By Mark Gray
6:00am PST, Mar 5, 2024
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Virgil, a prominent figure in the WWF in the '80s and '90s, has died at 61. Early in his WWF (pre-WWE) career, the wrestler (real name: Mike Jones) served as "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase's personal assistant. Virgil eventually defeated his "boss" (seen here) and won the Million Dollar Championship at 1991's SummerSlam. Years later, Virgil became known as Vincent during a three-year run at the WCW as part of the nWo.
Former wrestling referee Mark Charles III announced his death on Facebook on Feb. 28, writing, "My dear friends, it is with great sorrow that I bring news from the Jones family of the passing of our beloved Michael Jones, whom we know and loved as Virgil, Vincent, Soul Train Jones and more. Virgil passed peacefully at the hospital this morning and I ask that you pray for him and for his family. May his memory be eternal!"
Keep reading to see how Virgil's famous friends, fans and former colleagues reacted to the news…
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"I took a few days to process everything but I didn't want to let too much time pass before I paid my respects to Mike 'Virgil' Jones. The Million Dollar Man character was enhanced and improved thanks to Mike and his hard work and I will forever be thankful. More importantly, I will always be thankful for his friendship. God bless you and may you rest in peace, my friend." —"The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase
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"Sorry to hear about the passing of @realvirgil Mike Jones. During the early days of @aew, we used Mike (aka #SoulTrainJones) multiple times in the #InnerCircle story and he was essentially an honorary member… I even tried to book him on the @jericho_cruise and was gonna ask him again for next year. Always a character and always a good cat, Mike (aka #Virgil) will be missed. Here's to ya, Soul Train… having a Lil bit of the bubbly and a few @olivegarden breadsticks in your honor!" —Chris Jericho
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"When you're NWO, you're NWO for life. Never did you not bring a smile to my face when we saw each other. RIP my friend" –Kevin Nash
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"Condolences go out to the family of Virgil. Such a great guy. A real gentleman. Will miss you, my friend!" –The Honky Tonk Man
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"Rest in peace, Virgil. Sending my love, thoughts and prayers to his family. #MillionDollarChamp" —Ken Jeong
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"Shocked and saddened to hear the news about Virgil. Rest in peace, my friend." —Jake "The Snake" Roberts
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"R.I.P Virgil, thanks for being a great sport during our shenanigans and for the memories. See you down the road, good brother." —Doc Gallows
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"RIP Virgil. A good man and a performer who really left his mark on wrestling." —Hacksaw Jim Duggan
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"Never got to know Virgil, but I know how much he meant to this business. My thoughts are with everyone who knew and loved him." —Kayla Braxton
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"RIP Virgil! May God Bless you and forever keep you, brother!" —Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake
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"Fly high, Virgil" —Rob Van Dam
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"RIP Virgil, Mike Jones. Virgil was a funny, unique individual that was always cool to me and I'm saddened to hear about his passing. My thoughts go out to his family, friends and fans." —Matt Hardy
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"Praying for him and those that loved him." —Buff Bagwell
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"Virgil once regaled me with the time him and Ted DiBiase met Victoria Beckham, in 1992. I now realize he meant Sarah, Duchess Of York." –RJ City
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"I'm sorry to hear that Former WWE star Virgil, real name Michael Jones, has passed away at 61, weeks after suffering 'several strokes' My thoughts are with his family and his numerous fans. RIP" —Marc Mero
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"I remember Virgil cornering me for 15 minutes in a hotel lobby to tell me that when he first got to WWE they invested 300 million dollars into his character and that he was going to be world champion but it never panned out. He always had a crazy story every time I saw him. RIP" –Anthony Bowens
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"Sad way to wake up this morning to find out my friend Michael 'Virgil' Jones passed on to the great Olive Garden in the sky. I met Virgil when I was 11 at an indie wrestling show, I walked up and said hello and he tried to finagle me for $20 a picture. I did not have any money but instead he said, 'Kid, hold my bag.' Fast forward two years later I walked into the Super Mega show toy convention and my friends dad went, 'Joey, that guy over there is calling your name.' To much confusion and surprise, it was 'WWF Superstar' Virgil. Somehow he remembered me. Many years later when we came up with the Spring Break show the first name that came to mind that we needed to get for this show was Virgil himself, which permanently cemented himself as a part of the Janelaverse forever! I had many great times with Michael, he was one of the funniest characters I've ever met in the business and always meant well. From getting the promoter in England to fly him out on two days notice because we were drunk and I wanted to hang out with him which would be his last time across the pond, to bringing him to the AEW hotel to rib and annoy the boys. Virgil was always a team player and brought smiles to peoples faces. But let's not [forget] his contributions to the business back in the day as his act with the million dollar man Ted Dibiase and massive babyface turn is something very memorable and still talked about today. If you were in the business then or if you ran into Virgil in the last 20 years you had a story that you'd remember forever. I looked forward to seeing him this year in Philadelphia, but that sadly that won't happen, but I have many memories with the Meatsauce god that will last a lifetime! RIP VIRGIL!" –Joey Janela
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"Saddened to hear about the passing of @TheRealVirgil. I'm thinking of his family and friends during this time." —Natalya Neidhart
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"Godspeed, Virgil. My heart goes out to his family and friends. Rest well, sir." —Adam Pearce
