Faces of Fear
Encyclopedia
The Faces of Fear was the professional wrestling
tag team
of Sione Vailahi
and Uliuli Fifita. Vailahi wrestled as The Barbarian, and Fifita wrestled as Haku in the World Wrestling Federation
(WWF) and Meng in World Championship Wrestling
(WCW). They appeared together several times in the WWF as part of The Heenan Family
, a heel
stable. In WCW, they teamed together regularly as members of the Dungeon of Doom
. They appeared on several WCW pay-per-view events but did not receive a push
from the promotion and were unsuccessful in their matches for the WCW World Tag Team Championship
. The team split up after The Barbarian turned on Meng.
with The Big Bossman
, interfering in several of his matches to attack him. They made their only pay-per-view
appearance with the WWF at WrestleMania VII
, where they lost to The Rockers
. They also appeared on several episodes of WWF Prime Time Wrestling
in 1991. They faced the Legion of Doom
on April 15 but lost when Haku accidentally kicked The Barbarian. The team's miscommunication was a problem again on the July 22 episode when The Barbarian accidentally kicked Haku in a match against The Bushwhackers
, causing Haku to get pinned. The Barbarian and Haku were successful the following week, however, when they defeated Sato and Mr. Fuji
. The pair left the WWF, but they later teamed in New Japan Pro Wrestling
. They challenged The Hell Raisers for the IWGP Tag Team Championship but were unable to win the belts.
Meng, in WCW. Wrestling under the team name Faces of Fear, they were both members of Kevin Sullivan
's Dungeon of Doom
, a heel stable formed to oppose Hulk Hogan
. The Barbarian and Meng's first major appearance together was at Uncensored 1996, when they competed as part of the Alliance To End Hulkamania
, a partnership between the Dungeon of Doom and the Four Horsemen
, another heel stable. In a two-versus-eight Doomsday Cage match, Hogan and Randy Savage
defeated the Alliance To End Hulkamania.
Two months later, at Slamboree 1996, The Barbarian and Meng were on opposing teams in a "Lethal Lottery" tournament that saw partners supposedly chosen at random. The Barbarian teamed with Diamond Dallas Page
in a victory over Meng and Hugh Morrus
. The Faces of Fear were not pushed
, and they received few high-profile matches in 1996. They competed at WCW's Hog Wild pay-per-view on August 10, but the match was televised on free WCW programming instead of the pay-per-view broadcast. At this event, they teamed with Kevin Sullivan to defeat Joe Gomez
, Jim Powers
and Mark Starr
.
The relationship between the Dungeon of Doom and the Four Horsemen broke down as a result of Kevin Sullivan's feud with Horsemen member Chris Benoit
. As a result, the Faces of Fear were booked to face Benoit and Steve McMichael
, another member of the Four Horsemen, at Halloween Havoc 1996. Benoit pinned Meng to win the match for the Horsemen team. The Barbarian and Meng's next major appearance was at Starrcade 1996
, when they faced Scott Hall
and Kevin Nash
, who were members of another rival heel stable known as the New World Order
. Hall and Nash's WCW World Tag Team Championship
was on the line, but the Faces of Fear were unable to win the belts, as Nash pinned The Barbarian.
At SuperBrawl VII on February 23, 1997, the Faces of Fear competed in a Three Way match. They faced The Public Enemy
and Harlem Heat
but lost when Rocco Rock
from The Public Enemy pinned The Barbarian. At Fall Brawl 1997, The Barbarian and Meng faced Wrath
and Mortis
. Because Wrath and Mortis were part of a heel group, WCW had the Faces of Fear compete as faces
during the match. Wrath and Mortis won the match, as Wrath pinned Meng for the victory. The Faces of Fear were successful at World War 3 1997, however, when they defeated the team of Glacier
and Ernest Miller
.
