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THREAD: In Tribute to Zoltan Boscik
One of Hungary's greatest wrestling talents passed away recently, so I thought it would be fitting to do a deep dive into the career, matches and techniques of a real "wrestler's wrestler": the one and only Zoltan Boscik
#WorldOfSport
One of Hungary's greatest wrestling talents passed away recently, so I thought it would be fitting to do a deep dive into the career, matches and techniques of a real "wrestler's wrestler": the one and only Zoltan Boscik
#WorldOfSport
Zoltan was 16 years old when the 1956 uprising began in his native Hungary. He'd been working down the mines since age 10, and was already becoming an accomplished amateur wrestler in the famed Hungarian style that had produced numerous talents that saw success in the EU and US.
While fellow Hungarian Tibor Szakacs was able to escape to Britain at the time of the uprising (his brother Peter following shortly after) Zoltan had to wait three more years to leave. Hiding from Russian patrols, he and some friends daringly slipped across the border to Austria.
After finding his way to Germany, Zoltan's mining background earned him an offer to come to Britain with a grant from the National Coal Board. However, ongoing labour disputes forced him to look for factory work and he ended up in Yorkshire, where wrestling promoter Ted Beresford
ran a gym. Ted was one of the founding members of Joint Promotions, the conglomerate of promoters that controlled much of the wrestling action throughout the UK, and soon enough had got word around about the talented Boscik, a former Hungarian National Amateur Wrestling Champion.
Leaving the coal mining life behind, the young Boscik became a regular feature on Joint Promotions cards and took up wrestling full time. Small, even for the Lightweight class, Zoltan impressed with his technical skill and mastery of leverage to tackle his often larger opponents.
Early on in his pro career Zoltan picked up numerous nefarious tactics (often filling in for Adrian Street or Bobby Barnes when one member of The Hell's Angels was wrestling elsewhere), which didn't do much to endear him to the crowd. The rule bending would wax and wane over the
course of Zoltan's career, but by 1969 he was firmly a fan favourite and got his first taste of professional gold, defeating Jim Breaks to win the British Lightweight Championship. He held the title twice in total, and over the course of the '70s became a staple of TV wrestling.
Zoltan, or 'Zolly' as he was affectionately known, wrestled up until 1988 and at the peak of his career was the most featured Lightweight wrestler on TV. A master of his craft, Zoltan emigrated to New Zealand after retirement and sadly passed away on July 25th, 2020.
MATCHES: Ten of the Best of Zoltan Boscik - 1/2
vs. Johnny Saint:
vs. Mal Sanders:
vs. Jim Breaks:
vs. Jon Cortez:
vs. Johnny Kidd:
#WorldOfSport
vs. Johnny Saint:
vs. Mal Sanders:
vs. Jim Breaks:
vs. Jon Cortez:
vs. Johnny Kidd:
#WorldOfSport
Ten of the Best of Zoltan Boscik - 2/2
vs. Alan Sargeant:
vs. Steve Grey:
vs. John Naylor:
vs. Leon Fortuna: https://vimeo.com/442181914
vs. Kid McCoy:
#WorldOfSport
vs. Alan Sargeant:
vs. Steve Grey:
vs. John Naylor:
vs. Leon Fortuna: https://vimeo.com/442181914
vs. Kid McCoy:
#WorldOfSport
Zoltan's first TV appearance, from 1962 documentary 'The Wrestling Game' vs Peter Cortez. The same year he made his Royal Albert Hall debut, and even featured in the first ever tag match at the historic venue, teaming with French technician Julien Morice vs The Cortez Brothers.
Zoltan spins out of a headlock #WorldOfSport
Absolutely sublime wristlock takeover from Zoltan Boscik! #WorldOfSport
Amazing counter wrestling from Boscik #WorldOfSport
Zoltan Boscik is impervious to headmares #WorldOfSport
Zoltan would bend or break the rules on occasion, seen here disguising a choke on Steve Kelly #WorldOfSport
Some of Zoltan's escapes were somewhat unconventional! #WorldOfSport
Zoltan's tight folding press routinely caught opponents off guard #WorldOfSport
Zoltan's finisher 'The Boscik 3-in-1 Special' #WorldOfSport
Zoltan also employed a vicious grapefine finish on occasion #WorldOfSport
Expert use of leverage from Zoltan Boscik #WorldOfSport
Zoltan's backhand chop, a staple of Hungarian wrestlers of the day #WorldOfSport
Boscik was fond of using a leg-spreader submission, although it rarely worked out well for him! #WorldOfSport
Lastly, an absolutely amazing counter from Zoltan Boscik. Here Breaks uses The Szakacs Turn to escape the wristlock, but Zoltan has the perfect answer to the move made famous by fellow Hungarian Tibor Szakacs #WorldOfSport
