Where Are They Now?: Trevor Murdoch

He may not have had the physique of a Greek god, but Trevor Murdoch knows that hard work, along with some sweet karaoke skills, matters more than a six-pack in the long run.  The Harley Race-trained trucker-turned-tag team champion takes the work ethic he picked up in the squared circle into his current gig in his home state of Missouri.
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Murdoch’s road to the ring began in tiny Fredericktown, Mo., a town of fewer than 4,000 people in the Ozark Mountains. He was a wrestling fan almost from the beginning.
“My brother would wake me up on Sunday mornings to watch World Class Championship Wrestling,” he told WWE.com. “I grew up on the Von Erichs and ‘Gentleman’ Chris Adams. I loved how they competed in the ring and controlled that crowd, how they were able to bring them up and back down. The whole thing really amazed me.”
Like many kids, Murdoch dreamed of stepping into the ring himself. However, training for the squared circle wasn’t as accessible as it is today.
“I always had it in the back of my mind, but it was one of those things that you really didn’t know how to get into,” Murdoch said. “It was kind of a big wish.”
After high school, he planned on joining the Marines, but instead went into the Job Corps and became a certified welder. Before long, he found himself in Athens, Ga., building railroad cars. He soon came back to Missouri, where his brother was working with a small independent wrestling organization. Murdoch finally had his opportunity to step in the ring.
“I was really just a tackling dummy for everybody,” he said with a laugh. “I was a young guy, 6-foot-3, I was good to beat up.
Through his work on the Missouri independents, Murdoch came into contact with WWE Hall of Famer Harley Race, who was opening his own wrestling school in Eldon, Mo. The opportunity to train with a former World Champion like Race was too good to pass up. Murdoch ended up being one of the first two students to join Race’s camp, which was an interesting feeling for him.
“In the beginning, it was very nerve-wracking, because number one, he’s ‘Handsome’ Harley Race, eight-time NWA World Champion, ‘The King’!” he said. “But I knew in the back of my head if I could get through [Race’s training], I would have the reputation of at least being a good, tough wrestler. I wanted that.”
Murdoch got the chance to fine-tune his skills in the ring while Race figured out what the best curriculum was for teaching future classes. The burly grappler recalls six- and seven-day-a-week training with calisthenics, matches and learning a move or two from “Handsome” Harley. Though he picked up plenty of knowledge from Race, Murdoch holds three lessons from Race very dear.
“First and foremost, you always need to be a man of your word. If you don’t have your word, people can’t trust what you say and you’re nothing in this business,” Murdoch recalled. “Secondly, the cream will rise to the top. This business isn’t fair, but if you work hard, they’ll eventually have no choice but to put you in the top position. Number three, be tough. Don’t let them see that they’ve hurt you.”
That advice stuck with Murdoch as he traveled to Japan, spending six months in Pro Wrestling NOAH’s dojo. He endured grueling training that included 500 squats, 300 push-ups, extended neck bridging sessions, in-ring drills and more. He didn’t know it at the time, but this excursion would change his life the next time Race sent him to Raw to work as a local talent.
“WWE had never really paid any attention to me,” Murdoch explained. “I was just game for going up there to meet the guys, have some good catering, collect $250 and go home.”