The Faces of Fear eventually split up, as Meng turned face. The former partners faced each other at Road Wild 1998; The Barbarian had heel manager
Jimmy Hart
in his corner. Meng won the match, but The Barbarian, Hugh Morrus and Hart attacked him after the match. Hart later convinced The Barbarian and Meng to reconcile, however, and they wrestled as a tag team again as part of Hart's First Family
stable. The Faces of Fear entered a tournament for the WCW World Tag Team Championship in early 1999 after an injury to co-champion Rick Steiner
caused the belts to be vacated. According to the rules of the tournament, teams had to lose two matches before they were eliminated. The Faces of Fear won one match in the tournament, defeating the team of David Taylor and Fit Finlay
on the January 25 episode of WCW Monday Nitro
. However, they were eliminated after losses to the team of Mike Enos
and Bobby Duncum, Jr.
and the team of Horace Hogan
and Brian Adams
. In the latter match, The Barbarian attacked Meng, which caused the loss and led to the team splitting up for good.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
of Sione Vailahi
Sione Vailahi
Sione Havea Vailahi is a professional wrestler best known in wrestling as The Barbarian.-Life and career:Born and raised in Tonga, Sione was one of five teenagers sent by the King of Tonga to Japan to study Sumo wrestling in the mid 1970s. Tonga Fifita was one of the other teenagers...
and Uliuli Fifita. Vailahi wrestled as The Barbarian, and Fifita wrestled as Haku in the World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
(WWF) and Meng in World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
(WCW). They appeared together several times in the WWF as part of The Heenan Family
The Heenan Family
The Heenan Family was a stable of heel wrestlers managed by Bobby "The Brain" Heenan beginning in the 1970s. Heenan managed wrestlers under the Heenan Family name in the American Wrestling Association , the National Wrestling Alliance's Georgia Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling...
, a heel
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
stable. In WCW, they teamed together regularly as members of the Dungeon of Doom
Dungeon of Doom
The Dungeon of Doom was the name of a professional wrestling stable in World Championship Wrestling that existed from 1995 to 1997.-Origin:...
. They appeared on several WCW pay-per-view events but did not receive a push
Push (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a push is an attempt by the booker to make the wrestler win more matches and become more popular or more reviled with the fans depending on whether they are a heel or a face...
from the promotion and were unsuccessful in their matches for the WCW World Tag Team Championship
WCW World Tag Team Championship
The World Championship Wrestling Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in World Championship Wrestling...
. The team split up after The Barbarian turned on Meng.
World Wrestling Federation
The Barbarian and Haku began teaming in the WWF in 1991. They feudedFeud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
with The Big Bossman
Ray Traylor
Ray Walter Traylor, Jr. was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his appearances with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Big Boss Man and World Championship Wrestling under various ring names, most notably Big Bubba Rogers.-Early years:Traylor, a prison guard in...
, interfering in several of his matches to attack him. They made their only pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
appearance with the WWF at WrestleMania VII
WrestleMania VII
WrestleMania VII was the seventh annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on March 24, 1991 at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California...
, where they lost to The Rockers
The Rockers
The Rockers were a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty that teamed from 1985 to 1992. The team worked for Central States Wrestling, the American Wrestling Association, Continental Wrestling Federation, Continental Wrestling Association and the World...
. They also appeared on several episodes of WWF Prime Time Wrestling
WWF Prime Time Wrestling
WWF Prime Time Wrestling is a professional wrestling television program produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It aired on the USA Network from 1985-1993. A precursor to Monday Night Raw, Prime Time Wrestling was a two-hour long, weekly program that featured stars of the World Wrestling...
in 1991. They faced the Legion of Doom
Road Warriors
The Road Warriors were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Michael "Hawk" Hegstrand and Joseph "Animal" Laurinaitis. They performed under the name "Road Warriors" in the American Wrestling Association, the National Wrestling Alliance, and World Championship Wrestling, and the name Legion...
on April 15 but lost when Haku accidentally kicked The Barbarian. The team's miscommunication was a problem again on the July 22 episode when The Barbarian accidentally kicked Haku in a match against The Bushwhackers
The Bushwhackers
The Bushwhackers were a professional wrestling tag team that also competed as The Sheepherders during their long career. They wrestled in the World Wrestling Federation and Jim Crockett Promotions as well as a nearly 40 year run on the independent wrestling circuit...
, causing Haku to get pinned. The Barbarian and Haku were successful the following week, however, when they defeated Sato and Mr. Fuji
Harry Fujiwara
Harry Fujiwara is an American former professional wrestler and manager, best known by his ring name Mr. Fuji. He was infamous for often throwing salt in the eyes of face wrestlers...
