Billy Robinson

Posted by Fanatics Authors on January 22, 2019

Bill Robinson was a British professional wrestler from Lancashire, England in the United Kingdom. He was a catch wrestling instructor and also author of the book “Physical Chess: My Life in Catch as Catch Can Wrestling.” Robinson passed away on March 3rd, 2014 at the age of 75. During his life he was well known in Japan where he trained elite level mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters in catch wrestling. Robinson was a successful wrestler in multiple continents including Europe, North America, Asia, and Oceania. He was only one of a few wrestlers to be successful on this world level of competition. Robinson won many titles in his lifetime in almost every promotion he wrestled in.

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Instructional Videos

W.A.R CATCH WRESTLING BY BILLY ROBINSON

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVNvxh0WXVs

In this very special deluxe 4-DVD course, you get to be a fly on the wall as Billy coaches eager students (MMA stars Josh Barnett and Erik Paulson included!) in the ways of Catch-As-Catch-Can Wrestling.

W.A.R. Catch Wrestling showcases some of the holds and maneuvers you might recognize from MMA legends Josh Barnett, Kazushi Sakuraba, and the panoply of fighters in the UWFi. Billy also discusses the history and philosophy of Catch Wrestling as well as his family's involvement in pugilism and bare-knuckle boxing (Billy's grandfather was a bare-knuckle boxing champion too)!

Now you have the chance to learn a thing or two from this amazing grappler in the 4 plus hours of quality footage found on this exclusive 4-disc deluxe DVD course.

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SPORT OF CATCH AS CATCH CAN BY BILLY ROBINSON

Some who have been to a certification find themselves waking up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat hearing Coach Billy Robinson screaming at them "PIVOT, DAMN IT!"

If you'd like to learn about REAL Catch-As-Catch-Can, how to move and how to takedown your opponent the right way then look no more!

The Sport of Catch-As-Catch-Can Conceptual Syllabus is here to show you ropes. Not only will you learn the basics like pivoting, but you will also learn handfighting, takedowns, defense positions, and how to do your own lock-flow drills!

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The Double Wrist Lock With Billy Robinson

This 45 minute long crash course in how to apply the feared catch-as-catch-can finishing hold, the Double Wrist Lock, will change the way you think about grappling. It's is loaded with practical and little know tricks that will take your game TO THE NEXT LEVEL!

Get this DVD before your grappling partners do and you'll be pulling off this devastating hold from every angle imaginable (if you prefer Video-On-Demand scroll down, you could be watching this in minutes!)

By now, you know that Scientific Wrestling is dedicated to ONLY bringing you the best and most proven material to make you a better grappler. Now you can, as Billy says, "learn how to learn" with this brilliant DVD!

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Championships and Accomplishments

British National Wrestling Championship (1 time)
European Open Light Heavyweight Wrestling Championship (1 time)
NWA United National Championship (1 time)
PWF World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
January 2 Korakuen Hall Heavyweight Battle Royal (1980)
World's Strongest Tag Determination League Technique Award (1978) - with Wild Angus
World's Strongest Tag Determination League Technique Award (1980) - with Les Thornton
American Wrestling Association
AWA British Empire Heavyweight Championship (3 times)
AWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Verne Gagne (1) and Crusher Lisowski (1)
Cauliflower Alley Club
Other honoree (1994)
Championship Wrestling from Florida
NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Florida version) (1 time)
Continental Wrestling Association
CWA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times)
George Tragos / Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
International Wrestling Enterprise
IWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
British Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
European Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
Canadian International Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
Canadian International Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Pierre Lefebvre
New Japan Pro Wrestling: Greatest Gaijin Best Bout Section (2002) vs. Antonio Inoki
Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum: Class of 2011
Pro Wrestling Illustrated: PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (1974) &PWI ranked him #151 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003
Stampede Wrestling Hall of Fame
Tokyo Sports: Match of the Year Award (1975) vs. Antonio Inoki on December 11
World Championship Wrestling (Australia)
IWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
Wrestling Observer Newsletter
Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 1996)

Billy Robinson was born in Manchester, England in the United Kingdom on September 18, 1938. He died at the age of 75 in Little Rock, Arkansas in the United States on March 3, 2014. Robinson began his amateur wrestling career in Britain. He was the British National Wrestling Champion in 1957, and in 1958 he was the European Open Wrestling Champion in the light heavy weight class. Robinson beat an Olympic Bronze medalist in the finals of the competition. Bill attended the Snake Pit, once of the most respected catch wrestling training schools in the world. It was there that he received instructions from the legendary coach Billy Riley. Legends such as Karl Gotch had training in catch wrestling in the Snake Pit with Riley. Robinson stayed at the Snake Pit for eight years. He had to survive bare minimum amenities (luxuries such as a toilet were not provided at the Snake Pit). Billy was subjected to a very rough training environment (Riley was very impatient with those who showed even the slightest bit of weakness on the mat) and rigorous conditioning.

Robinson was an undefeated double crown British and European Heavy Weight Champion for Joint Promotions as a professional wrestler. On June 12, 1965, he defeated the older fellow Snake Pit wrestler Billy Joyce in a match for the European title. Billy then beat Joyce against for the British title on January 18, 1967 only to vacate both titles in 1970 when he moved to America. He also had a high profile feud with legendary masked wrestler Kendo Nagasaki. Robinson made a brief homecoming tour of the United Kingdom in 1978 which included a televised win over Lee Bronson.

In 1970, Robinson traveled to North America and began wrestling for Verne Gagne's American Wrestling Association. Billy competed in a professional wrestling match against legendary Antonio Inoki in 1975. It was billed as "The Match Between the World's Top Two Technicians" by the Japanese press. Robinson travelled throughout the world to participate in various events, continuing his career as an active professional wrestler. He taught Japanese professional wrestlers the art of "shooting" and "hooking" from Karl Gotch, another of catch wrestling's greatest icons. The new movement led to the formation of the Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF). Other wrestlers who had also trained at the Snake Pit such as Yoshiaki Fujiwara also joined the UWF. On May 8, 1992, Robinson became a part of the shoot style movement when he wrestled in an exhibition match for the UWF against Nick Bockwinkel, a fellow AWA legend.

Having previously trained wrestlers in England including Marty Jones and Johnny Saint, Billy Robinson began training wrestlers in catch wrestling at the UWF Snake Pit in Japan. These wrestlers included Kazushi Sakuraba, James Maritato and El Signo. Robinson was inducted into the International Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2003.