Some stories in pro wrestling fade with time, lost to dusty arenas and the crumbling of kayfabe. But others refuse to die, lingering in half-remembered whispers and grainy footage. Among them is a tale involving Mario Milano, a man whose name still stirs confusion among old-school fans and conspiracy-minded historians alike. What exactly happened? Why does his role in this decades-old moment still spark debate? This isn’t just a footnote in wrestling lore. It’s a riddle tucked into a headlock, waiting to be countered and exposed.
A decades-old WWE mystery persists: fans and historians debate the truth behind Mario Milano’s most controversial chapter. Photo Credit: WWE. Artwork by Pro Wrestling Stories.
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Mario Milano: The Secret Identity That Launched a Wrestling Dynasty
Mario Milano was born Mario Bulfone in Trieste, Italy, on May 15th, 1935. Although he was from Italy, Bulfone grew up in Venezuela and began wrestling at the age of eighteen in 1953.
Because Venezuelan law imposed a strict 9 p.m. curfew for anyone under the age of nineteen, a young Bulfone had to get creative to pursue his wrestling dreams. To bypass the restriction, he adopted a masked persona known as Black Diablo, a name that hinted at menace and danger, even though there was nothing remotely diabolical about the man behind the mask. In reality, Bulfone was known for his kind-hearted nature and quiet demeanor, making the moniker an ironic twist in his early career.
Bulfone’s talent and ambition eventually led him to the United States in 1961, where he began wrestling for the Southwest Sports promotion based in Dallas, Texas. Fans might better recognize this territory by the name it would later become famous under – World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW) – after it was taken over by the legendary Fritz von Erich.
Following his time in Texas, Bulfone worked for the NWA Mid-America territory, which was operated by promoters Roy Welch and Nick Gulas. His career also included shorter appearances in other territories, including brief runs in the Canadian Maritimes and the highly respected St. Louis wrestling scene.
However, it was in February 1962 that Bulfone found more stable footing, beginning an extended run in the NWA Hollywood territory, a key market in the wrestling world at the time. It was here that his career started to gain broader attention, and his name began to circulate more prominently among insiders and fans alike.
The Champion They Never Expected to Crown
Mario Milano has his hand raised after a match in Australia. Photo Credit: News Limited.
On the West Coast, Mario Bulfone adopted the ring name Mario La Pantera and quickly found himself squaring off against some of the era’s most formidable competitors.
Among his notable opponents were former NWA World Heavyweight Champion Dick Hutton, the legendary masked technician The Destroyer, and Johnny Walker, who would later rise to fame as Mr. Wrestling II. It was during this period that Mario first tasted championship glory, capturing the NWA Americas Tag Team Title alongside Billy Varga on March 15th, 1962.
Eventually, Mario settled in Nashville, Tennessee, embracing the city as his American hometown and making NWA Mid-America his home territory. It was there that he was given a new name – Mario Milano – a nod to the picturesque Italian city and a fitting rebrand for the charismatic wrestler with European roots.
Success followed quickly. On November 5th, 1963, Mario and the wildly popular Jackie Fargo defeated the villainous Von Stroheim brothers to win the NWA Southern Tag Team Titles. Though they lost the belts a month later, the duo bounced back on December 26, recapturing the titles from Ivan Malenkov and Tojo Yamamoto.
Over the next three years, Milano would claim the Southern Tag Team Titles an impressive nine times between 1963 and 1966. His partners included Fargo (twice), Olympic wrestling legend Danny Hodge, and the beloved Len Rossi, with whom he formed a particularly successful alliance, winning the belts six times together. Wrestling historians can attest to the legendary status of Fargo, Hodge, and Rossi, and Milano’s inclusion among them speaks volumes about his skill and reputation.
Mario’s star continued to rise. On March 9th, 1965, he and Fargo stepped up to a new level, winning the Mid-America version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship. This was an era when championships were earned, not handed out, and when belts were held for a meaningful length of time, reflecting the respect they carried within the sport.
After more than three years of success in Tennessee, Milano accepted a short-term contract in Australia with promoter Jim Barnett. What began as a temporary trip quickly evolved into something much greater. The fit between Mario and the Australian wrestling scene was instant and mutual. Barnett soon offered him a long-term contract, and Mario made the life-changing decision to settle permanently in the Land Down Under.
His impact was immediate. In 1967 alone, his first full year wrestling in Australia, Mario captured the IWA World Tag Team Championship three times with Red Bastein and won the IWA World Heavyweight Championship twice. His first World Title victory came against none other than the feared and respected Killer Kowalski.
With his tall frame, muscular build, deep tan, and movie-star good looks, Mario was a natural headliner. He quickly became a fan favorite and a consistent main event draw during a golden age when the world’s top wrestling talent regularly toured Australia. By any measure, 1967 was a breakout year for Milano.
