How Did These Wrestlers Die?
- by Alexander Podgorski
- – on
- in Sports
Death is never an easy subject to deal with, especially when it comes for someone whom we hold dear. This is also true in wrestling, since pro wrestlers are considered heroes by many fans, who buy into the whole 'larger than life' aspect of the professional wrestling world.
A wrestler's life is unbelievably taxing. The matches themselves are excruciatingly painful, as most rings are nothing more than thin canvas covering thin plywood sheets surrounded by very hard ropes. Add to this a regular dose of 'superhuman feats of strength' and you can send a wrestler's blood pressure soaring through the roof.
Then there's the other aspects of the industry: countless photo shoots, interviews, promo shoots, commercials, and of course, extensive international travel. A wrestler, especially in WWE, has to do all of this while on a relatively strict and exhausting schedule, often with little-to-no sleep.
For many wrestlers, this is the only livelihood they've ever known, and need to continue doing this in order to take care of their families. It shouldn't surprise anyone that the wrestling industry has had its fair share of shocking wrestler deaths, most of which were incredibly premature.
This quiz isn't meant to glorify or take advantage of those wrestlers that've died doing what they love. Instead, it's meant to educate and warn people interested in becoming pro wrestlers that the industry carries considerable risks, and not taking these warnings can be very costly.
How did Chris Von Erich die?
Chris Von Erich’s story is one of the most unfortunate and depressing ones in wrestling. He was a member of a famous wrestling family, and thus the pressure was on for him to follow in his father’s and brothers’ footsteps. Sadly, Chris was smaller than average and also suffered from asthma and had brittle bones, making it difficult to perform even the most basic of moves. Despite these problems, Chris did gain support from the audience when he did wrestle, as they recognized the underdog that Chris was.
How did Road Warrior Hawk die?
The Road Warriors, Hawk and Animal, were one of the most influential tag teams of all time. Their badass look, excellent tag team psychology and genuine tough-guy mentalities made them outstanding draws wherever they went. Sadly, Hawk has his fair share of personal demons, struggling with drug and alcohol abuse for many years. At one point, WWE even turned this into a highly inappropriate storyline whereby Hawk would try and act out suicidal actions. These abysmal storyline led to both Road Warriors leaving WWE shortly thereafter.
How did Dino Bravo die?
Dino Bravo was a lower-midcarder in WWE during the 1980s and 1990s. He worked primarily in lower-level rivalries, though he did get the occasional championship opportunity, such as for the Ultimate Warrior’s Intercontinental Championship. After his in-ring career ended, Bravo became a wrestling trainer in the Montreal area, and helped local Canadian wrestlers gain some exposure. However, his personal life was also full of controversy, as he was believed to be involved in certain illicit activities throughout Montreal and in Canada in general.
How did Chris Candido die?
Chris Candido’s WWE career was met with several problems. He only lasted in Vince’s promotion for about a year, especially after what happened between himself and his valet and real-life girlfriend Tammy ‘Sunny’ Sytch. She had an extramarital affair with Shawn Michaels, and this ended up damaging Candido’s career as he didn’t do anything in response to it, given Michaels’ position in WWE at the time. He did, however, find greater success outside of WWE, including in such promotions as ECW.
What was the cause of Yokozuna's death?
Rodney Anoa’I, the man known as Yokozuna in WWE, wasn’t an actual sumo wrestler, but he was convincing enough that many people thought he was one. This stemmed from how well WWE sold the gimmick to the audience, with Yokozuna being accompanied by traditional Japanese music and bringing a bucket of salt with him. Of course, the biggest selling factor was Yokozuna’s size, which made people think he was a real sumo wrestler. This weight of his eventually became a major problem for him and led to his release from the company.
How did 'Macho Man' Randy Savage die?
‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage was one of the best wrestlers of all time, period. Not only did he have an iconic voice and outstanding charisma, but he was also an outstanding grappler that put on great matches on a regular basis. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Macho Man was considered a major star wherever he went. His influence on wrestling cannot be overstated, as many wrestlers have emulated him in his mannerisms and move-set over the years. Sadly, his tenure in WWE ended on a truly sour note, with many people suggesting that personal problems between Vince and Randy making a return impossible.
How did Reid Flair die?
Reid Flair was still a young wrestler when he died, passing away at only 25 years of age. At the time, he was signed to All Japan Pro Wrestling and was in the U.S. following the end of a tour. His death became a source of controversy when it came up in an angle in 2015 between Reid’s sister Charlotte and Paige. Paige mocked Reid’s death in an angle, which was met with overwhelming backlash, especially since WWE hadn’t asked the Flair family for permission before going ahead with the gimmick.
How did 'Dr. Death' Steve Williams die?
