Early career (1983–1984) Jannetty began his wrestling career in September 1983 for
Mid-South Wrestling teaming with trainer Jerry Oates (as "cousin" Marty Oates), until November. After leaving Mid-South, he would wrestle under his real name for
Southeastern Championship Wrestling, where he would wrestle the likes of
Super Olympia and
Mr. Olympia.
Central States Wrestling (1984–1986) In March 1984, Jannetty wrestled for the
National Wrestling Alliance affiliate
Central States Wrestling. He wrestled in singles and tag team competition with various partners, including
Bulldog Bob Brown, Dave Peterson and
Tommy Rogers (as The Uptown Boys) until joining forces with fellow rookie
Shawn Michaels in late 1985. The two teamed as
The Midnight Rockers and quickly won the
NWA Central States Tag Team Championship from
The Batten Twins. Jannetty wrestled
Ric Flair for the
NWA World Heavyweight Championship during his time in CSW. In the summer of 1985, Jannetty wrestled his first Japanese tour for
All Japan Pro Wrestling, where his biggest match there was a loss to
Tiger Mask II on September 5.
American Wrestling Association (1986–1988) (left) with Marty Jannetty, known together as "
the (Midnight) Rockers" during their time as
AWA World Tag Team Champions In 1986, the duo left CSW for the
American Wrestling Association. In the AWA, Jannetty and Michaels quickly built a reputation as a talented tag team, performing many acrobatic moves in tandem and electrifying crowds with their athleticism. The two won the
World Tag Team Championship twice, first defeating
Buddy Rose and
Doug Somers and then
The Midnight Express for their second and final reign. They also won the
Southern Tag Team Championship twice after defeating the
Rock 'n' Roll RPMs on two separate occasions before jumping to the
World Wrestling Federation in 1988.
World Wrestling Federation (1988–1992) The Rockers (1988–1992) in WWF Now called simply
The Rockers, Jannetty and Michaels' popularity carried over from their stint in the AWA and the team was often called "tag team specialists" by commentator
Gorilla Monsoon. They made their WWF debut at a television taping on June 18, 1988, and they faced tag teams such as
Demolition,
The Hart Foundation, and the
Brain Busters for the rest of 1989. Duos including The Rockers routinely headlined
house show events during this era of tag team wrestling. Despite their previous success, The Rockers never officially won the
Tag Team Championship during their three-year run together in the WWF. On October 30, 1990, The Rockers were scheduled to win the titles from The Hart Foundation due to
Jim Neidhart, one-half of the championship team, being in the process of negotiating his release from the company. The match was taped with The Rockers fairly winning the belts, but soon after, Neidhart reportedly came to a stop-gap agreement with management and was rehired. The belts were returned to the Hart Foundation a week later, and despite The Rockers making a title defense against
Power and Glory on November 3, the change was never broadcast or acknowledged on television. During a tag team match at the
USF Sun Dome in December 1990, Jannetty executed his
Rocker Dropper finishing move on
Chuck Austin, who was teaming with
The Genius. Austin's neck was instantly broken as a result of tucking his head during the move, rather than falling flat on the mat. Austin was paralyzed and sued Jannetty, Michaels, and
Titan Sports. When the case finally came to court in early 1994, Austin was awarded $26.7 million. Titan Sports appealed the decision and came to a $10 million settlement. In the end, Jannetty was ordered to pay Austin $500,000. In a 1991
angle to begin the breakup of the team, Michaels was accidentally kicked in the face during a maneuver initiated by Jannetty on one of
The Nasty Boys, which clipped Shawn in the face and resulted in an elimination at
Survivor Series. Michaels got up after being pinned and began screaming at Jannetty, blaming him for being eliminated. After weeks of tension, the team was granted a WWF World Tag Team Championship match against
The Legion of Doom on the December 28, 1991 edition of
WWF Superstars. The Rockers were unsuccessful following another miscommunication. Michaels launched Jannetty into
Animal for a double-team move where Michaels would dropkick Jannetty's back, knocking him on top of Animal. Instead, Animal turned at the last second and Michaels dropkicked him. Animal fell on top of Jannetty and got the 3-count. Following the match, Michaels was irate at Jannetty for getting pinned while Jannetty tried to calm him down. After pushing away an attempted hug by Jannetty, Michaels slapped Jannetty in the face. Jannetty refused to fight back. Michaels slapped Jannetty again, causing Jannetty to lunge at Michaels but stopped short of attacking him and stormed out the ring. Michaels took his wristbands off and stared at the booing crowd. Attempting to help settle their differences,
Brutus Beefcake invited both on his interview segment "The Barber Shop" on the January 12, 1992 episode of
WWF Wrestling Challenge. Michaels and Jannetty appeared to reconcile, but then Michaels turned heel, hitting Jannetty with "
Sweet Chin Music". He then picked up Jannetty and tossed him through the big Barber Shop glass window, causing him to bleed profusely. Jannetty was initially meant to work the injury, thus missing the opportunity to win the vacant
WWF Championship at the
1992 Royal Rumble. He was scheduled to return shortly after to start a feud which was to lead to a one-on-one match between Michaels and Jannetty at
WrestleMania VIII. However, in the early hours of January 25, 1992, Jannetty was arrested in
Tampa, Florida, after an altercation with police.
