WRESTLING NEWS
The 15 Most Influential Wrestling Families Of All Time
By ROBERT CORNAL
McMahon
As the first family of wrestling, Jess McMahon and his son, Vince, formed the CWC, which morphed into the WWWF in 1963. Vince sold his stake to his son, Vince Jr., who transformed it into a nationwide promotion, later becoming the WWE. In light of a hush money scandal, Vince Jr.'s daughter Stephanie replaced him in 2022.
Hart
Under the leadership of Stu Hart, Stampede Wrestling was created, known for short, stocky wrestlers that meshed the Japanese and British wrestling styles. To farm future prospects, they opened a training school in the basement of their mansion, which became a Mecca for aspiring wrestlers like Roddy Piper, Jake Roberts, and Ken Shamrock.
Windham/Rotunda
Blackjack Mulligan (Robert Windham) and his two sons, Barry and Kendall, were prominent in NWA and WCW, but Kendall and his father's fame faded when they were sentenced to prison for two years for a counterfeiting scheme. Mike Rotunda married Windham's daughter, and their sons have had notable careers in WWE.
Von Erich
Fritz Von Erich founded the World Class Championship Wrestling out of Texas, and with his six sons, they became beloved by fans as working-class folk heroes. Plenty of strife plagued the family as only one of Von Erich's sons still survives, and today a few of Fritz’s grandchildren are on the MLW roster.
Hennig
Larry "The Axe" Hennig found tag team success in the AWA, and later, his son Curt, known as "Mr. Perfect," had a successful WWF career before a tragic overdose in 2003. Curt's kids, Amy and Joe, also have wrestling careers and to date, Curt and Joe are the only father and son to both win the Intercontinental Championship title.