In the world of wrestling, few roles have stirred up crowds quite like the "evil Russian" heel. Though most of these wrestlers werenโt Russian at all, they embraced the role with such conviction that many fans, even today, donโt realize the truth behind the act. Here, we spotlight ten non-Russian wrestlers who took on this infamous persona, each adding their own unique twist to the role.
1. Boris Malenko: One of Pro Wrestling’s Original Russian Heels
Boris Malenko, the pioneering "Russian" heel who captivated fans with his USSR-based persona, is remembered as one of wrestlingโs most effective villains. Photo Credit: WWE.
Perhaps best known to fans today as the father of master grappler Dean Malenko and his lesser-known brother Joe, Boris was a pioneer of the USSR-based character.
He previously worked the gimmick of an evil German before evolving into a reviled Russian.
Sometimes called “Professor Malenko” or “The Great Malenko,” he has been cited as one of the most overlooked yet greatest talkers and wrestlers in the industry’s history.
In 1979, Malenko retired, later passing away from leukemia in 1994. He would become part of a WCW storyline in 1998 when he was endlessly insulted by Chris Jericho as a way of making jabs at his son, Dean. He also has a solid legacy, training future stars such as Norman Smiley, Sean Waltman, Fred Ottman, Barry Horowitz, and Gangrel.
2. Ivan Koloff: The Russian Bear Who Shocked the WWF
Ivan Koloff, "The Russian Bear," stunned the wrestling world by dethroning Bruno Sammartino to become WWE World Heavyweight Champion, marking a historic moment in then WWF. Photo Credit: WWE.
A former WWF champion, Ivan Koloff has huge historical significance attached to his name, dethroning Bruno Sammartino in 1971 after Bruno held the title belt for eight years โ the longest WWE Championship reign of all time.
Ivan won the match by famously dropping a top-rope knee onto “The Italian Strongman,” with the crowd stunned into so much silence that Bruno believed he had damaged his ears.
“The Russian Bear” was a transitional titleholder – only keeping the belt for a matter of weeks before dropping it to Pedro Morales.
However, while his most significant moment was in the WWWF, his most prolonged run was in the NWAโs Georgia, Florida, and Mid-Atlantic territories.
Koloff most significantly worked alongside kayfabe nephew Nikita in The Russian Team, a top tag team that faced off against the likes of The Rock โNโ Roll Express and The Road Warriors.
After solo feuds against Magnum T.A., Dusty Rhodes, and Jimmy Valiant, he would eventually split off from Nikita to run in Paul Jonesโs army.
On top of his success in JCP (Jim Crockett Promotions), he also main-evented the first Smoky Mountain Wrestling card and made an appearance on the first-ever event to be held as Eastern Championship Wrestling (later renamed Extreme Championship Wrestling).
3. Alexis Smirnoff: From Canada to the Soviet Persona
Alexis Smirnoff, originally from Canada, adopted a Soviet-inspired persona, crossing paths with wrestling icons in the Mid-Atlantic. Photo Credit: WWE.
Trained by the legendary รdouard Carpentier, Michel Lamarche best found fame in the NWA under the name of Alexis Smirnoff – a moniker created after touring with Ivan Koloff.
During his time with the National Wrestling Alliance, he crossed the paths of veterans like Harley Race and Ray Stevens and new faces and future megastars such as Jimmy Snuka and Roddy Piper.
Regularly jumping between companies, the baldheaded Quebecer eventually found himself in the WWF by the mid-’80s.
Here, he never made it to TV on a significant level, even losing to “Iron” Mike Sharpe, Rick McGraw, and George Wells on top of some of the more prominent stars. He would also challenge Tito Santana for the Intercontinental Championship.
Smirnoff had potential in the AWA, but unfortunately, the company quickly lost popularity during his time, with the WWF and NWA vastly overtaking the more traditional, no-thrills AWA approach. This led to Smirnoff leaving the company by the end of 1986.
He spent his final few years in Japan, making over 30 trips to the country and competing for New Japan and All Japan Pro Wrestling.
4. Nikita Koloff: From American Boy to Russian Nightmare
Nikita Koloff transformed from an American-born athlete into the infamous "Russian Nightmare," captivating fans across the NWA. Photo Credit: WWE.
Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Nikita Koloff was initially billed as the bigger, more athletically impressive follow-up to his kayfabe uncle, Ivan.