Return to WWF (1992–1994) Intercontinental Champion (1992–1993) Shortly after his house arrest concluded, Jannetty re-signed with the WWF and returned on October 12, 1992 at a TV taping in
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan from the crowd, attempting to strike Michaels with his mirror but inadvertently hitting
Sensational Sherri, Michaels's then-
manager, when Michaels pulled her in front. A few weeks later, he challenged Michaels to a match at the
1993 Royal Rumble for the Intercontintental Championship. The match had a secondary storyline, promoting the return of Sensational Sherri from her injuries and speculating whose corner Sherri would be in. During the match, Michaels rolled outside the ring looking to Sherri for comfort. Sherri slapped Michaels, turning babyface and aligning with Jannetty. Jannetty lost after interference by Sherri backfired. After the match, Sherri was being interviewed backstage when Michaels confronted her. Jannetty attacked Michaels during the confrontation. They had to be separated by referees and officials, indicating that their
feud would continue and perhaps lead to a rematch at
WrestleMania IX. But Jannetty was released again after rumors circulated stating that he had been
under the influence of alcohol or other drugs during the match, leading to its comparably low quality. Michaels was then suddenly shifted into a feud with
Tatanka. Jannetty to this day denies having been intoxicated at the event, but explains having been rather tired because of lack of sleep, and that the rumor had been started by Shawn Michaels to escape blame for the match being disappointing. Jannetty returned once again on May 17, 1993, challenging Michaels for the
Intercontinental Championship after appearing out of the crowd on
Monday Night RAW when Michaels was being interviewed by Vince McMahon and telling the audience that he would defend his title against anyone at any time. Though Michaels initially tried to back out of fighting Jannetty (clearly not expecting anyone, least of all Jannetty, to challenge him that night), he eventually put his title on the line against his former partner. Jannetty won the title that night, thanks to
Mr. Perfect preventing Michaels from heading to the locker room where he would be counted out but keep his title. Jannetty had only one title defense on TV, defeating
Bam Bam Bigelow by countout on the May 31, 1993 edition of Monday Night RAW. He lost the title back to Michaels on June 6, 1993 in a non-televised match in Albany, New York due to interference from Michaels' debuting bodyguard
Diesel. The title change was never shown on television and to this day no footage has ever surfaced. According to Jannetty, it was Curt Hennig who petitioned to bring him back to the WWF. Hennig, who was on good terms with Vince McMahon, convinced Vince that Michaels also deserved some responsibility for the poor Rumble '93 match. Jannetty believes that his title victory was meant as punishment for Shawn Michaels for lying. as well as in a non-title match that July. The tandem made their pay-per-view debut at
SummerSlam 1996, failing to win the Tag Team Titles during a four-way tag team match with
The Smoking Gunns winning the bout and retaining the titles. The match also featured
The Godwinns and
The Bodydonnas. Their next (and final) pay-per-view appearance came at
Survivor Series 1996, when they teamed with
Owen Hart & The British Bulldog to face
Doug Furnas & Phil LaFon and The Godwinns in an elimination match. Cassidy began a character change at this event, going from goofy and nerdy to walking slowly with a permanent scowl on his face. He also now had a
Horseshoe moustache. Jannetty did not play off Cassidy's attitude change. Jannetty was the first participant eliminated. It was during this match that Jannetty injured his ankle. Jannetty asked for his release from the company after the show, as he was unhappy with the team's lack of success and management's refusal to split them up. His last match came when they were defeated by
Pierroth &
Cibernetico in a match that aired on the December 23, 1996 episode of RAW. Jannetty and Cassidy shoved each other and argued after the loss, but it was ignored by the commentators.
Return to Independent circuit (1997–2001) and Falcon Coperis in Ultimate Championship Wrestling in 1997 ,
Tatanka and
Jim Neidhart in 1997 After his run with the World Wrestling Federation, Jannetty joined the New York-based independent promotion Ultimate Championship Wrestling in 1997 along with other WWF alumni. He also made an appearance in ECW when he teamed with
Vampire Warrior in a losing match against
Roadkill and former partner Al Snow at a house show in Orlando, FL on September 27, 1997. Jannetty made his first appearance following this injury on May 8, 1999, facing IPW Heavyweight Champion
The Cuban Assassin. In the summer of 1999 he embarked on a tour of Australia for the
Australasian Wrestling Federation (AWF), facing
Sabu,
Chris Candido, and
TNT. On October 10, 1999 he teamed with
Tommy Rogers against
The Samoan Swat Team on the
Heroes of Wrestling PPV. Jannetty was released from his contract while recovering from a shoulder injury suffered during this match.
