While Virgil didn’t exactly have the most prestigious career of all time, he has still managed to garner quite the fanbase over the years. Michael Jones, better known as Virgil, is often most fondly remembered for his time with "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase. In fact, many wrestling fans may not know all that much about Virgil outside of his time with Dibiase.
He didn’t manage to snag dozens of world championships like other wrestlers did, but he did manage to spend plenty of time in both WWE and WCW. Virgil was with the WWE for a roughly eight-year period and WCW for roughly four years and managed to create memorable moments within both promotions.
10 His WWE Name Was In Reference To Dusty Rhodes
Virgil may be most fondly remembered for his time in the WWE, but even during that time, WWE’s rivalry with WCW existed. It was that rivalry that led to the selection of the name Virgil for Jones’ time in WWE.
The name Virgil was actually selected by Bobby "The Brain" Heenan in order to take a dig at one of the most famous wrestlers and bookers of all time. Fans of Dusty Rhodes will know him as Virgil Runnels, and many people know just how much he did for WCW.
9 His WCW Names Were In Reference To The McMahons
Since WWE was willing to take a few shots at WCW, it shouldn’t be all that surprising that WCW was willing to retaliate. What goes around, comes around.
When Virgil began wrestling for WCW he was eventually given the name Vincent, a name that any wrestling fan will be familiar with. Down the line, he was renamed yet again, this time to Shane to once again take a shot at the McMahon family.
8 He Wasn’t Exactly A Winner
While Virgil wasn’t ever the winning machine that some of the stars of that era of wrestling tended to be, he didn’t lose every single match he was ever in. In fact, Virgil once won the Million Dollar Title from Ted DiBiase.
While Virgil was never the most active competitor for either the WWE or the WCW, he still did have his fair share of matches that didn’t go his way. At one point, Virgil even began to wrestle under his real name for WCW but didn’t manage to win a single one of his matches.
7 He Once Competed For A World Title
Something that may surprise a lot of people is that Virgil once challenged Bret Hart for his world title. As people don’t remember Virgil for an upset victory over Hart, it’s clear which way the match went.
The title match took place on an episode of Superstars, and despite a show of respect from the iconic Canadian, Virgil didn’t stay in the title picture for long. In fact, that would be the only time he would challenge for a world title for the remainder of his days in the WWE.
6 Vincent Was One Of The Final Members Of The nWo
The New World Order is arguably the most famous wrestling stable of all time for a variety of different reasons. The fact that Virgil was even a member of the nWo may surprise wrestling fans, but the fact that he was one of the final members may surprise them more.
It isn’t a stretch to say that the nWo stopped being as special as it once was during its final months in the spotlight. Too many seemingly random wrestlers had come and gone, and there had been too many offshoots for the group to remain strong, and the inclusion of someone like Virgil may have played into that.
5 He Worked As A Math Teacher
Many wrestlers can struggle in finding their next path once their wrestling career is seemingly over. While many use their star power in order to transition into other work like acting, others settle for something a bit quieter.
While Virgil does make plenty of appearances in the world of wrestling these days, he seemed to enjoy avoiding the spotlight for a little while at least. After leaving WCW, Virgil spent his days as a high school math teacher, which is a bit of a change of pace, to say the least.
4 He Supposedly Was An Excellent Amateur Wrestler
While the information surrounding his supposed amateur wrestling career is hard to come by, it has been said that Virgil was a fantastic amateur. Supposedly, it was his skill as an amateur that piqued the interest of many, and lead him into the world of professional wrestling.
It may be a bit more difficult to view Virgil as an athletic specimen these days, but even a look at his early WWE days shows how athletic the man was. It’s not hard to believe Virgil was a skilled wrestler as he always managed to handle himself in the ring with some of the all-time greats.
3 He’s Held Multiple Championships
No one could be blamed for mostly remembering Virgil as the guy that took the fall for pretty much everyone he was ever linked with. While that definitely was the case more often than not, Virgil still managed to capture a few championships throughout his career.
Throughout his career, Virgil managed to claim five different championships. Most famously, he won the Million Dollar Title in WWE, but he also won two titles for AWA, one title for NJCW, and one title for USWL. Credit is due for Virgil as he was at one time the AWA International Heavyweight Champion.
2 He Is The Subject Of A Famous Meme
The world of professional wrestling has managed to spawn its fair share of memes as the internet has changed. While many of them tend to feature the likes of The Undertaker or Stone Cold, there is a famous meme that features Virgil.
Wrestling fans may know the famous Virgil meme as “Lonely Virgil.” Some have called the memes rather mean-spirited, but wrestling fans who weren’t big on Virgil may get a kick out of them. The memes typically feature Virgil at conventions with no fans waiting to see him.
1 Virgil & Ted DiBiase Had A Falling Out
It’s likely that when any wrestling fan hears the name Virgil, they immediately think back to his time with "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase. While DiBiase never treated Virgil in the best way, many fans likely assumed the two had to be friends for at least a little while.
DiBiase has said that the reason the two fell out was due to Virgil’s embellishment of both he and the Million Dollar Man booking smaller appearances. DiBiase's no-showing appearances he didn’t even know he had doesn’t look good for anyone, thus causing issues between him and Virgil.
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