The real-life Nelson Simpson took great lengths to protect his gimmick, including teaching basic Russian by listening to audiotapes on the road. Although Simpson was never fluent in the language, this helped him get by with appropriate pronunciations.
A huge, menacing heel, his dominance got him an NWA World Title bout against Ric Flair at 1985’s Great American Bash, which he has cited as his favorite match.
However, he was surprisingly turned face after a much-lauded "best of seven" series against Magnum T.A. over the U.S Title.
With the era of Russian hatred dying out, booker Dusty Rhodes struck the iron while hot. Koloff went on to main-event Starrcade 1986 in a double DQ result against “The Nature Boy,” with Flair berating fans for supporting the Koloff over himself.
Nikita also became one of the greatest rivals of The Four Horsemenย alongside Super Powersโ tag partner Dusty Rhodes.
Koloff became one of the companyโs biggest rising stars, soon winning the 2nd Annual Jim Crockett Jr. Tag Cup and emerging victorious in the initial WarGames matches against The Four Horsemen.
Following on from this, Nikita would unify the NWA and UWF Television belts after defeating Terry Taylor. Koloff would then have runs in companies such as the AWA, WCW, and TNA.
Despite his storyline Communism, he may well be best remembered as a good guy, with heels often using his nationality as a way of getting heat.
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5. Krusher Khruschev: The American-Russian Sympathizer
Krusher Khruschev, an American named Barry Darsow (later known as Smash and Repo Man in the WWE), joined The Russian Team and embraced the Soviet heel persona, creating memorable rivalries in the NWA. Photo Credit: WWE.
Alongside Ivan and Nikita in The Russian Team was a then-newcomer to the industry called Khrusher Khruschev, an American turned Russian sympathizer.
Named after Nikita Khruschev, the USSR leader during the mid-20th century, Barry Darsow was, in reality, from Minnesota.
Upon his arrival, Khruschev was awarded 1/3 of the NWA World 6-Man Tag Team Titles after the Koloffs ditched Don Kernodle.
Unfortunately, the Russian Teamโs near-4-month long JCP tag title run ended at the hands of The Rock โNโ Roll Express, who beat Ivan Koloff and Khruschev.
In the opening match of Starrcade 1985 at the Greensboro Coliseum, Khruschev defeated Sam Houston to win the vacant NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Title.
Losing the title 44 days later to Jake Robertsโs brother, Khruschev legitimately injured his knee in the bout โ needing a 6-month recovery.
He eventually returned, helping Nikita beat Magnum T.A. in the final match of their "best of 7" series.
In September โ86, Darsow and Ivan Koloff became the inaugural NWA US Tag Team Champions by winning a tournament, defeating the Kansas Jayhawks to garner the straps.
Now aligned with Dusty Rhodes, “The Russian Nightmare” shot off to huge success, occasionally facing off against Ivan and Khruschev. However, the duo lost the US tag belts to Barry Windham and Ronnie Garvin before Darsow left due to a pay dispute with Jim Crockett.
Soon enough, Darsow would replace flop Demolition member Randy “Moondog Rex” Colley in the WWF faction to significantly more success, turning around the group’s prospects. And the rest, as they say, is history.
6. Boris Zhukov: From Private to Russian Tag Team Star
Boris Zhukov joined forces with Volkoff in The Bolsheviks, bringing his "Soviet" menace to the AWA and WWF stages. Photo Credit: WWE.
Having had a run in Jim Crockett Promotions in the early โ80s, the former “Private” Jim Nelson was recast as the evil Soviet Boris Zhukov in the American Wrestling Association.
In the AWA, he challenged for the World Title against Rick Martel and Nick Bockwinkel and went up against AWA Americaโs champion, Sgt Slaughter.
He memorably lost to Brad Rheingans at WrestleRock before teaming with Soldat Ustinov to prize the World Tag Team Championships away from The Midnight Rockers.
Before moving to the WWF, he was written out of the AWA, having "fled" following a chain match against Wahoo McDaniel.
In the WWF, Zhukov was immediately placed alongside Nikolai Volkoff in a team called “The Bolsheviks.”
The pair were used as enhancement talents, often losing to the bigger teams such as The British Bulldogs, The Powers Of Pain, and The Young Stallions.
