The professional wrestling world lost another great one today as Mike “Mantaur” Halac passed away. He was 55 years old.
Halac’s daughter took to his social media account to announce that he passed away in his sleep.
“It’s Michael’s daughter Demi. I’m sorry to break the bad news that my dad has passed away. He went peacefully in his sleep. He’s no longer in pain. This really hit home to lose my father, he will forever be in my heart and many others. I love you dad. Make the skies beautiful for me,” she wrote.
Born in Omaha, Nebraska, Halac went into professional wrestling in his early 20s and competed in Germany for several years before joining the World Wrestling Federation in 1994.
In his first of several runs with the company, Halac changed his in-ring name from “Bruiser Mastino” to “Mantaur,” a gimmick where he would dress up like the Minotaur and charge, trample and moo towards his opponents.
Over the next 20-plus years, Halac would compete in a variety of different promotions including ECW, WCW and the Catch Wrestling Association.
He won the USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship over WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler in 1997.