Over his first three years in Australia, Mario developed a serious appetite for championship gold. During that span, he won an astonishing 13 titles: four IWA World Heavyweight Championships and nine IWA World Tag Team Championships with seven different partners. This prolific run tells us two things. First, Milano was consistently positioned at the top of the card, arguably the apex predator in Australia’s wrestling food chain. Second, his in-ring style proved highly versatile, allowing him to excel with a wide range of tag team partners. That adaptability was perhaps best demonstrated by one of his reigns alongside the notoriously villainous Waldo von Erich.
And if you’re tempted to underestimate the prestige of the IWA World Heavyweight Championship, think again. The title was held by a veritable who’s who of professional wrestling, many of whom are now enshrined in multiple halls of fame. Champions included Killer Kowalski, Ripper Collins, Baron Mikel Scicluna, The Spoiler, Dominic DeNucci, King Curtis Iaukea (elevated from Prince to King, naturally), Spiros Arion, Ray Stevens, Billy Robinson, and former WWWF Champion Stan “The Man” Stasiak. Remarkably, Milano would go on to defeat the first four men on that list in IWA World Title matches.
In his obituary registered with the National Library of Australia, author Barry York wrote of Milano’s profound reputation in Australia.
“He was the perfect performer, with skill and charisma, and excellent at reading the crowds. In the wrestling business, it’s all about ‘generating heat’, and Mario was without peer among the ‘faces. His winning submission hold, the Abdominal Stretch, was inspired by a photo he saw in a magazine of an old Russian wrestler applying it. His is the most enduring name of the golden age of televised wrestling in Australia.”
After three dominant, gold-laden years in Australia, Mario Milano set his sights on a new frontier. His wrestling journey was far from over. The next stop: the bright lights and global stage of New York’s World Wide Wrestling Federation.
Why WWE’s Predecessor Recruited This Unknown Star
The WWWF territory logo during the 1970s at the time of Mario Milano’s run. Photo Credit: WWE.
Mario Milano’s debut in the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) is recorded as taking place on January 6th, 1970, where he earned a count-out victory over the notorious salt-thrower Professor Toru Tanaka at the Lewiston Armory in Lewiston, Maine.
In the early stretch of 1970, Milano carved a path of dominance through the northeastern circuit. He notched multiple victories against Tanaka and added high-profile wins over formidable opponents like Waldo von Erich, Killer Kowalski, Eric the Red, Karl Kovacs, and the eccentric Spaceman Frank Hickey. As a tag team competitor, he often joined forces with fan favorites Gorilla Monsoon and Victor Rivera, forming a powerful alliance in both skill and crowd appeal.
Milano’s final known match in the WWWF took place on October 28th, 1970, at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium in Lowell, Massachusetts, where he faced the cunning Baron Mikel Scicluna. The result of that match is missing from official records and lost to history, or perhaps deliberately withheld by someone from… Parts Unknown.
And then, just like that, Mario vanished from the American wrestling spotlight. Did Milano return quietly to Australia’s shores? Or did something else pull him away from the squared circle in the States?
The Mario Milano Myth: The Philadelphia Incident That WWE History Erased
The WWWF World Heavyweight Championship belt as worn by Bruno Sammartino and Bob Backlund during the 1970s era. Photo Credit: Dave Millican.
So, after all this, what exactly do we mean by “The Mario Milano Myth”?
In a later interview, Ivan Koloff recalled a curious incident that allegedly occurred just days after his monumental title win. According to Ivan, he was in Philadelphia for a TV taping when he stepped into the ring against none other than Mario Milano. Midway through the bout, Milano caught Koloff in an abdominal stretch, and suddenly, the bell rang. Though Ivan hadn’t submitted, the referee handed the championship belt to Milano and declared him the winner.
Koloff, bewildered and livid, protested the decision. But, just as quickly, order was restored. The match resumed as if nothing had happened. According to Koloff, this was all a pre-emptive move orchestrated by Vince McMahon Sr., a "just-in-case" insurance policy in the event Koloff decided to go rogue and refuse to drop the title to Pedro Morales. Shades of the Montreal Screwjob nearly three decades early.
Speaking of the incident on WGD Weekly, Ivan Koloff shared his frustration with what transpired.
"In Philadelphia, where I was booked a night or two against Mario Milano. They had that on video just as protection for themselves. I didn’t know what was going on. I said, ‘What’s going on? I didn’t give up.’ Then he said, ‘Okay, continue the match.’ He rang the bell and we continued the match.”
