Ron Simmons

Ronald "Ron" Simmons^[1] (born May 15, 1958)^[1] is an American retired professional wrestler and American football player. He competed under his real name and the ring names Faarooq Asaad and Faarooq. He is currently signed to the WWE under a Legends program.

Ron Simmons
Simmons at GalaxyCon Richmond in 2020
Born	(1958-05-15) May 15, 1958 (age 66)[1] Perry, Georgia
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Ron Simmons[1] Faarooq Asad[1] Faarooq[1]
Billed height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[2]
Billed weight	270 lb (122 kg)[2]
Billed from	Warner Robins, Georgia
Trained by	Hiro Matsuda[1]
Debut	October 1986[1][2]
Retired	2010[1]

He competed in the National Wrestling Association (NWA), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment (WWF/E). During his time in WCW, he became the first African American to win the World Heavyweight Championship when he defeated Big Van Vader on August 2, 1992.^[3] In the WWF, he is known for being one-half of the Acolytes Protection Agency along with Bradshaw and was also a member of The Nation of Domination. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame by Bradshaw in 2012.

Simmons played college football at Florida State University. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008.^[4] He played one season in the National Football League (NFL) with the Cleveland Browns and one season in the Canadian Football League (CFL) with the Ottawa Rough Riders.