WWE: On This Day In Wrestling - July 21, 2005

Lord Alfred Hayes

On this day in 2005, the wrestling world lost former WWF announcer ‘Lord’ Alfred Hayes. He was 76 years old. Hayes began competiting in the 1950s under the ring name "Judo Al Hayes". His gimmick was based on his legitimate black belt in judo. In the late 1970s, Hayes left Britain for America to gain success & started competing in southern NWA territories. He found most of his success in the Western States where he won the Heavyweight Championship on two separate occasions.

In the 80s, he briefly returned to the UK but soon returned to America & joined WWF. Hayes was first brought in as Vince McMahon's sidekick on Tuesday Night Titans before he became a backstage interviewer & an announcer.He remained loyal to the company & left in 1995 after being involved in a car accident which would eventually cause him to lose a leg to gangrene. He lived out a quiet retirement at his home in Dallas, before succumbing to a series of strokes. The WWF paid tribute to it's former announcer on the following edition of Monday Night Raw. They aired a video package looking at his career alongside a ten-bell salute. He was also featured as a ‘voiceover’ on the November 2010 edition of ‘Old School Raw’.

Here’s a tribute to Lord Alfred Hayes: