Jacques Rougeau Jr.
Born�: St-Sulpice, Qc, June 13th 1960
Other names�: the Mountie, the Quebecer
Family Ties�: Jacques Rougeau Sr. (father)
Raymond & Armand (brothers)
Johanne (sister)
Jean (Johnny) Rougeau (uncle)
Major Championships�:International Wrestling Tag Team champ with brother Raymond(1982-86)
WWF Intercontinental Champ (1990) as the Mountie
WWF Tag Team champ (with Pierre-Karl Ouellet) (1992)
From Qu�bec's premier pro wrestling families, Jacques Rougeau Jr is indeed a true perseverant fighter, either in the ring or outside, when he grabs a mike. With tradition flowing through the family as father Jacques Sr and Johnny fighting in the ring along with his brother Raymond, it was obvious that Jacques would soon follow the path.
He started his career in the International Wrestling promotion in 1981. At the "�LES �TOILES DE LA LUTTE�" TV show, young Jacques already showed what he was all about�: a winner all over. Along with Raymond and Armand, he stood still against vicious thugs such as Sailor White, Gilles Poisson, Rick Valentine, Mad Dog Lebf�vre, Frenchy Martin, Pat Patterson and others. He had such a way of a talking bravado that his declarations were often more convincing than one Eddy Creatchman...
Along with Raymond, Jacques won several tag team championships during his stay at International Wrestling in Montr�al. In 1985, the team faced one of the most popular rivalries ever to be scheduled in the promotion�: the infamous Garvin Brothers, Rugged Ronnie and Gorgeous Jimmy...
This led to two sold-out galas on June 24th 1985 and then four weeks later at the Montr�al Forum. The brawls were no-contests all the way�: it was a real family feud, though the Garvins in real life are in-laws...
With the promotion dying slowly in 1986 (a road tragedy took the live of three major members of International Wrestling...) , the Rougeaus took the jump to the World Wrestling Federation. From there, Jacques and Raymond became heels under the management of Jimmy Hart as the "�Fabulous Rougeau Brothers�". During these years with Raymond, Jacques didn't get the tag team belt, but got the chance to fight big teams like the Hart Connection and Demolition... When Raymond left the ring to become announcer in the WWF in 1989, Jacques took a sabbatical year, then came back to the WWF under a new name.
Without forgetting his Canadian roots, he became the ruthless heel that was the Mountie (the opposite of Paul Gross's constable Fraser in "�Due South�"...). He arrived in the ring, arrogant and proud. Then, when he beated his opponent, he used a cattle rod to neutralize him? However, the caracter drew so much controversy that the real RCMP forbit the WWF to use the name "�Mountie�" in Canadian shows. But with this stint, Jacques won the WWF Intercontinental Championship, a title he lost one week later to Bret "�the HitMan�" Hart...
Shortly after, Jacques teamed up with a rookie called Pierre-Karl Ouellette, also known as Pirate Jean-Pierre Lafitte. They name themselves "�the Qu�becquers�" and won in 1992, the WWF tag team belt.
After the lost, the Quebecquers became mid-carders until Jacques and Pierre left shortly in 1995 to try desperately to revive a major promotion in Qu�bec. In fact Jacques organised one show in Verdun, outside Montr�al, along with several veterans of International Wrestling... But has a big dream�: beating the legendary champion Hulk Hogan at Montr�al's Olympic Stadium one of these days...
This dream did came through, though the venue was different. Jacques and Pierre-Karl signed for Eric Bischoff's World Championship Wrestling, where Hollywood Hulk Hogan was reigning king (of the New World Order...). After several months in the promotion, Jacques organised a sold out show at Molson Center in Montr�al in April 1997. While his buddy Pierre wrestled Paul Wight (a.k.a. The Giant), Jacques took his hands against the nWo ruler. He beated Hogan, but it didn't count for the championship. Fearing that Rougeau might surpass his superstar, Bischoff fired him and Pierre-Karl. Both came back to the WWF,. but this time, they were treated like jobbers...
Jacques shortly broke up with Pierre-Karl Ouellette (who went to the States and became Kris Kannonball), and reconciliated with brother Raymond (they weren?t getting along for a while...). Frustrated by the fact that the two major American promotions let him down, he decides at the end of 1998 to found a major Qu�bec wrestling promotion, called INTERNATIONAL WRESTLING 2000. Along with Raymond, Jacques wants to revive the best years in Qu�bec pro wresting, with veterans such as Michel Dubois, Richard Charland and Frenchy Martin, and young hopefuls like Ron "�the DoorMan�" Trottier, Carl "�Mr.Dynasty�" Leduc (Paul's son), Genevi�ve "�Precious Lucy�" Goulet, the Iceman, The 2 Prisoners and others.
It started in January 1999 and seems to make its way, though many Qu�bec wrestling fans prefer American promotions shown free on TV...
In his personnal life, Jacques was married with two kids, then divorced. He owned for a while a gym in Rawdon, near Joliette, and taught some wrestling hints to future hopefuls in the Lanaudi�re county northeast of Montr�al. Starting in September 1999, he will be in charge of a wrestling school in the Maisonneuve district, not too far from Montr�al's Olympic Stadium.
Source�: Le journal de Montr�al, Les �toiles de la lutte, WWF magazines, LUTTE.COM...
Other articles about Jacques Rougeau Jr.
Canadian Wrestling Page of Fame by Greg Oliver
Copyright 1999, Productions Leduc 2000, Montreal, Qc.