Hennig made his debut in 1980 and won several championships in both the Pacific Northwest Wrestling (PNW) and the American Wrestling Association (AWA) over the decade.
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Mr. Perfect, Curtis Michael Hennig, was born on March 28, 1958. He was a professional wrestler from the United States. He wrestled for the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF; now WWE), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), and NWA Total Nonstop Action under his own name. Hennig was the father of wrestler Curtis Axel and the son of wrestler Larry “The Axe” Hennig. Hennig made his debut in 1980 and won several championships in both the Pacific Northwest Wrestling (PNW) and the American Wrestling Association (AWA) over the decade.
He rose to prominence after defeating Nick Bockwinkel for the AWA World Heavyweight Championship in 1987, and his 373-day reign was the seventh-longest in history. Following that, Hennig joined the WWF, where he feuded with Hulk Hogan for the WWF Championship and twice won the WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship, becoming the longest-reigning titleholder of the 1990s. In addition to winning many WCW championships in the late 1990s, Hennig competed on pay-per-view (PPV) for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship and headed stable and country music group the West Texas Rednecks, who released the classic tongue-in-cheek song “Rap Is Crap.”
In 2000, he won the WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship while working for the World Wrestling Council (WWC). Hennig made a short return to the WWF/E in 2002, finishing as one of the last three men standing in that year’s Royal Rumble. Prior to his death on February 10, 2003, he headlined many TNA PPV events while competing for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.
WWE acknowledged Hennig with elevating the level of technical wrestling in the organisation, while professional wrestling journalists Bob Ryder and Dave Scherer referred to him as “one of the finest all-around fighters this business has ever produced” in a 2000 article. Former Major League Baseball star and lifelong friend Wade Boggs inducted Hennig into the WWE Hall of Fame posthumously in 2007. Hulk Hogan stated, “When they got to a building where Curt Hennig was, everyone would check their egos at the entrance because you couldn’t outwork him, outshine him, or outperform him. He was the greatest of all time.”
| Name | Curtis Michael Hennig |
| DOB | 28 March 1958 – 10 February 2003, 44 years |
| Height | 191 cm |
| Weight | 117 kg |
| Occupation | Professional wrestler |
| Professional Debut | 1980 |
| Wife | Leonice Leonard |
| Professional Name | Mr. Perfect |
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Hennig debuted in the WWF in 1981. His first win came against Johnny Rodz. Against the likes of “Playboy” Buddy Rose, Greg Valentine, and Killer Khan, he established himself as a potential young talent. He was eventually teamed in tag team battles with another young upstart, Eddie Gilbert, the son of wrestling great Tommy Gilbert. He had a short stint when he first came to WWF and left early to work for other organizations and later returned to the company.
Hennig rejoined to the WWF in mid-1988, pinning Terry Taylor at WrestleFest ’88. On the September 11 episode of All-American Wrestling, Hennig defeated enhancement star Ron Rovishod in a televised match. On the October 1 episode of Superstars, vignettes began airing on WWF television, during which he was repackaged as an arrogant braggart villain who claimed to be able to complete difficult tasks “perfectly,” earning him the nickname “Mr. Perfect,” which would become his ring name in 1989 and phase out the use of his real name.
At Survivor Series, Hennig made his pay-per-view debut, teaming up with Rick Rude, Dino Bravo (also a co-captain), and Harley Race to face co-captain Jim Duggan’s team of Jake Roberts (also a co-captain), Ken Patera, Tito Santana, and Scott Casey in a five-on-five elimination tag team match. Perfect came out on top over Bravo. Throughout 1989, he was unbeaten on television, defeating mid-card wrestlers like as Koko B. Ware, The Blue Blazer, The Red Rooster, Jimmy Snuka, Tito Santana, and Bret Hart.
Perfect assaulted Genius’s opponent Brutus Beefcake after their battle in the Royal Rumble, sparking an animosity between the two. Perfect competed in the Royal Rumble match as the No. 30 entrant later that night. He knocked out Rick Rude on his way to the final two, where he was defeated by Hogan. On March 19, Perfect’s perfect record came to an end when he lost his first pinfall match on television to Intercontinental Champion Ultimate Warrior on an MSG Network special. At WrestleMania VI, he lost his first singles match on national television to Brutus Beefcake. Hogan finally got even with Perfect in a bout on Saturday Night’s Main Event XXVI on April 28th, in which Hogan beat Perfect for the very first time on broadcast.