. The pair left the WWF, but they later teamed in New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Japan Pro Wrestling
is a major professional wrestling promotion in Japan, founded by Antonio Inoki in June 1972 and owned by Yuke's since 2005, when Inoki sold the promotion. Naoki Sugabayashi is the current President of the promotion and has held that position from 2007. Owing to its TV program aired on TV Asahi, it...
. They challenged The Hell Raisers for the IWGP Tag Team Championship but were unable to win the belts.
World Championship Wrestling
The Barbarian was reunited with Fifita, who was now wrestling under the ring nameRing name
A ring name is a stage name used by a professional wrestler, martial artist, or boxer. While some ring names may have a fictitious first name and surname, others may simply be a nickname, such as The Undertaker.-Wrestling:...
Meng, in WCW. Wrestling under the team name Faces of Fear, they were both members of Kevin Sullivan
Kevin Sullivan (wrestler)
Kevin Francis Sullivan is an American professional wrestler and booker, perhaps best known for his role in WCW as "The Taskmaster" and his leading of the "Dungeon of Doom".-Early career:...
's Dungeon of Doom
Dungeon of Doom
The Dungeon of Doom was the name of a professional wrestling stable in World Championship Wrestling that existed from 1995 to 1997.-Origin:...
, a heel stable formed to oppose Hulk Hogan
Hulk Hogan
Terrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
. The Barbarian and Meng's first major appearance together was at Uncensored 1996, when they competed as part of the Alliance To End Hulkamania
Alliance To End Hulkamania
The Alliance to End Hulkamania was a professional wrestling stable in World Championship Wrestling in 1996.-History:The Alliance to End Hulkamania was an alliance between the Dungeon of Doom and the Four Horsemen, two of WCW's heel stables, formed in an attempt to get rid of Hulk Hogan...
, a partnership between the Dungeon of Doom and the Four Horsemen
Four Horsemen (professional wrestling)
The Four Horsemen were a professional wrestling stable in the National Wrestling Alliance and later World Championship Wrestling that was disbanded in 1999. The original group featured Ric Flair, Arn and Ole Anderson, and Tully Blanchard...
, another heel stable. In a two-versus-eight Doomsday Cage match, Hogan and Randy Savage
Randy Savage
Randall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler, best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling .Savage held twenty championships during his professional wrestling career and was a...
defeated the Alliance To End Hulkamania.
Two months later, at Slamboree 1996, The Barbarian and Meng were on opposing teams in a "Lethal Lottery" tournament that saw partners supposedly chosen at random. The Barbarian teamed with Diamond Dallas Page
Diamond Dallas Page
Dallas Page , better known by his ring name "Diamond" Dallas Page , is an American retired professional wrestler, fitness instructor and actor...
in a victory over Meng and Hugh Morrus
Bill DeMott
William Charles "Bill" DeMott II is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment as Hugh Morrus and Bill DeMott respectively and as Crash The Terminator in Extreme Championship Wrestling and Japan...
. The Faces of Fear were not pushed
Push (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a push is an attempt by the booker to make the wrestler win more matches and become more popular or more reviled with the fans depending on whether they are a heel or a face...
, and they received few high-profile matches in 1996. They competed at WCW's Hog Wild pay-per-view on August 10, but the match was televised on free WCW programming instead of the pay-per-view broadcast. At this event, they teamed with Kevin Sullivan to defeat Joe Gomez
Joe Gomez
Joe Gomez is an American professional wrestler who competes in Southeastern independent promotions including Florida Championship Wrestling, Maximum Pro Wrestling and the National Wrestling Alliance....
, Jim Powers
Jim Powers
James Manley , better known by his ring name Jim Powers is a retired American professional wrestler. He most notably wrestled for the World Wrestling Federation in the mid-to-late 1980s and early 1990s...
and Mark Starr
Mark Starr
Mark Ashford-Smith is an American professional wrestler best known by his ring name Mark Starr. He has competed as a member of several tag teams.-Wrestling career:Starr competed in the Memphis, Tennessee-based Continental Wrestling Association...
.
The relationship between the Dungeon of Doom and the Four Horsemen broke down as a result of Kevin Sullivan's feud with Horsemen member Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
. As a result, the Faces of Fear were booked to face Benoit and Steve McMichael
Steve McMichael
-World Wrestling Federation :After the end of his NFL career, he appeared at ringside in the WWF for Lawrence Taylor at WrestleMania XI on April 2, 1995 in Hartford, Connecticut. Taylor was wrestling Bam Bam Bigelow and there were several football players at ringside to keep wrestlers from...
