Bruno Leopoldo Francesco Sammartino was a professional wrestler, born on the 6th October 1935 in Pizzoferrato, Italy, and was probably best known for his work with the World Wide Wrestling Federation, today known as WWE, where he held the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship for over eleven years. He is considered to be one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time. He passed away in 2018.
Have you ever wondered how rich Bruno Sammartino was? According to sources it has been estimated that Bruno Sammartino’s overall net worth was over $4 million, accumulated largely during his three decade –long career, during which he gained numerous accolades and awards. His success and accomplishments made him one of the most successful wrestlers ever, and significantly increased his net worth.
Bruno Sammartino Net Worth $4 Million
Bruno was born the youngest of seven children. During World War II, while still very young, he hid with his family in the mountains while trying to escape German soldiers. At the age of 15, Bruno moved to the US to join his father who had been living there for several years. Since his knowledge of English was poor, and he was a sickly child due to previous war experiences, he was bullied in school, which instigated Sammartino to devote himself to weight training. While attending Schenley High School, he worked out with the University of Pittsburgh wrestling team, and eventually became known in the Pittsburgh area for performing strongman stunts.
After appearing on a TV show, he was identified as a prospect by promoter Rudy Miller, and was then recruited into professional wrestling. Bruno’s professional debut came in 1959, and within the next six months he was headlining at Madison Square Garden, and soon became the only man to lift the 640lb wrestler Haystacks Calhoun. In May 1963, he won the WWWF World Championship in just 48 seconds, and kept his title for seven years, eight months and one day which is still the longest world title reign in the history of wrestling. In January 1971, Sammartino lost the Madison Square Garden championship to Ivan Koloff, leaving the public in a state of shock. However, Bruno regained the title, this time keeping it for a further three years, four months and twenty days.
His last major series of matches happened in the mid-‘80s, against “Macho Man” Randy Savage and The Honky Tonk Man. He actually headlined over 180 tournaments at Madison Square Garden during his career, a tribute in itself to the ability and popularity of the man. After retiring in 1987, Sammartino continued on to do commentary for the WWF during the following years.
Due to his outstanding achievements and lucrative career, he was named “Living Legend” and was very highly respected in his profession. On the 6th April 2013, after having declined this invitation several times before, Bruno finally accepted induction into the WWE Hall of Fame.
When it comes to his personal life, Bruno was married to Carol from 1959, and the couple had three sons, residing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Bruno passed away on 18 April 2018 at his home, after suffering ill-health for a several months.
