Full Career Retrospective and Greatest Moments for Sgt. Slaughter

Sgt. Slaughter is one of the most recognizable professional wrestlers in the history of the industry.

The former United States Marine Corps Sergeant, Slaughter made his pro debut in 1972 with Verne Gagne's American Wrestling Alliance.

Over the course of the next 20-plus years, he would be both the most popular and most hated man in the business. As a patriotic babyface, he would rile fans into a frenzy by vanquishing the likes of the Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff.

As a drill-instructor villain, he was loud, mean and nasty and had no problem dishing out pain and punishment to the top babyfaces in the industry.

By the time the 1990s arrived and the Gulf War was waged, Slaughter became the single most controversial—and most hated—star in the sport when he pledged allegiance to dangerous and deadly dictator Saddam Hussein.

Slaughter would eventually mend the fences with the fans and become a heroic figure again.

He would return to WWE in 1997 as its commissioner.

No longer a full-time competitor by 2004, he was immortalized with an induction into the WWE Hall of Fame.

To this day, he still makes sporadic appearances, either in backstage vignettes or the occasional match.

In celebration of one the great patriots in wrestling history, here is a look back at the legendary career of Sgt. Slaughter in the form of some of his greatest moments.

Super Destroyer Mark II

Slaughter's first major exposure in wrestling came as a character known as Super Destroyer Mark II. Appearing in the AWA, Super Destroyer would make enough of an impression that he was given the opportunity to mix it up with one of the promotion's top stars, Nick Bockwinkel.

He would be guided by two very different men, both of whom had achieved success as wrestlers, managers and commentators in their careers. One of those men was Bobby Heenan, perhaps the greatest performer in the history of the sport.

The other? Lord Alfred Hayes, who would go on to become most recognized as a member of the WWE broadcast team throughout the mid- to late 1980s and the early '90s.

In fact, Super Destroyer Mark II dumped Hayes and joined Hennan.

He would leave the promotion not long afterwards, however.

Title Matches With Backlund and Brawls with Patterson

In 1980, Sgt. Slaughter made his debut in the World Wrestling Federation. 

With legendary Hall of Famer The Grand Wizard as his manager, Slaughter wasted little time achieving great success in the New York-based promotion. He quickly climbed the ladder to the top of the WWF and earned a shot at the Heavyweight Championship held by 2013 Hall of Fame inductee Bob Backlund.

Their first match against one another took place October 23 in Altoona, Penn. They would compete against each other on a number of occasions, including a match in Philadelphia at the Spectrum.

While the title matches would be a major boost to Slaughter's star power, his matches with Pat Patterson established him as one of the top stars in the country.

On April 21, 1981, Slaughter and Patterson would deliver an all-time great brawl inside the hallowed halls of Madison Square Garden. Dubbed an Alley Fight, the match saw Patterson bloody Slaughter. The former Marine dealt out his fair share of punishment as the New York crowd watched on in near disbelief, the brutality unlike anything they had seen to that point.

Vince McMahon's call of the match, in which he claimed the bout was "perhaps the most brutal match in professional wrestling history," only helped to put over the severity of the beatings both men endured.

One of the greatest matches in company history and one that still holds up some 32 years later.

Tag Team Champion

After departing from the WWF, Slaughter found work in several regional promotions across the eastern part of the United States.

In September of 1982, he teamed with Don Kernodle to capture the National Wrestling Alliance's Tag Team Championship. They would hold those titles until March of the following year, amassing a 192-day title reign.

A feud with Ricky Steamboat and Jay Youngblood over the titles would culminate in a superb steel cage match that was won by the challengers.

Slaughter and Kernodle would go their separate ways, with the former returning to familiar stomping grounds.

Return to New York and Warring with the Iron Sheik

Upon returning to the World Wrestling Federation, Sgt. Slaughter underwent a major personality makeover.

The last time fans had seen him, he was a villainous drill instructor who called opponents "puke" and "maggot." He was a mean-spirited brawler.

When he returned, he did so by defending the United States, which had been the target of the pro-Iran Iron Sheik. 

Slaughter waged war with the Iron Sheik on several occasions, passionately fighting on behalf of the entire country every time.

On May 21, 1984, they had their most infamous match against one another. It was dubbed a Boot Camp match, and, like the war with Patterson three years earlier, it was a brutal affair. Slaughter would win the match, but as the promotion enjoyed its first boom period, Slaughter would disappear from the limelight following a dispute with owner Vince McMahon over his partnership with GI Joe.