, another member of the Four Horsemen, at Halloween Havoc 1996. Benoit pinned Meng to win the match for the Horsemen team. The Barbarian and Meng's next major appearance was at Starrcade 1996
Starrcade (1996)
Starrcade was the fourteenth annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event. It was the ninth Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling , and it took place on December 29, 1996 from the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee...
, when they faced Scott Hall
Scott Hall
Scott Hall is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure with the World Wrestling Federation in the early and mid 1990s under the ring name Razor Ramon, as well as for his period in the mid 1990s and early 2000s with World Championship Wrestling under his real name...
and Kevin Nash
Kevin Nash
Kevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. As of 2011, Nash is signed to a five year contract with WWE under their WWE Legends program and appears as part of their Raw brand roster...
, who were members of another rival heel stable known as the New World Order
New World Order (professional wrestling)
The New World Order was a professional wrestling stable that originally wrestled for World Championship Wrestling . The group later appeared in the World Wrestling Federation after the purchase of WCW by the WWF...
. Hall and Nash's WCW World Tag Team Championship
WCW World Tag Team Championship
The World Championship Wrestling Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in World Championship Wrestling...
was on the line, but the Faces of Fear were unable to win the belts, as Nash pinned The Barbarian.
At SuperBrawl VII on February 23, 1997, the Faces of Fear competed in a Three Way match. They faced The Public Enemy
The Public Enemy (professional wrestling)
The Public Enemy was a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Rocco Rock and Johnny Grunge. The duo competed in many promotions, including Extreme Championship Wrestling , World Championship Wrestling , National Wrestling Alliance , and the World Wrestling Federation...
and Harlem Heat
Harlem Heat
Harlem Heat was a professional wrestling tag team made up of two real-life brothers, Booker and Lane Huffman. Booker Huffman took the ring name of Booker T, and Lane Huffman took the ring name of Stevie Ray...
but lost when Rocco Rock
Rocco Rock
Theodore James Petty was an American professional wrestler better known as "Flyboy" Rocco Rock, one half of The Public Enemy.-Career:...
from The Public Enemy pinned The Barbarian. At Fall Brawl 1997, The Barbarian and Meng faced Wrath
Bryan Clark
Bryan Emmeth Clark, Jr. is a American former professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling.-Early career:...
and Mortis
Chris Kanyon
Christopher Klucsarits was an American professional wrestler, best known for his work in World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation, under the ring names Chris Kanyon and Mortis.-Early career:After college, he began training under Pete McKay Gonzalez, Ismael Gerena and Bobby...
. Because Wrath and Mortis were part of a heel group, WCW had the Faces of Fear compete as faces
Face (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a babyface or face or in simple words, a fan favorite is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains...
during the match. Wrath and Mortis won the match, as Wrath pinned Meng for the victory. The Faces of Fear were successful at World War 3 1997, however, when they defeated the team of Glacier
Ray Lloyd
Raymond M. Lloyd is an American martial artist, professional wrestler, and actor. He is best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling in the late 1990s under the ring name Glacier.-Early life:...
and Ernest Miller
Ernest Miller
Ernest Clifford Miller is an American actor and former professional wrestler who worked for World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment better known by his ring name, Ernest "The Cat" Miller....
.
The Faces of Fear eventually split up, as Meng turned face. The former partners faced each other at Road Wild 1998; The Barbarian had heel manager
Manager (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
Jimmy Hart
Jimmy Hart
James "Jimmy" Ray Hart is a professional wrestling manager, executive, composer, and musician currently signed with WWE. He is best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling under his nickname "The Mouth of the South." He has managed many professional...
in his corner. Meng won the match, but The Barbarian, Hugh Morrus and Hart attacked him after the match. Hart later convinced The Barbarian and Meng to reconcile, however, and they wrestled as a tag team again as part of Hart's First Family
The First Family (professional wrestling)
The First Family was the name of two professional wrestling stables led by Jimmy Hart, first in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the Memphis-based Continental Wrestling Association, then in the late 1990s in World Championship Wrestling.-CWA stable:...
