Famous for his never-ending supply of retirement matches, Terry Funk was never really expected to ever retire.
However, the day finally came in 2017 when the Funker would wrestle his final match and put an end to years of memes about Terry Funk’s retirement match.
Terry Funk’s Last Match
Terry Funk wrestled his last match on 23rd September 2017 for Big Time Wrestling (BTW). It came 52 years after the first match of his career and saw him step into the ring for the last time at the age of 73 – the same age Ric Flair was during his last match.
In his final match, Terry Funk teamed with the Rock ‘n’ Roll Express to take on the father-son duo of Jerry Lawler and Brian Christopher, plus their partner Doug Gilbert.
Robert Gibson and Ricky Morton were the two men in the team tagging with Funk, while Brian Christopher was known in the WWE by the name Grand Master Sexay.
The team of Lawler, Christopher & Gilbert picked up the victory, but very little is known about the match. However, WrestlingInc released the video of the same match that happened the night before that showed the last in-ring days of Terry Funk.
The nature of this match was deliberately chosen. While five of the men were still in good in-ring shape to work a match, Terry Funk was well past his prime at 73.
The match was chosen to be a six-man tag team match to protect Funk, letting his teammates and opponents do most of the work and letting him. However, you don’t tell Terry Funk what to do and he got more involved in the match than anyone expected.
Ever the pro, he took a bump of a Jerry Lawler dropkick early in the match and was later choked out by a cable from The King.
He spent a lot of time on the outside brawling with his former rival, moving around much more than you’d have expected. He didn’t move great but considering his age and years in the business, he looked good.
The match ended in DQ, setting up the rematch for the next day in what would be Terry Funk’s last match.
This match put an end to the glistening career of the great Terry Funk. The former NWA Champion now lives in assisted living as he suffers the effects of dementia. Despite this, he is in good spirits and apparently very cognisant. He recently met up with long-time friend and in-ring rival Mick Foley (or Cactus Jack as he’s known to the Funker).
Posting on the official “Foley is Pod” Twitter account, he said;
Mick told his idol Terry Funk that whenever he’s within 400 miles of Amarillo he’d visit him. Mick had a great time visiting with Terry and his daughter Stacey along with Dick Murdoch’s son and daughter.
Foley has said that Funk needs help with things he forgets, such as turning the burner off on his oven.
Terry Funk passed away on August 23rd, 2023. Mick Foley led the tributes to the legend, claiming there would “never be anyone like Terry Funk again”.