CLAYTON, N.C. (WNCN) — Pro Wrestling is coming back to Clayton as the North Carolina Wrestling Association gears up to host the 12th annual Ivan Koloff Memorial Tag Team Tournament.

This Saturday, the association is bringing together legends of the pro wrestling world alongside current and future stars to honor Ivan Koloff, who was known in the ring as “The Russian Bear.”

Fans taking in the tournament will have the opportunity to meet WWE stars such as Tatanka, Bushwhacker Luke, The Barbarian, and Ricky Morton. ECW originals, Shane Douglas, and CW Anderson will also be at the tourney in addition to future stars such as Jackson Drake, Labron Kozone, Chance Rizer, and Alexander Moss.

It will be a night of family fun and entertainment as fans will see tag teams battle it out to get their hands raised as the winners of the tournament. Matches outside the tournament will also take place Saturday.

The tournament has always served as a special time where fans, and wrestlers alike get together to honor, and share stories about Koloff. For some, they wrestled against him, tagged with him, trained with, or learned from him. Some knew him from his work with the Children’s Miricale Network.

For others, it was the way you felt when Ivan would just walk up to you in a locker room, reach out, and shake your hand. He had a special way of brightening your day, or taking the weight off your shoulders just by shaking your hand and smiling. That smile, that look, that hand shake is what made him “Uncle Ivan” to a lot of people.

The event will be held at the Clayton Fitness Center with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. and a bell time of 7:30 p.m.

For questions, and ticket information you can contact the North Carolina Wrestling Association at ncwawrestling1@gmail.com, call them at 919-710-6166, or find them on Facebook.