GI Joe Partnership and Return to AWA

Slaughter partnered with GI Joe and appeared on several episodes of the toy brand's animated television program. He was even immortalized in an action figure, a high honor that very few outside of the GI Joe world are awarded.

His relationship with the brand and toy company Hasbro caused a schism in Slaughter's relationship with McMahon and caused him to seek employment elsewhere. He did, returning to the AWA in 1985.

The promotion was still successful at that point but was beginning to suffer from a lack of big-name talent and owner Verne Gagne's stubborn resistance against change.

Slaughter was a recognizable figure in the industry and would help Gagne's promotion in the short term, at least.

His feud with Sheik Adnan El Kaissey and his stable of wrestlers felt somewhat lackluster compared to the edgier, more violent work he had done in the World Wrestling Federation.

Slaughter would go on to have several matches against Larry Zbyszko, but none would really spike business.

Gagne, for as great and influential as he had once been, had failed to accept the direction the business was taking, and by 1991, AWA would close its doors permanently.

Controversy, the WWF Championship and the WrestleMania Main Event

In 1990, Slaughter returned to the World Wrestling Federation, again with a new persona and attitude.

Gone was the patriotic former marine who supported everything red, white and blue, and in his place was an Iraqi sympathizer.

Slaughter spoke favorably on Saddam Hussein and supported the country in its war with the United States. He debuted new ring boots, inspired by the same ones worn by the dictator.

At the 1991 Royal Rumble, he would compete in the biggest match of his career, a WWF title match against The Ultimate Warrior. The match, marred by interference from "Macho King" Randy Savage, would see Slaughter capture his first World Heavyweight Championship in Vince McMahon's promotion.

The title win assured that Slaughter would head into WrestleMania VII as champion. His opponent at that show? WWF and American hero Hulk Hogan.

With the Gulf War wrapping up, the two iconic wrestlers took to the ring in the most patriotic WrestleMania ever.

Slaughter busted Hogan up and locked in the camel clutch, seeming to be well on his way to a successful title defense that would crush the spirit of the WWF fans. Fortunately, Hogan hulked up, delivered the big boot and leg drop and everyone lived happily ever after.

The match was a very good main event that has become somewhat lost in the long and illustrious history of WrestleMania.

Slaughter would continue his main event run well into the summer, but with the Gulf War's end came a substantial drop-off in heat. After teaming with Colonel Mustafa and General Adnan in a losing effort against Hogan and the Warrior at SummerSlam, Slaughter turned babyface.

He would team with Jim Duggan into 1992, but soon, he disappeared from WWE programming.

A Commissioner, a Stooge and a Hall of Famer

In 1997, Slaughter returned to the World Wrestling Federation as the fictional commissioner, an on-air authority figure that assured that law and order would be dished out.

During his time in that role, he engaged in a rather personal feud with D-Generation X.

On a weekly basis, Shawn Michaels and Triple H would humiliate and degrade Slaughter with both their words and actions. Their complete lack of respect for one of the ring's great stars was despicable, and eventually, the former WWF champion had had enough. 

At the December 1997 D-Generation X pay-per-view, Slaughter returned to the ring for one night only, taking on Triple H in a Boot Camp match. While the match itself was underwhelming, Slaughter turned in an admirable performance in a losing effort.

As the Stone Cold Steve Austin-Mr. McMahon rivalry exploded in 1998, Slaughter became one of McMahon's "stooges," a former ring great who was a glad-handing yes man.

Slaughter would work behind the scenes for the company as an agent. He would help talent that asked for it and helped assure that the shows ran smoothly.

In 2004, his hard work and dedication to professional wrestling paid off when he was inducted into the WWE (they dropped the "F" and replaced it in 2002) Hall of Fame.

To this day, Slaughter makes appearances at conventions and independent events across the country. He even occasionally appears on WWE programming, usually as the American hero returning to fight a foreign villain.

Legacy

Sgt. Slaughter is one of the rare talents capable of making fans love him as easily as he can make fans absolutely despise him.

While he never achieved the level of success he should have during his prime as a competitor, his return in 1990 proved that he could adapt to the times and still be a valuable asset to whichever promotion was lucky enough to have him.

His crossover appeal, as seen with the GI Joe partnership, was incredibly strong and probably could have been better capitalized upon by WWE and the AWA.

A strong worker whose ability to bump around the ring for his opponents is criminally underrated, Slaughter is one of those timeless talents that will always have a place in the sport, no matter the decade.