WWE Legend Joe Laurinaitis, Best Known As 'Road Warrior Animal,' Dies At Age 60
(WCCO)- WWE announced Wednesday that legendary tag team wrestler Joe Laurinaitis, a.k.a "Road Warrior Animal," died at the age of 60. The Minnesota native won multiple tag team titles across several wrestling promotions including the WWE. He attended Irondale High School in New Brighton, Minnesota.
Laurinaitis was one half of the "Road Warriors" tag team that later became known as the "Legion of Doom" when they arrived at the WWE. Along with his partner, Michael Hegstrand, a.k.a "Road Warrior Hawk," Laurinaitis made his way up through the wrestling ranks, winning titles in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and the American Wrestling Association before moving on to the WWE.
The tag team won World Tag Team Titles in 1991 against "The Nasty Boys" and 1997 against "The Godwinns." Laurinaitis went on to win another tag team title in the federation in 2005 which he dedicated to Hegstrand, who died in 2003. The Road Warriors were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2011.
Laurinaitis' son James, played eight seasons in the NFL from 2009-2016 after being selected in the second round by the Los Angeles Rams. James credited his work ethic to his father when he was with the New Orleans Saints in 2016.
No official cause for his death was disclosed.
Some the wrestling world's biggest names offered their tributes after learning of Laurinaitis' passing.
