Mark Ty Hildreth, the professional wrestler who performed as “Heavy Metal” Van Hammer during his career with World Championship Wrestling in the 1990s, has died at age 66.
Fellow wrestling veteran Marc Mero announced Hammer’s passing on Saturday, April 19, 2026. An autopsy is pending, and no cause of death has been disclosed.
The announcement came during WrestleMania 42 weekend, as the major wrestling event took place April 18–19 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, adding poignancy to the news during one of wrestling’s biggest annual celebrations.
Standing 6-foot-6 and weighing 280 pounds at his peak, Hammer broke into wrestling in 1991 after training with Boris Malenko and Dan Spivey in Tampa, Florida. Born November 1, 1959, in Hebron, Maryland, Hildreth had served in the Navy after high school before pursuing a career in the ring.
His heavy metal rock star character became a WCW mainstay from 1991 to 1995. Hammer would enter arenas with a guitar around his neck, spinning it dramatically as metal music blasted through speakers, creating a visual spectacle that defined his persona during wrestling’s era of outlandish characters.
WCW gave Hammer a strong push immediately upon his arrival. At Clash of the Champions XVI in September 1991, he squashed Terrance Taylor in just 39 seconds in his debut. He then built a 42-0 winning streak across house shows and television before Cactus Jack defeated him at Clash of the Champions XVII. During that run, Hammer beat future stars including Mick Foley, Kevin Nash — wrestling as Vinnie Vegas at the time — and “Stunning” Steve Austin, who held the WCW Television Championship then.
He competed in championship bouts against major WCW names including Goldberg, Sid Vicious and Diamond Dallas Page for the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship. In July 1993, the World Wrestling Federation brought Hammer to New York for a two-night tryout where he wrestled dark matches against Virgil and Damien Demento, but no contract offer followed.
After returning to WCW in November 1997, Hammer joined Raven’s Flock stable and later became Major Stash in the Misfits in Action, demonstrating range beyond his original gimmick. His last WCW match took place in July 2000, though he continued sporadic independent wrestling appearances until a final match at Maryland Championship Wrestling in 2009.
Mero’s tribute highlighted a friendship that stretched back decades and extended well beyond professional wrestling. They first met when Hammer was vacationing in Venice, Florida, and working out at a local gym. After legendary wrestler Dusty Rhodes called Mero to come to his office the following day, Hammer drove him eight hours to sign his first WCW contract without hesitation.
“It is with a heavy heart that I share the passing of our dear friend, Mark Hildreth, known to so many as Van Hammer,” Mero wrote. “Mark was a fighter in every sense of the word. Life threw its share of challenges his way, but he had a resilience about him. He always found a way to rise, to push forward, to keep going.”
“That’s the kind of person he was — loyal, selfless, and always there when it mattered most,” Mero wrote.
The pair trained together under Malenko and eventually shared an apartment in Atlanta while building their wrestling careers. WCW selected both men to help promote the company’s United Kingdom tour, where they made personal appearances and did promotional work with music icon Gladys Knight.
Mick Foley wrote about their bond in a social media post from 2024, recalling how they reconnected in West Palm Beach. Hammer had babysat Foley’s children, Dewey and Noelle, and attended Dewey’s first birthday party in 1993. Foley particularly praised a Falls Count Anywhere match they had in Topeka, Kansas, which spilled into a real bullpen with real bulls.
“Anytime a guy comes in without a lot of experience and gets pushed right away, he is going to face a certain amount of cynicism from fans and fellow wrestlers alike,” Foley wrote. “But I really enjoyed wrestling Van Hammer.”
Foley also observed in his 2024 post that while Hammer no longer had his signature long blonde hair, he was in impressive physical shape for someone in his early 60s, a testament to lifelong fitness habits that sustained him through nearly two decades of wrestling.
Diamond Dallas Page memorialized Hammer on social media, remembering him as part of a tight “band of brothers” during their WCW years. Page revealed that Hammer had struggled with addiction later in life but had gotten clean and was employed as a salesman for a windows-and-doors company in Boynton Beach, Florida.
Social media tributes poured in from fans who remembered him as a memorable figure from WCW’s peak years and expressed appreciation for the entertainment he provided.
“My heart goes out to his family, his friends, and the fans who supported him throughout his journey,” Mero concluded. “Rest easy, my friend. You will always be remembered.”
