By any rational measure, Dory Funk Jr. is one of the most successful wrestlers in the history of the industry.
At his peak, he was considered easily one of the best wrestlers in the world. He had an extended career as a main-event star, drawing audiences worldwide and becoming a revered figure in both the United States and Japan. He spent over 1,500 days as NWA World Heavyweight Champion in the early 1970s, when that title was arguably at its peak.
Funk would be on the shortlist of any wrestling historian’s list of all-time great world champions. Any wrestling hall of fame that wouldn’t include Funk in its inaugural class or vote Funk in on the first ballot isn’t worth serious scrutiny. No description of the history of pro wrestling is complete without adequate coverage of Funk’s contributions as a wrestler, promoter, booker, and trainer.
Despite all that, when Funk died on Tuesday, many wrestling fans, even those who had been major fans for decades, were largely unaware of his work and legacy. They might know he was a former NWA World Champion, that he was a star in Japan, and that he formed a famous tag team with his brother, Terry, but they probably couldn’t tell you any real specifics of his career, his most memorable matches or feuds, or anything of any real substance.
Funk was a legend in his time, but as time went on, the legend began to fade. Even though he remained an active wrestler all the way up until 2024 and still had some cache as a nostalgia act in Japan, to a lot of fans, Funk became a lost figure from the stone age of wrestling.
Funk might have been the most popular wrestler of his era, but in modern terms, his legacy has been usurped by contemporaries such as Harley Race and, especially, by his brother Terry.
Funk was the perfect champion for his era, but today, a lot of what he did doesn’t stand out to the modern viewer. As a promo he was the soft-spoken, confident champion–a heel in most territories he would be working as the NWA champion often was, but respected and all fans had an unstated admiration because he was the champion for so long and therefore he must be the best.
He was a great athlete but he didn’t have a great body, and his balding head of hair doesn’t do him any favors looking at him with modern eyes. He was a tough guy from Texas that could grapple on the mat and brawl around the ring, but subsequent generations of roided-up bodies and Turkish hair transplants make him look positively quaint.
His in-ring work was perfect for its time, he was great at having long, dramatic title matches wrestled in the largely southern and southeastern style of pro wrestling of the 60s and 70s. A lot of mat work and submission holds, with the occasional brawl sprinkled in.
Watching it today, it’s not going to come across as that impressive, and it wouldn’t be a match you would show a non-fan to try and get them excited about pro wrestling. Astute observers may be able to pick up on the subtle aspects of his work that have been lost to time, but even his biggest fans wouldn’t argue that his work is accessible.
All of that contributed to Dory’s legacy waning over time. He was of an era that has been losing influence for the past 50 years, and while plenty of wrestlers today would say that they respect Dory for all of his accomplishments, very few could earnestly say that they are inspired by his work and are channeling his work through their performances today.
This is in stark contrast to his brother, Terry.
As a wrestler, Terry worked a more modern style, relying a lot on wild, out-of-control brawls. As a promo, Terry was cerebral and fiery, translating well to modern ears. Terry Funk today is one of the most influential wrestlers, with roughly half of the AEW locker room likely listing him as one of their favorite wrestlers ever, most notably Jon Moxley and the Death Riders.
In the late-80s, Terry Funk was doing some of the best work of his career, most notably his feud with Ric Flair and the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.
At the same time, Dory had largely been relegated to a nostalgia mid-card act, or working exclusively in Japan. This despite the fact that at their respective peaks, Dory was just as big of a star as Terry and was certainly a better world champion than Terry ever was.
Terry’s style of work only evolved and grew in popularity over time, while Dory’s faded away.
In his eulogy of Dory Funk Jr. on Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer spoke about witnessing a match between Dory and Mike Rotunda at the San Francisco Civic Auditorium in 1987, which completely bombed in front of the crowd. Dory was a legend, but his time had passed and the fans no longer respected his work.
There are wrestlers today who may seem like some of the biggest stars in the world, but it’s very possible that in 50 years, watching their work and seeing them as world champion will look out of place. We don’t know who they will be, just like how nobody figured Dory Funk Jr.’s work would age out of relevancy as quickly as it ended up doing. Wrestling is about time and place, and wrestlers are aiming to entertain the audience that is in front of them that night, not potential viewers in the future.
Dory Funk Jr. was one of the best ever at that, but his legacy is impacted, perhaps unfairly, by the business evolving and moving away from what made him great.