stable. The Faces of Fear entered a tournament for the WCW World Tag Team Championship in early 1999 after an injury to co-champion Rick Steiner
Rick Steiner
Robert Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler, better known under his ring name Rick Steiner.Steiner is best known for his tenure with World Championship Wrestling, where he was an eight time World Tag Team Champion...
caused the belts to be vacated. According to the rules of the tournament, teams had to lose two matches before they were eliminated. The Faces of Fear won one match in the tournament, defeating the team of David Taylor and Fit Finlay
Dave Finlay
David John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent...
on the January 25 episode of WCW Monday Nitro
WCW Monday Nitro
WCW Monday Nitro was a weekly professional wrestling telecast produced by World Championship Wrestling, created by Ted Turner and Eric Bischoff. The show aired Monday nights on TNT, going head-to-head with the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw from September 4, 1995 to March 26, 2001...
. However, they were eliminated after losses to the team of Mike Enos
Mike Enos
Mike Enos is a retired professional wrestler who wrestled mainly as a tag-team wrestler in World Championship Wrestling, the American Wrestling Association and the World Wrestling Federation between 1989 and 2000....
and Bobby Duncum, Jr.
Bobby Duncum, Jr.
Bobby Duncum, Jr. was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his stint in World Championship Wrestling as a member of the West Texas Rednecks.-Professional wrestling career:...
and the team of Horace Hogan
Horace Hogan
Michael Bollea is an American professional wrestler. In wrestling, he is best known by his ring name, Horace Hogan. He is the nephew of professional wrestler Hulk Hogan and cousin of the late Mike Awesome....
and Brian Adams
Brian Adams (wrestler)
Brian Keith Adams was an American professional wrestler. Adams gained fame in the 1990s while performing for the World Wrestling Federation , under the name Crush, and for World Championship Wrestling under his given name.Trained in Japan by Antonio Inoki, Adams was a two time WCW World Tag Team...
. In the latter match, The Barbarian attacked Meng, which caused the loss and led to the team splitting up for good.
In wrestling
- Double-team finishing moves
- Back body drop (Meng) transitioned into an aided powerbomb (Barbarian)
- Double-team signature moves
- Double big boot
- ManagersManager (professional wrestling)In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
- Bobby HeenanBobby HeenanRaymond Louis "Ray" Heenan , better known as Bobby "The Brain" Heenan , is a former American professional wrestling manager and color commentator, best known for his time with the American Wrestling Association , World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation...
- Jimmy HartJimmy HartJames "Jimmy" Ray Hart is a professional wrestling manager, executive, composer, and musician currently signed with WWE. He is best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling under his nickname "The Mouth of the South." He has managed many professional...
- Bobby Heenan
See also
- Alliance to End HulkamaniaAlliance To End HulkamaniaThe Alliance to End Hulkamania was a professional wrestling stable in World Championship Wrestling in 1996.-History:The Alliance to End Hulkamania was an alliance between the Dungeon of Doom and the Four Horsemen, two of WCW's heel stables, formed in an attempt to get rid of Hulk Hogan...
- Colossal Connection
- Dungeon of DoomDungeon of DoomThe Dungeon of Doom was the name of a professional wrestling stable in World Championship Wrestling that existed from 1995 to 1997.-Origin:...
- The First FamilyThe First Family (professional wrestling)The First Family was the name of two professional wrestling stables led by Jimmy Hart, first in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the Memphis-based Continental Wrestling Association, then in the late 1990s in World Championship Wrestling.-CWA stable:...
- The Heenan FamilyThe Heenan FamilyThe Heenan Family was a stable of heel wrestlers managed by Bobby "The Brain" Heenan beginning in the 1970s. Heenan managed wrestlers under the Heenan Family name in the American Wrestling Association , the National Wrestling Alliance's Georgia Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling...
- The Islanders
- Powers of PainPowers of PainThe Powers of Pain are an on-and-off professional wrestling tag team. They are best known for their tenure in Jim Crockett Promotions and the World Wrestling Federation.-Jim Crockett Promotions:...
- Stud StableStud StableThe Stud Stable was a professional wrestling heel stable in World Championship Wrestling, Southeast Championship Wrestling and the Continental Wrestling Association.-History:...