Reginald Siki (born June 16, 1940) is an American-Canadian retired

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

and singer, best known as Sweet Daddy Siki. He is believed to be the first African-American to challenge for the

NWA World Heavyweight Championship The NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship is a world heavyweight professional wrestling championship owned and promoted by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), an American professional wrestling promotion. The current champion is Tyrus, who is ...

Professional wrestling career

Siki started wrestling in 1955 in Artesia, New Mexico. He also did some training in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

with Sandor Szabo and Ray Ortega. He says he weighed about 180 pounds when he started, but within three years weighed in at 230. He moved to Toronto in 1961 because it was a central location from which to travel across North America. He still lives in Toronto today and uses it as a base for his country & western band and his work as a karaoke DJ at The Duke on Queen Street East. Siki is well known throughout Canada. He was a top draw in the 1960s and 1970s. He fought in

Stampede Wrestling Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta. For nearly 50 years, it was one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies. Originally established by Stu Hart in 1948, the pr ...

for years, travelled with Bearman McKigney's circuit and was a mainstay of the eastern scene. Siki is best known for his headbutt or "coco butt" and his "neckbreaker" maneuver.Siki still wonderful…just ask him, By Tom Godfrey, Toronto Sun, June 29, 1986 At his peak, Siki was a main card attraction at

Maple Leaf Gardens Maple Leaf Gardens is a historic building located at the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The building was initially constructed in 1931 as an arena to host ice hockey games, though it has sin ...

and drew fans by the busloads. He had made his Maple Leaf Gardens debut in 1962 and wrestled there until 1980. In his peak at Maple Leaf Gardens, he earned up to $3,000 a bout and received bundles of mail from fans around the world. In the 1970s, Siki wrestled two well-known radio & television hosts in Toronto: CHUM radio's Terry Steele and CITY-TV's Gene Taylor. He used an airplane spin as a finisher in both matches. Siki was brought into CWA Memphis on March 25, 1985, by Tux Newman for 3 weeks. He first wrestled a handicap match and then wrestled Mike Sharpe the two following weeks. Siki made an appearance on WWE Smackdown on September 13, 2011, for Edge Appreciation Night, along with several other WWE Legends and former superstars. Siki now hosts karaoke Saturday afternoons at The Duke bar at Queen and Leslie Streets in Toront

Along the way, he has accrued six major wrestling belts, including the Austra-Asian championship, the North American championship (three times), the Texas championship and the tag-team heavyweight crown. Siki suffered many injuries throughout his career. He suffered from two broken ribs, had his hands broken twice, his ankle and leg broken, and half his face paralyzed. In the 1980s, he wrestled across the Maritimes and in small Northern Ontario towns. Siki wrote his own theme song entitled "I Am So Proud of What I See". Siki also released an album on vinyl. During this time, he also started to teach the craft at Sully's Toronto Youth Athletic Club on Sundays. He continued to wrestle into the 1990s. He was also affiliated with a Toronto wrestling school through the 1980s and to the mid-1990s, initially in partnership with Johnny Powers. Besides Canada, Siki has wrestled across the United States, and in Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, and Trinidad. The second album by

The Henrys The Henrys is a Toronto-based, "nearly instrumental" quartet. Their music features the sound of an antique slide guitar called a kona (and other slide guitars), along with various other instruments, including pump organ, conch shell, guitars, vo ...

, ''Chasing Grace'', contains a song titled 'Sweet Daddy Siki'. Toronto based Pork Belly Futures featured him in their second album with the song "Sweet Daddy"

Championships and accomplishments

* 50th State Big Time Wrestling ** NWA North American Heavyweight Championship ''(Hawaii version)'' ( 1 time) ** NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Moondog Mayne * Atlantic Grand Prix Wrestling **AGPW North American Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Cuban Assassin * Big Time Wrestling **BTW World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Haystacks Calhoun *

Maple Leaf Wrestling Maple Leaf Wrestling was the unofficial name in the 1970s and 1980s of the professional wrestling promotion run by Frank Tunney in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. History Queensbury Athletic Club The promotion, initially known as the Queensbury Athl ...

** NWA International Tag Team Championship ''(Toronto version)'' ( 1 time) - with Bulldog Brower * NWA All Star Wrestling ** NWA Canadian Tag Team Championship ''(Vancouver version)'' ( 1 time) - with Kinji Shibuya * Southwest Sports, Inc. **

NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship The NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling title that has existed since the 1930s. Though its exact date of creation isn't known, it is among the oldest championships used in professional wrestling today. The title has us ...

( 1 time)* *Midwest Wrestling Association **MWA Ohio Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Leon Graham * NWA Ohio **NWA Eastern States Heavyweight Championship (1 time)¹ *

Professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

**World Negro Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *

** NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship ''(Calgary version)'' ( 1 time) ** Stampede North American Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) *

World Wrestling Council The World Wrestling Council (WWC) (Spanish: "Consejo Mundial de Lucha"), is a Puerto-Rican professional wrestling promotion based in Puerto Rico. It was originally established as Capitol Sports Promotions in 1973 by Carlos Colón Sr., Victor J ...

** WWC North American Heavyweight Championship (

2 times "2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outsid ...

) * Canadian Wrestling Hall of Fame **Class of 2016 ¹This title should not be confused with the NWA Eastern States Heavyweight Championship that was defended in

Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling Jim Crockett Promotions Inc. is a family-owned professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, restarted by Jim Crockett's son and Jim Crockett Jr's brother, David Crockett. Founded in 1931, the promo ...

in the early to mid-1970s. This title would go on to be renamed the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship.

References

External links

* *
Entry at discogs.com

{{DEFAULTSORT:Siki, Reginald 1940 births African-American male professional wrestlers American male professional wrestlers Canadian male professional wrestlers Living people People from Montgomery, Texas Professional wrestlers from Texas Professional wrestlers from Toronto Stampede Wrestling alumni American emigrants to Canada 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century professional wrestlers NWA International Tag Team Champions (Toronto version) NWA Canadian Heavyweight Champions (Calgary version)