Gil Hayes

Gilbert Lee Hayes (October 20, 1939 – July 28, 2022) was a Canadian professional wrestler who competed in North American promotions during the 1960s and 1970s including All-Star Wrestling and Stampede Wrestling where he remained a mainstay for the majority of his 17-year career.

Hayes was born in Fort Frances, Ontario on October 20, 1939.

Growing up, he was a fan of professional wrestling (as was his mother) and was later involved in amateur wrestling and boxing during his teenage years.

Hayes spent two years wrestling in Winnipeg as well as a brief stint in NWA Central States before moving to Calgary-based Stampede Wrestling during the late 1960s.

In 1966, after meeting Gene Kiniski following a wrestling event in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Hayes began training in the basement of a local church for almost a year before making his professional wrestling debut at the St. Boniface Club in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

One of the first Canadian professional wrestlers to compete in Puerto Rico, he also frequently toured Japan with International Wrestling Enterprise during the mid-to-late 1970s.

He was also the first man to simultaneously hold two Canadian wrestling championships, the Stampede North American Heavyweight and International Tag Team Championship, at one time.

Developing a following among fans as an egotistical anti-hero during the next several years, he teamed with Bill Dromo to defeat Jerry and Bobby Christy for the Stampede International Tag Team Championship on February 13, 1970.

Successfully defending the titles against Gordon Ivey, Mighty Ursus and "Cowboy" Dan Kroffat, he and Dromo eventually lost the titles back to Jerry and Bobby Christy on March 6.

Hayes continued facing Jerry and Bobby Christy in tag-team and single matches during the next weeks, as well as facing Stu Hart and Bob Lueck in a tag team match with Buck Jones on March 24, before teaming with Bob Sweetan to recapture the titles from the Christy Brothers on July 3.

Defeating Jerry and Bobby Christy in later rematches, Hayes and Sweetan held the tag team titles for over two months before losing them to Bud and Ray Osborne on September 4.

Fighting to a time limit draw against Danny Babich on October 30, he also faced Paul Peller and Bob Prire later that year.

From Calgary, he also began to compete outside of Canada during the mid-1970s and became one of the first Canadians to wrestle in Puerto Rico with the World Wrestling Council later becoming the first WWC North American Heavyweight Champion in April 1974.

During the next several months, with the promotion in financial trouble, Hayes suggested bringing in a trained bear as an opponent to defend his title against.

In early 1971, Hayes faced Bob Sweetan in several matches in January and twice teamed with Jean Antone in a mixed tag team match against Betty Niccoli & Paul Peller in early February.

Also teaming with Danny Babich against Joe Tommaso & Ed Sullivan, Hayes also faced Buck Jones, The Stomper, the Quebec Giant, Dan Kroffat and Stampede North American Champion Les Thornton, losing to him on April 23.

In September, he also faced Carlos Belafonte, Dick Medrano and Frank Butcher before teaming with Dick Medranto against Ed Sullivan & Frank Butcher on October 1.

Fighting to a draw against Earl Black on October 9, he also teamed with John Anson against Earl Black & Joe Tomasso on October 23 only to face his tag team partner several days later teaming with Dick Medrano and Nick Pacchiano against Anson and Sterling Gaylord.

He teamed with Danny Babich later during the year although they lost to Stampede International Tag Team Champions Chin Lee & Sugi Sito on November 19.

He and Babich continued teaming together against Sterling Gaylord & Bob Pirie and also defeated Karl Krupp by disqualification on December 4, 1971.

He also teamed with Bob Pringle and Gordon Ivey in a 6-man tag team match losing to Eddie Sullivan, Joe Tomasso and Paul Peller later that month.

Fighting to a time limit draw against Danny Babich on February 2, later that month he teamed with Bob Pringle to defeat Frank Butcher & Eddie Sullivan and also challenged Stampede International Tag Team Champions Chin Lee & Sugi Sito fighting them to a double disqualification with Carlos Belafonte on February 19.

He later had a falling out with Pringle however, defeating him on April 15.

After winning the tag team titles with Sonny Rogers, Hayes also faced Pringle in several tag team matches with Tiger Joe Tomasso during the next few weeks.

On June 24, he and Tomasso also teamed with Beautiful Bruce in a 6-man tag team match losing to Dave Ruhl, Geoff Portz and Les Thornton.

During the summer of 1972, Hayes began wrestling in the Vancouver-area for promoter Sandor Kovacs.

Fighting to a draw against Buck Ramstead on July 31, he also faced Jack Bence and Eddie Morrow in early August, also fighting to a draw with Morrow on August 14.

A week later, Hayes lost a 6-man tag team match with John Quinn and "Bulldog" Bob Brown against Buck Ramstead, Dutch Savage and Dean Higuchi on August 21.

Facing Buck Ramstead, Dean Higuchi and Tito Montez in singles matches during late August and early September, later that month Hayes also teamed with John Quinn to defeat Duncan McTavish & Eddie Morrow on September 18.

Defeating Fred Barron on September 25, he and Ray Glenn lost to Buck Ramstead & Steven Little Bear on October 2.

Teaming with Ray Glenn and Dan Morgan over the next several weeks, he wrestled his last match in the promotion losing to Buck Ramstead on October 16.

By early November, he had returned to Stampede Wrestling and soon began teaming once again with Tiger Joe Tomasso winning the tag team titles from "Cowboy" Dan Kroffat & Lennie Hurst later that month.

Facing Carlos Belafonte, Geoff Portz and Gino Caruso in a 6-man tag team with Tomasso and Tor Kamata in Swift Current, Saskatchewan on November 30, they defended their titles in rematches against Dan Kroffat & Lennie Hurst as well as George Gordienko & Lindy Calder before losing the titles to Michel Martel & Danny Babich on December 15, 1972.

The following year, he faced Dan Kroffat once again defeating Kroffat & Bill Cody for the Stampede International Tag Team titles with Benny Ramirez in July and, the following month, defeated him for the Stampede North American Heavyweight Championship in Lethbridge, Alberta on August 27.

Three days later however, he and Ramirez lost the tag team titles to The Samoans (Afa & Sika) on August 31.

Feuding over the Stampede North American Heavyweight Championship with Dan Kroffat throughout the fall, he briefly lost the title to Kroffat on October 13 before regaining it several weeks later.

He eventually lost the title to Omar Atlas on November 9, 1973.

Agreeing to the idea, the match received considerable press coverage and was later aired on television with Hayes defeating Victor, the Wrestling Bear in the main event on June 29, 1974.

Hayes wrestled on and off for WWC during the next several years and eventually defeated Jose Rivera for the WWC Caribbean Heavyweight Championship in Bayamón, Puerto Rico on October 21.

After losing the title to Chief War Cloud on November 25, he eventually parted with the company on bad terms.