Harley Race

Harley Race is one of those wrestlers I genuinely believe doesn't get enough respect outside hardcore old-school circles. The man was an eight-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion at a time when that title actually meant something — when you had to be legitimately tough, believable, and able to work every style in every territory across the country. Growing up in Quitman, Missouri and clawing his way to the very top of a notoriously brutal business says everything about his grit. He wasn't flashy in the modern sense, but when Harley Race walked to that ring with his regal bearing, you bought him as a champion instantly. Both the WWE Hall of Fame and the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame inductions are fully deserved tributes. He passed in August 2019, but the blueprint he laid down for what a professional wrestling world champion should look and carry himself like still holds up today.

Name (English)

Harley Race

Name (Japanese)

ハーリー・レイス

Reading

はーりー・れいす

Born

April 11, 1943 – August 1, 2019

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Aries / Goat

Origin

Quitman, Missouri, United States

Height

185 cm

Occupation

professional wrestler / manager

Awards & achievements

• WWE Hall of Fame
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame

Motto

Private

• Official sitehttps://www.harleyrace.com/
• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%8F%E3%83%BC%E3%83%AA%E3%83%BC%E3%83%BB%E3%83%AC%E3%82%A4%E3%82%B9

Tags

• Missouri
• professional wrestler
• manager

Last updated

2026-06-02

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.