In a 20-man tag team Survivor Series bout, the Russian duo was eliminated in less than two minutes, showing their low level on the card. This is proven even more so by Zhukovโs first-round loss to perennial journeyman “Iron” Mike Sharpe in the 1988 King Of The Ring tournament.
The Bolsheviksโ split saw the two take different sides in a 1990 Survivor Series tag match, with Volkoffโs team winning and Tito Santana being the sole survivor.
By February, the lower-card Soviet was released, with Zhukov having short stints in Japanโs Super World of Sports (SWS) and the Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF).
7. The Russian Assassins: Masked Menace Duo
The Russian Assassins, managed by Paul Jones, represented Soviet power with their intimidating presence and masked menace. Photo Credit: WWE.
Managed by “Number One” Paul Jones, The Russian Assassins were a tag team comprising David “Angel of Death” Sheldon (Russian Assassin #1) and Jack Victory (Russian Assassin #2).
Wearing red singlets donned with the Communist hammer and sickle, the duo only had a few tag matches together but beat established names such as Junkyard Dog, and Ricky Morton, as well as teams such as The Sheepherders.
In some of their most high-profile matches, they beat Ivan Koloff and JYD at Starrcade โ88 and had an unsuccessful pay-per-view outing against a face incarnation of The Midnight Express.
After their few bouts, David Sheldon broke off to become a singular Russian Assassin.
He would lose to Stan Lane, Steve Casey, and Ron Simmons at house shows, with his biggest singles outing seeing him come up short against Michael P.S. Hayes at 1989โs Chi-Town Rumble.
8. Vladimir Kozlov: A “Russian” Powerhouse
Vladimir Kozlov, the Ukrainian powerhouse, embodied a new era of Russian strength in WWE, challenging top stars of his time. Photo Credit: WWE.
In the years that followed, the Russian gimmick lay dormant, as shifting attitudes made the role feel outdated. Perhaps the closest to a genuine Russian on this list, Oleg Prudius, was born in Kyiv, Ukraine, in 1979 โ a nation then very much a part of the USSR.
After a few years in developmental, he was renamed Vladimir Kozlov upon his SmackDown debut.
After crushing enhancement talent, Kozlov soon moved to the main-event scene and challenged for the WWE Title on pay-per-view.
During this time, “The Moscow Mauler” scored the biggest win of his career, earning a rare clean pinfall victory over The Undertaker.
After that, he remained undefeated for months until eventually losing to Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker.
Soon after, he was drafted to WWEโs flop revival of ECW, where he was a member of The Ruthless Roundtable.
In this role, he primarily aided William Regal in his unsuccessful battles for the ECW World Title. However, Kozlov would soon break off from the group as a result of internal issues. He would then be recast as a comedy character.
He was paired with Santino Marella in a double act throughout this incarnation that worked surprisingly well, with Kozlov playing the no-nonsense straight man to Marellaโs goofy tomfoolery.
This run included a short feud with Sheamus and a memorable tea party skit where Kozlov showed off his dancing prowess.
This team had a short-lived tag title reign after winning the straps off The Correโs Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel. Kozlov was then removed from the WrestleMania 27 card and replaced by Kofi Kingston in an 8-man tag match.
After serving as Conor OโBrianโs pro on NXT, he was written off TV with a kayfabe broken leg, following his induction into Mark Henryโs “Hall Of Pain.”
9. Rusev: Bulgarian Playing the Role of Russian Sympathizer
Rusev, WWE’s Bulgarian powerhouse, brought anti-American heat to the ring with his pro-Russian persona. Photo Credit: WWE.
The company’s first (and to this day) only Bulgarian competitor, Rusev was in the WWE for a decade, from developmental to his release in April 2020.
Rusev stood out in NXT due to his martial arts-oriented style and his manager, “The Ravishing Russian,” Lana.
Initially, he debuted as Alexander Rusev, but his first name was ditched after a few weeks.
His first few months saw him work as a dominant, hoss threat whose anti-American, pro-Russian personality saw him pose with the Russian flag, pay his respects to Vladimir Putin, and even arrive in a tank at WrestleMania 32 before suffering a defeat to John Cena.
A feud with The Big Show forced WWE to alter the Rusev character. Allegedly, an angle in which “The World’s Largest Athlete” tore down the Russian flag and laughed at an enraged Rusev received a lot of backlash from the world’s biggest country, with Russian outcry forcing WWE to recast the foreign persona.