Koloff continued, “I was hot, I went back and I said, ‘What the heck is going on?’ But they wanted that and they wanted the film, I guess, just to be able to be used, you know, in case I gave them a hard time or something. Then at any time they could say, ‘Well, you lost a match at such and such a place to Mario Milano. It’s part of the business, I guess…"
If true, it was a questionable and underhanded tactic by McMahon Sr., and that’s particularly unfortunate when you consider the man behind the "Russian Bear" persona. Oreal Perras, the real Ivan Koloff, was widely known as a man of humility, respect, and honor. He was the complete opposite of his ring character and was deeply admired by peers, including his supposed rival, Bruno Sammartino.
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The Evidence That Doesn’t Add Up
Ivan Koloff to the left and Mario Milano to the right. A very interesting match for the mid-1970s WWWF era. Photo Credit: WWE.
However, there’s a major issue with Ivan Koloff’s recollection.
He won the title on January 18th, 1971. Koloff claims the phantom title change happened in Philadelphia just days later. However, records from the time period indicate that Koloff made only one appearance in Philadelphia during his brief 21-day reign: a match on January 30th, 1971, against Gorilla Monsoon, which Koloff won by countout.
It goes without saying that while Gorilla Monsoon shared Italian heritage with Mario Milano, the similarities stop there. Robert Marella (Monsoon) was nearly 400 pounds, while Milano was a lean and athletic technician. So, unless someone mixed up a behemoth with a Mediterranean mat artist, the opponent in question was not Mario Milano.
Digging deeper, it seems more plausible that Koloff was confusing Milano with another wrestler. On January 22nd, just four days after the Garden title change, Milano was main-eventing a card at White City Stadium in Sydney, Australia, teaming with Mark Lewin in a losing effort to Dusty Rhodes and Dick Murdoch. Milano was also on the January 8th and February 5th White City cards, meaning he was very much Down Under at the time of the alleged Philadelphia match.
Koloff did wrestle Tony Marino in Hammonton, New Jersey, on January 20th, and Manuel Soto on January 22nd in Cherry Hill. Both towns are just a stone’s throw from Philadelphia – Cherry Hill is barely ten miles away – so it’s quite plausible that Koloff was actually referring to one of them.
Marino, like Milano, was Italian, and Soto shared a similar build and wrestling style to Milano. Over the years, many retellings of this story have incorrectly inserted Milano’s name, perhaps due to this mix-up.
In truth, there is only one confirmed match between Koloff and Milano: October 10th, 1970, at Boston Garden. It was one of Milano’s final matches in the United States before his return to Australia. That’s months before Koloff’s title run and far removed from the timeline of the supposed "phantom" championship win.
So while Koloff’s tale of a phantom title switch makes for compelling locker-room lore, the historical record suggests he simply misremembered the opponent. Regardless of the mix-up, the story still sheds light on the era’s behind-the-scenes tension and the extent to which promoters would go to control their champions.
The Wrestling Mystery Involving Mario Milano That Divides Fans Today
An older Mario Milano poses for a press photo during the final decades of his life after he had retired from the ring. Photo Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald.
So, where do we go from here?
First, based on the prima facie evidence, we must conclude that Mr. Koloff’s memory may have been a bit fuzzy, and the most likely participant in the "Philly Screw Job" was not Mario Milano, but Manuel Soto. The timelines don’t lie.
This piece served a dual purpose: to explore the myth of the phantom title change, and to revisit a long-whispered notion that Mario Milano was once considered as a possible successor to Bruno Sammartino. Unfortunately, there’s no tangible evidence to support the latter, though Bruno’s close friend Sal Corrente once noted that Bruno always felt Mario "would have made a good champion."
Milano, of course, continued to build his legacy in Australia, where he was a beloved national icon for decades. He wrestled extensively across the continent and took part in occasional tours of Japan. Over the years, he collected an impressive list of accolades, including:
Milano’s final match took place on December 23rd, 2006, at the remarkable age of 71. Teaming with the memorably named Mr. Big (a moniker better suited to adult cinema), they went to a No-Contest against Max Miller and Michael Hunter.
In a 2009 interview with AP News, Milano summed up what he made of his career and the immense popularity he experienced in Australia.
“I wrestled in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, South Africa, North America, Mexico. My name, it was like Elvis.”
Mario Milano passed away in Melbourne, Australia, on December 9th, 2016, at the age of 81.
Beyond the ring, he dabbled in acting, appearing in five films. His most notable role was as a Russian fighter in The Boxer from Shantung (1972).
And so we come full circle: an Italian man who played a Russian in a film, caught up in a mythical title controversy with a Canadian man who played a Russian in the ring.
Only in professional wrestling could a story this strange even begin to make sense.
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Benny J. Scala is a senior writer at Pro Wrestling Stories and co-host of the Dan and Benny In the Ring podcast. He is also a writer/promoter for Jimmy Valiant's Boogie’s Wrestling Camp and Hall of Fame Museum (BWC). Benny is a licensed Florida Realtor and recently joined the writing staff of the Through The Fence Baseball website. He has been a fan of professional wrestling since the late '60s.
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