Southeastern Championship Wrestling

Southeastern Championship Wrestling was born after the demise of Gulf Coast Championship Wrestling (see the Gulf Coast section here). SECW was already alive in Knoxville, Tennessee (see the Knoxville section here) where promoter Ron Fuller had been running since 1974. In 1977, Fuller expanded the promotion to Alabama and the Florida panhandle.

At first, the two divisions of SECW were considered and treated as separates. They had their own belts, champions and feuds, though they would exchange talent. In 1980, Fuller closed the Knoxville portion of SECW. He did as such until late 1985 when Fuller decided a name change was in order and the promotion was renamed Continental Championship Wrestling (see the CCW section here).

To start any discussion on the history of professional wrestling in Dothan, one would have to begin with a short look at the history of wrestling throughout the state of Alabama.

In the early 1970's Alabama was broke down into 3 separate regions, or territories, with different promoters and workers for each particular promotion. North Alabama consisted of Birmingham, Huntsville, Florence, and Gadsden, and was promoted by Nick Gulas with most of the same wrestlers as Memphis, Nashville, Chattanooga, and Louisville. The second area located in and around Montgomery was handled by Billy Golden, father of Jimmy Golden. I'm not that familiar with this group, but I understand Jerry Lawler worked here early in his career. This brings me to the third section, Dothan - Mobile. Lee Fields controlled the area from Southeast Alabama to Southwest Alabama and Northwest Florida from Panama City to Pensacola. The name of this territory was Gulf Coast Championship Wrestling. Fields promoted most of the region, however Rocky McGuire handled Dothan and maybe Panama City at least that was the perception given on television. Many men familiar to fans in other Southern promotions, such as Gulas' group and the area promoted by Leroy McGuirk, could also be found working Dothan.

A list of Gulf Coast Heavyweight Champions during the early to mid 1970's would include: Ken Lucas, Don Carson, Duke Miller, Billy Spears, Ricky Gibson, Dick Dunn, Rip Tyler, Eddie Sullivan, Big Bad John, Alaskan Jay York, Ken Mantell, Kurt Von Hess, Greg Peterson, Bob Sweetan, The Intern w/Ken Ramey, and the masked Wrestling Pro Tarzan Baxter. Other names to work in the area were Gene Lewis, Mario Gullento, Sputnik, Flash and Apollo Monroe, Don Fargo, Johnny Eagles, Butcher Vachon, Bad Boy Billy Hines, Jack Donovan, Don Duffy, The Medic and more.

Tag Teams to hold the Gulf Coast Tag Team Championship included: Ricky & Rueben (later Robert) Gibson, Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan, Afa & Sika the Islanders, The Masked Challengers, The Mighty Yankees w/ J.C. Dykes, Randy and Lanny Poffo with Angelo Poffo, and The Original British Bulldogs Jonathon Foley & Ted Heath.

The area also had a version of the Alabama Heavyweight Title that was held by many of the men mentioned above. NWA World Champions Jack Brisco and Terry Funk made title defenses in Dothan, with Funk defending the title against both Jack Brisco and Dusty Rhodes in Dothan.
Other national names such as Andre, Dick Murdock, and Abdullah the Butcher also appeared. Although held in another building during the 50's and 60's, the home for the weekly Friday Night cards was the 5000 seat Houston County Farm Center. Television tapings for the Dothan end of Gulf Coast were held at the studios of WTVY CH. 4 each Saturday at 2:00 PM for repeat play that afternoon at 5:00 PM. I attended my first wrestling card during this time at the Farm Center, in 1973. I still recall the main event being Ron and Don Bass with Ma Bass (Mae Young) vs. the Wrestling Pro & Tiger Conway. Gulf Coast finally closed doors on the promotion around the spring of 1977 or so.

In a strange twist, one that I have yet to find an answer for, by any wrestling historian, something happened at the end of the Gulf Coast run in Dothan. With no TV, a group began working the Farm Center for two months. It consisted of some of the top talent from both Atlantas' Georgia Championship Wrestling and Eddie Grahams' Championship Wrestling from Florida. We were treated to matches between the likes of Mike Graham, Steve Keirn, Dusty Rhodes, Ole Anderson, Mr. Wrestling II, Dick Slater, Bob Orton Jr., Tony Atlas and more. I would love to know what exactly was going on at this time. Was it the NWA's way of the keeping the area alive so no one would come in or was it something totally different?