From then on, Rusev’s portrayal as a Bulgarian reflected his real-life background. However, his then-wife, Lana, continued to be billed as coming from Moscow, even though her accent became less pronounced over time (she is actually from Florida).
This shift in portrayal did not hinder his career; he went on to win three United States Championships and gained immense popularity during the Rusev Day gimmick.
After his WWE release in 2020, Rusev, now known as Miro, joined AEW in September 2020. While his initial contract was set to expire in Spring 2022, he signed a lucrative four-year extension worth seven figures annually that would keep him with the company until Spring 2026. However, his AEW run has been marked by sparse appearances, with only seven matches in 2023 and eleven matches since December 2021. His last match occurred at AEW Worlds End 2023, where he defeated Andrade El Idolo.
As of late 2024, Miro has requested his release from AEW due to creative differences. While spending time in his native Bulgaria, he was recently spotted training at the Coastal Championship Wrestling facility in Florida alongside veteran wrestler Gangrel. His release request status remains pending, as he is still under contract until 2026.
10. Nikolai Volkoff: WWEโs Most Memorable Russian Heel
Nikolai Volkoff, an enduring Russian villain in the WWF, became notorious for singing the Soviet anthem before his matches. Photo Credit: WWE.
Throughout his on-off 25-year run with the WW(W)F, Josip Hrvoje Peruzoviฤ almost always played a foreign menace, the most successful of which was Nikolai Volkoff.
Having previously performed as Bepo Mongol and an Executioner, Peruzoviฤ, as Volkoff, became a top contender to the World Champion, Bruno Sammartino.
Billed then as from Mongolia, he had a profitable Northeast run challenging for the strap. He also was a threat to Bob Backlund during Backlundโs title reign.
Upon his return to the WWF in 1984, he played the Volkoff character as a bulky, bruising Soviet who would proudly sing his countryโs national anthem before matches.
His alliance with the Iranian villain and Twitter phenomenon, The Iron Sheik, proved effective. The duo defeated The US Express for the WWF World Tag Team Titles at the first WrestleMania.
After dropping the belts, Volkoff had a solo run which saw him suffer several losses to WWF megastar Hulk Hogan. He would also lose to Corporal Kirchner in a 2-minute flag match at โMania II before manager "Classy" Freddie Blassie sold his contract to Slick.
The 2005 Hall of Fame inductee would not be so successful in a run in The Bolsheviks with Boris Zhukov and frequently ended up on the losing side.
After being defeated by The Hart Foundation at WrestleMania VI in seconds, the group split, with Volkoff becoming a face – betraying Zhukov by singing the USA national anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner.
Now billed from Lithuania, Nikolai’s face run was short-lived, and he left the company after leading his team to victory at Survivor Series 1990.
A forgotten run in ECW followed, in addition to a spell as a destitute employee of Ted DiBiase. Volkoff would use his iconic Russian persona throughout the rest of his in-ring career, his Soviet gimmick aiding him until his untimely death in 2018.
Russian Villains in Wrestling: A Legacy That Endures
Rusev (now known as Miro in AEW), along with wrestling legends Nikolai Volkoff and Ivan Koloff, brought the iconic Russian heel persona to life, leaving a lasting mark on wrestling history. Photo Credit: WWE. Artwork by Pro Wrestling Stories.
For decades, the "Russian heel" gimmick has riled up fans by playing off cultural narratives and tensions. Though not Russian, these ten wrestlers brought such intensity to the role that their characters became unforgettable parts of wrestling history. Their portrayals showcased the power of wrestlingโs storytelling, where personas can transcend backgrounds and captivate audiences across generations.
Weโd be remiss not to mention a few others who deserve recognition, including Soldat Ustinov, Alex Koslov, Mr. Strongko, Boris Alexiev, Anna Bogomazova, and more. Their contributions to the Russian heel persona remain integral to wrestlingโs storied legacy.
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Griffin Kaye is a life-long pro wrestling fan and historian with a love for '80s and '90s WWF, the NWA, WCW, ECW, and AEW. His favorite wrestlers include Ricky Steamboat, Bret Hart, William Regal, Tito Santana, Stan Hansen, Mr Perfect, Ric Flair, and Chris Jericho. He can be reached on Twitter @GriffinKaye1, as well as on Instagram at @TheGriffinKaye and @WrestlingInTheYears.
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