Wrestler Mick Foley, a former Navarre resident, cuts ties with WWE

Mick Foley, better known to most as the wrestling icons Mankind and Cactus Jack, says he’s cutting ties with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) over its support of President Donald Trump, who made disparaging remarks following Rob Reiner’s death.

Foley, who briefly called Navarre, Florida, his home at the height of his legendary wrestling career, said Trump’s comments about Reiner, 78, were the “final straw.”

Trump’s comments on the deaths of the renowned filmmaker and his wife, Michele Singer, sparked quick backlash from Democrats and Republicans across the board.

Less than 24 hours after news of Reiner’s death broke, Trump turned to social media and blamed his death on a “mind crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME.” Trump continued saying that “he was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump.”

Reiner and Singer were found dead with multiple stab wounds in their Southern California home on Dec. 14. One of the couple’s sons, Nick Reiner, 32, was arrested and charged with their murder, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

Here’s what to know about Foley and why he’s cutting ties with WWE.

Who is Mick Foley?

Mick Foley, 60, is a professional wrestling legend who performed under the aliases Mankind, Cactus Jack and Dude Love from 1985 to 2012.

His Cactus Jack persona helped launch him into the spotlight while he wrestled in WCW and ECW from 1991 to 1996. Cactus Jack was an aggressive character known for sporting cowboy boots and using sharp weapons as a gimmick.

Foley made his WWF debut in 1996 as Mankind, who is described as a “deranged miscreant who lurked in boiler rooms and shoved his fingers down opponents’ throats,” according to the WWE’s website. Mankind wore a leather mask as his gimmick and used a sweaty gym sock known as Mr. Socko to choke his opponents during his signature move, the “Mandible Claw.”

Dude Love was another persona Foley debuted in the WWF. Playing opposite to his Mankind persona, Dude Love was a fun-loving hippie.

Foley wrestled under all three of his personas during his time with the WWF, even appearing as all three characters in the 1998 Royal Rumble.

What is Mick Foley’s connection to Florida?

Mick Foley and his family moved to Navarre, Florida, in November 1997 after his wrestling career became stable enough for him to work away from home.

In a 1998 interview with the News Journal, Foley said that he toured the Milton area while working as a National Wrestling Association wrestler and ended up falling in love with Navarre.

Just a few months after moving to the area, Foley and his wife, Colette, opened up a full gym called Navarre Flex Appeal & Barbell Club. The gym was originally intended to be just for women, but its popularity turned it into a judgment-free place that anyone could work out at.

A fire destroyed Foley’s Navarre home in the 2000 block of Costa Verde Court in July 2003. Foley hadn’t lived at the residence for about three years at that point, according to a News Journal report.

Foley had moved back to New York but sold his Smithtown home in 2020 and reportedly moved back to Florida, though it’s not clear where.

Why did Mick Foley cut ties with WWE?

Mick Foley wrote that he was cutting ties with the WWE in an Instagram post on Dec. 16, saying that he had ongoing concerns with the organization’s support of Trump.

“While I have been concerned about WWE’s close relationship with Donald Trump for several months — especially in light of his administration’s ongoing cruel and inhumane treatment of immigrants (and pretty much anyone who ‘looks like an immigrant’) — reading the President’s incredibly cruel comments in the wake of Rob Reiner’s death is the final straw for me,” Foley wrote.

“I no longer wish to represent a company that coddles a man so seemingly void of compassion as he marches our country towards autocracy,” he continued.

Foley also announced that he would not be signing a new WWE Legends deal after his expires in June.

“I love WWE, will always treasure my time with them, and I am deeply appreciative for all the opportunities they afforded me. But, in the words of Popeye the sailor, ‘I stands all I can stands, and I can’t stands no more,’ “said Foley.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Wrestler Mick Foley, a former Navarre resident, cuts ties with WWE

Reporting by Brandon Girod, Pensacola News Journal / Pensacola News Journal

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect