gigs/gigs-1960.htm). *Gigs: 1960*. California-Ballroom.info. 2005. Retrieved 2009-06-29.

1. Lister, John (2006). ["ITV Wrestling: 1961"](https://web.archive.org/web/20110713113755/http://www.johnlisterwriting.com/itvwrestling/61.html). *ITV Wrestling*. JohnListerWriting.com. Archived from [the original](http://www.johnlisterwriting.com/itvwrestling/61.html) on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 2009-06-30.

1. Lister, John (2006). ["ITV Wrestling: 1962"](https://web.archive.org/web/20110713113817/http://www.johnlisterwriting.com/itvwrestling/62.html). *ITV Wrestling*. JohnListerWriting.com. Archived from [the original](http://www.johnlisterwriting.com/itvwrestling/62.html) on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 2009-06-30.

1. Mascall, Charles (March 1966). ["Ricky Starr smashes "Bully Boy" Lynch"](https://web.archive.org/web/20110720182524/http://www.wrestlingfurnace.com/events/rah66/66rah03.jpg). *A Seat at the Ringside*. Wrestling Furnace Picture Gallery. Archived from [the original](http://www.wrestlingfurnace.com/events/rah66/66rah03.jpg) on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 2009-06-27.

1. ["Results from the Royal Albert Hall and Wembley Arena Spectaculars"](https://archive.today/20120702020714/http://britishwrestlingarchive.co.uk/RESULTS%20FROM%20THE%20ROYAL%20ALBERT%20HALL%20AND%20WEMBLEY%20ARENA%20SPECTACULARS.htm). BritishWrestlingArchive.co.uk. 2003. Archived from [the original](http://britishwrestlingarchive.co.uk/RESULTS%20FROM%20THE%20ROYAL%20ALBERT%20HALL%20AND%20WEMBLEY%20ARENA%20SPECTACULARS.htm) on 2 July 2012. Retrieved 2009-06-29.

## External links

- [Big Bill Verna at Genickbruch.com](http://www.genickbruch.com/index.php?befehl=bios&wrestler=11070)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Bill Verna](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Verna) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Verna?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.