Bruce Prichard Reflects On The Legacy Of The Late Iron Sheik
WWE Hall of Famer The Iron Sheik passed away last week at the age of 81. Sheik, whose real name was Hossein Khosrow Ali Vaziri, was involved in some major wrestling moments over the course of his in-ring career, and one of the most prominent was his part in the beginning of "Hulk-A-Mania." Speaking about the late wrestling on "Something to Wrestle With," WWE producer Bruce Prichard shared his thoughts on Sheik's strength of character as a person behind the scenes.
"[We] lost one of the absolute, all-time greats of the business," Prichard said. "People that were only exposed to Koz in his later years, when he wasn't in the ring and wasn't in the best of shape ... and kind of became a punchline for jokes, have no idea the true human being that was Khosrow Vaziri. I was honored to know him. I was honored to be belly-to-belly suplexed at the Quality Inn ... in Houston, Texas."
In addition to being a steadfast friend to many who were backstage in the company at the time, Vaziri played an integral role in kicking off one of the most important eras in the professional wrestling business.
The Legacy of The Iron Sheik
"This guy, you know you think about the whole explosion of the business, when Vince took everything national, and the huge part that Kaz had in that," Prichard continued. "Because it went from Bob Backlund to The Iron Sheik, the [WWF] Champion ... and the Sheik then lost that title to Hulk Hogan, and 'Hulk-A-Mania' was born. The rest, as they say, is history." Vaziri went on to compete at multiple WrestleMania events, and was eventually inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
"Because of that, I think Vince always looked at Sheik as [a] top, main event guy. No matter where he was in the card, whether he was opening up or whatever, he was paid as a main eventer and taken care of as a main eventer because he meant so much to the company and meant so much to our business in how he did everything." Prichard had a number of fond things to say regarding Vaziri beyond just his contributions to the industry.
"Khosrow Vaziri, the Iron Sheik, may he rest in peace," Prichard concluded. "I thank him for everything he did in this business and for being a friend, and ... always looking out for me the way he did. He was a great guy."