Third return to WWE (2005–2009) On the March 14, 2005 episode of
Raw, Jannetty returned for a one-time only reunion with his former tag team partner
Shawn Michaels, once again billed as The Rockers and performing their traditional entrance with their original music, against
La Résistance (
Sylvain Grenier and
Rob Conway). Jannetty scored the win for his team after he used his signature Rocker Dropper. This was preparation for Jannetty's match with
Kurt Angle on that week's
SmackDown!, as Angle had challenged Jannetty prior to his
WrestleMania 21 match with Shawn Michaels. Angle claimed that since Jannetty had taught Michaels "everything he knows" while part of The Rockers, he could teach Michaels "how to tap out" by forcing Jannetty to submit on
SmackDown!. Angle made good on his promise and forced Jannetty to submit to his
ankle lock, but only after a nearly twenty-minute match and an impressive showing for Jannetty which saw him nearly pin the Olympic champion. WWE soon signed him to a new contract, however he was arrested and unable to meet the commitments of his WWE contract, leading to his release on July 6. On the February 20, 2006 episode of
Raw, Shawn Michaels was pitted against four of the five members of the
Spirit Squad in their in-ring debut. After he had used Sweet Chin Music, Michaels was attacked by all five members until an unknown man came storming in to the ring to defend Michaels. During the melee, it was revealed that it was Marty Jannetty coming to defend his former tag team partner. Later on
Raw, Vince McMahon came out to mention that he would offer Jannetty a full-time contract. McMahon then added a stipulation that Jannetty had to join Mr. McMahon's "
Kiss My Ass Club" the following week on
Raw. Jannetty refused, and McMahon instead offered Jannetty the possibility of breaking
Chris Masters' signature submission hold, the
Master Lock. Jannetty appeared to almost break the hold, but Mr. McMahon (who was officiating) hit Jannetty with a low blow. Unable to break it, he was only released from the hold when Michaels ran in to save him. Shortly after Michaels had saved Jannetty,
Shane McMahon ran in the ring with a steel chair and knocked out Michaels. The former Rockers were supposed to continue a program with the McMahons, but Jannetty was absent from the next episode of
Raw and instead Triple H and Shawn Michaels reunited as
D-Generation X. On March 3, WWE announced that it had severed all professional ties with Jannetty without further explanation. On September 15, it was announced on WWE.com that Jannetty had signed a new contract and would be returning as a veteran to work with younger talent. WWE.com also stated that Jannetty, along with
Brad Armstrong and
Rodney Mack, could also be granted a full-time contract pending the success of this initial venture. According to
Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Jannetty was rumored to have been released yet again on September 29. Jannetty countered this rumor on his
Myspace page, stating it was untrue. In a blog on his website,
Jim Ross said Jannetty was no longer with WWE on December 24 due to a court order in Florida preventing him from traveling on the road. On the December 3, 2007 episode of
Raw,
Mr. Kennedy, who was feuding with Shawn Michaels at the time, said that he would speak to three people who knew Michaels very well as part of a feud between him and Michaels. The three were imposters dressed as
Razor Ramon,
Diesel, and Jannetty. Along with a fake Michaels, they were all attacked with
Sweet Chin Music by the real Michaels. The next week on the 15th anniversary of
Raw, Jannetty appeared along with Michaels in an interview. Michaels wanted to see what would happen when Kennedy fought the real Jannetty. In the end, he was defeated by Kennedy. On October 19, 2009, Jannetty made an appearance on
Raw, losing in a match against
The Miz.
Chikara (2011–2013) On October 22, 2011, it was announced that Jannetty had signed with
Chikara as a trainer and as a wrestler. His debut match for the promotion was booked for October 29 against Tursas, but the show was eventually cancelled. He then made his official debut on November 13 at
High Noon, Chikara's inaugural internet
pay-per-view, by accompanying
The Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson) to the ring. Jannetty made his Chikara in-ring debut on August 12, 2012, when he teamed with
Green Ant in a tag team match, where they were defeated by Los Ice Creams (El Hijo del Ice Cream and Ice Cream, Jr.). Jannetty returned on September 16, 2012, when he and the 1-2-3 Kid won the annual tag team
gauntlet match at the
2012 King of Trios. When Jannetty and the 1-2-3 Kid also defeated
the Heart Throbs (
Antonio Thomas and
Romeo Roselli) on November 18, they earned their third point, or third back-to-back win, and a future shot at the
Chikara Campeonatos de Parejas. In May 2018, Jannetty wrestled his most recent singles match for AIW, a match he lost to
Joey Janela. His final match to date was held on June 16, 2018 for the Ohio-based Battle on the Border promotion, participating in an eight-man elimination tag team match, where he was the team captain, defeating
Eddie Gonzales and his team. In a 2023 interview with
Bill Apter, Jannetty revealed that after undergoing two ankle surgeries, he doesn't want to return to the ring to risk screwing up his reconstructed ankles, indicating that he's retired from in-ring competition after 35 years. ==Personal life==