Following his injuries, Hennig spent the next year rehabilitating. On the November 23 broadcast of Superstars, he returned to television as Ric Flair’s “executive consultant.” Perfect joined Superstars the next week as a colour commentator for the next year, providing a fitting diabolical counterpoint to Vince McMahon’s play-by-play. Perfect helped Flair win fights during this time and managed him to two World Heavyweight Championship reigns in 1992. Perfect and Flair were embroiled in a feud with Randy Savage by the autumn of 1992, culminating in a tag team match at Survivor Series between Flair and Razor Ramon against Savage and Ultimate Warrior.
Perfect and Flair began a high-profile feud. On the January 2, 1993 edition of Superstars, he defeated The Berzerker in his comeback to singles competition. Hennig competed in the 1993 Royal Rumble match, which decided who would be the No. 1 challenger for the WWF Championship at WrestleMania. He defeated Flair, Skinner, and Jerry Lawler until Ted DiBiase, Koko B. Ware, and Lawler eliminated him. The next night, on Monday Night Raw, Hennig defeated Flair in a match in which the loser was forced to quit the WWF. As a result, Flair decided to leave WWF.
On March 20, 1994, Perfect made a surprise comeback to the WWF as the special guest referee for the WWF Championship bout between Lex Luger and Yokozuna at WrestleMania X. Perfect disqualified Luger for manhandling Perfect, who was caring to Yokozuna’s ailing managers Jim Cornette and Mr. Fuji, instead of counting the pinfall and turning heel. Perfect was scheduled to begin a new feud with Luger, during which he stated that he had screwed Luger because of Luger’s unlawful victory against Perfect at WrestleMania IX the year before. Hennig’s back troubles flared up again, so the preparations were cancelled. In the spring of 1994, he departed the WWF.
In 1995, Hennig returned to the organisation as a colour commentator at the Survivor Series pay-per-view after taking a year out to heal from a back ailment. Hennig was placed in an angle with Hunter Hearst Helmsley in mid-1996, where he would walk out to the ringside during Helmsley’s fights and take his female escorts, causing Helmsley to get distracted and affecting his effectiveness in matches. Helmsley beat Mero to the championship with the support of Perfect. Helmsley began to see Perfect as a mentor, and Perfect followed him to the ring. Perfect returned to the WWF just before Survivor Series, making his final broadcast appearance on Raw on November 5th.
During the build-up to the Royal Rumble in January, it was confirmed that Hennig will be one of the 30 competitors. Hennig, who was once again labelled as “Mr. Perfect,” was one of the final three contestants in the Royal Rumble before being eliminated by eventual victor Triple H. Perfect put on a tremendous performance at the Rumble, hitting Kurt Angle with the Perfect-Plex and holding his own against the WWF’s strongest at the moment. Hennig was offered a full-time deal with the WWF after his performance and the enthusiastic reaction of the Atlanta fans.
Perfect made an appearance on Raw the next night in a bout against Val Venis. He later had brief feuds with Stone Cold Steve Austin. During the first-ever WWF Draft, Hennig was selected for Raw. On the May 12 edition of Heat, Hennig was beaten by Matt Hardy in his final broadcast WWE battle. On May 7, 2002, Hennig was fired from the business after a violent altercation with Brock Lesnar on the way back from the pay-per-view.
WWF Intercontinental Championship (2 times)
WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2007)
WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship Tournament (1990)
Henning was married to Leonice Leonard. She is the widow of Mr. Perfect. Joseph, Amy, Kaite, and Hank are their four children. Professional wrestlers Joseph and Amy are. Hennig is survived by his parents, Larry and Irene, two brothers, Randy and Jesse, and two sisters, Sandra and Susan, in addition to his wife and four children. Not much is known about Leonice as she likes to keep her life private and she is a very devoted family woman.
