SUMMARY
- Previously, Virgil used to play football in college as a defensive back.
- Virgil had a gimmick in WWE of being the personal bodyguard for Ted DiBiase.
Virgil, originally known as Michael Jones, is a former American professional wrestler who was well-known for his tenure at WWE. His most famous gimmick was being the personal assistant and bodyguard of Ted DiBiase.
Michael was born on June 13, 1962, in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania. His father, Warren Jones Sr., and mother, Elizabeth Jones, raised him with three siblings. He has two older brothers and a sister. Virgil went to Virginia Union University and played on the college football team as a defensive back.
Early in his career, Jones worked at his uncle’s loading and moving company and started competing in bodybuilding competitions. In 1985, he met Tony Atlas, who recommended him to go pro wrestling, and he began training under Afa of the Wild Samoans.
Jones made his professional wrestling debut as Soul Train Jones in the Championship Wrestling Association, which was a promotion based in Memphis. He wrestled for 2 years before leaving the promotion and joining WWF in 1986.
Virgil’s WWE career
Michael Jones competed in his first match in the Stamford-based promotion against Paul Orndorff in 1986 and lost to him. In 1987, he returned under a new ring name, Virgil, as a bodyguard for ‘Million Dollar Man’ Ted DiBiase. He played a secondary role in various storylines and wrestled in some matches.
As per the storyline, Virgil faced humiliation at the hands of DiBiase and, in 1991, finally turned upon him. He hit Ted with the million-dollar title belt at the Royal Rumble in 1991. After this, he trained with Roddy Piper and went on to defeat his former master at WrestleMania VII.
Virgil had matches with some of the big superstars and even had a match with Bret Hart for the World Title. He participated in various tag team matches involving famous superstars like Ric Flair and the British Bulldog. His last televised match was against Volkoff on July 24, 1994, where he was defeated. After leaving WWF, he wrestled in the independent circuit for two years before going to WCW in 1996.
He competed in the new promotion under the ring name Vincent and was a member of a faction called New World Order led by Ted DiBiase. He wrestled there for four years and then retired from active competition in 2000. In the last stage of his career, he also appeared on AEW as ‘Soul Train Jones’ during 2019-2020.
Virgil’s struggle with dementia and cancer
Life has not been fair to Virgil since he left wrestling. The 61-year-old superstar is homeless, broke, and lives with his old friend Shawn Raneri. He is often seen lonely traveling in the US and hoping that a fan recognizes him.
In 2022, he was diagnosed with the early stages of dementia, and according to him, he also suffered two massive strokes without realizing it. A month later, he was also diagnosed with stage two colon cancer. The veteran wrestler started a GoFundMe campaign for himself in 2023 and raised $4,600.