(PHOTO CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES)

Multi-time champion and iconic wrestler Dory Funk Jr. has passed away at the age of 85. The news of his passing was shared by the Ocala Gazette.

The following is an excerpt from the article:

“Talk about a punch to the gut—that’s how I felt when Marti Funk called me today to let me know the legendary Dory Funk Jr. had passed away.

Dory, of course, is world famous. But the native Texan has lived in Ocala so long that we claim him as one of our own.

Earlier this year, the “Ocala Gazette” wrote about Dory getting ready to celebrate his 85th birthday on Feb. 3 and learned from the couple how they met and more. According to Marti, he passed away under hospice care, today, Aug. 4. The two were “sweethearts” for 46 years and were married for 40.”

Dory Jr. was born Feb. 3, 1941. His career in professional wrestling began in 1963, following his college football career with what was then West Texas State University. It was at a wrestling match in Jacksonville in 1980 that Marti met Dory. Ironically, she wasn’t into professional wrestling.

A member of one of wrestling’s greatest families, Funk won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in February 1969 and held the gold for four-and-a-half years, making him the second-longest reigning champion after fellow Hall of Famer Lou Thesz.

The Cauliflower Alley Club paid tribute to Funk on social media. The club’s account shared a memorial graphic, calling Funk a “champion, a teacher, a gentleman, and an ambassador for our great sport.”

Among the plethora of companies he worked for in his 50+ year career, he worked for All Japan Pro Wrestling from 1973 to 1987, again from 1996 to 1996, and finally from 2013 through 2017. Over the years, he also worked in ECW, WCW, WWC, WWF, and more. Despite retiring in 2017, Funk wrestled his final match in August 2024, where he teamed with Osamu Nishimura in a victory.

His father Dory Funk Sr. passed away in 1973, and Jr.’s brother, the legendary Terry Funk, passed away in August 2023.