Steve Williams was one of the best wrestlers in Japanese wrestling history. An outstanding 'gaijin', Williams was noted for his incredible toughness, football-inspired tackles, and his ultra-dangerous 'Dangerous Backdrop', a high-angle back suplex whereby the victim landed on their upper shoulders and neck as opposed to in a safer position. Williams worked all over Japan, but achieved his greatest successes in Baba's All Japan Pro Wrestling. It was there that he won several prestigious accolades, including AJPW's Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship.
What was the cause of Andrew 'Test' Martin's death?
Andrew ‘Test’ Martin was one of many wrestlers who were pushed to the moon initially but were screwed out of success by backstage politics. Test was given a major push at first with his on-screen relationship with Stephanie McMahon. However, that ended abruptly when Triple H revealed that he had married her instead (in storyline). After this, WWE’s decision-makers seemed to give up on Test, and he sound fell lower and lower down the card, before being released from the company in 2004, and then returning for a short run on WWECE in 2006.
How did Bam Bam Bigelow die?
Bam Bam Bigelow was one of the greatest big men of all time. Despite weighing around 400lbs. for a very long time, Bigelow was incredibly agile in the ring, capable of executing a lot of highly-athletic moves like moonsaults, diving splashes and sentons like someone half his weight. Bigelow achieved great success during his wrestling career, winning championships in several promotions such as ECW, WCW, and NJPW. Oddly, however, he never won a championship belt in WWE, despite being a very big name there.
How did Adrian Adonis die?
Adrian Adonis was another wrestler to find success in making people uncomfortable with a flamboyant stereotype gimmick. He wore pink wrestling attire, extravagant amounts of make-up, and began acting in an effeminate manner. Interestingly, it was around this time that he also continued to gain a considerable amount of weight, ballooning to 350lbs. at one point. Yet despite this radical change in weight, Adonis was, like Big Van Vader after him, surprisingly agile and still capable of demonstrating athleticism in the ring like he did before the gimmick change.
How did Giant Gonzalez die?
Giant Gonzalez was one of WWE’s most disappointing signees ever. Despite being absolutely massive, standing at an unmatched 7’7, Gonzalez simply could not wrestle. His massive frame made it impossible for him to demonstrate any sort of athleticism, and his actual physique was laughable. His musculature was actually so unimpressive that WWE gave him a body suit to wear, complete with attached clumps of hair in certain places and airbrushed muscles. But no amount of airbrushing could turn him into a decent wrestler, unfortunately.
Who is believed to have murdered Bruiser Brody?
Bruiser Brody was one of the most influential wrestlers ever, serving as the inspiration for many future wrestlers that adopted his brawling-centric style. Sadly, Brody’s final moments are the subject of one of the darkest moments in wrestling history. Brody is believed to have gotten into a disagreement with an influential person, which led to that person stabbing him in the showers of a wrestling locker room. Even after paramedics arrived, they couldn’t get him to a hospital fast enough, and Brody died of his stab wounds. He was only 42 years old when he died.
How did Rick Rude die?
Rick Rude was a fantastic wrestler and character. He was one of the best heel characters of his day, capable of drawing enormous reactions from seething fans that despised him. Rude was also known as one of the most legitimately-tough wrestlers ever, with many wrestlers commentating on his natural strength and dangerous striking ability. Rude made history for being the only wrestler to appear on both WWE Monday Night RAW and WCW Monday Nitro on the same night, due to the former being taped at the time.
TRUE or FALSE: Andre the Giant died in his sleep?
André the Giant was a once-in-a-lifetime character his entire life. He suffered from acromegaly, which made him into a real-life giant. This led him to becoming one of wrestling’s biggest draws and one of the most beloved wrestlers of all time. Sadly, the condition took its toll on André for many years. He continued to gain more weight, which put a considerable strain on his knees and back. By the time the 1990s came around, André was said to be ‘in constant pain’ from the acromegaly.
How did Mass Transit die?
The Mass Transit Incident was one of the most controversial and overly-violent moments in wrestling history. Eric Kulas, an untrained rookie hoping to become a real pro, lied his way into a match the Gangstas (New Jack & Mustafa Saed). Kulas played a bus driver-like character named Mass Transit, and during the match, he was bladed way too deeply by New Jack, and loss a considerable amount of blood in that match. The controversy of the event stemmed from Kulas’s duplicity in claiming he was a trained wrestler and the amount of violence shown by New Jack.
What was the cause of Dean Hart's death?
Dean Hart was one of the first of Stu Hart’s children to achieve a degree of success in the wrestling industry. He was the first to achieve any sort of amateur wrestling championship, and also enjoyed some championship success in the NWA and in his father’s promotion, Stampede Wrestling. Unfortunately, other factors caused Dean Hart persistent trouble in the later years of his life. He was always believed to be up to something mischievous, according to his family members, and more often than not, this proved true.
What was the cause of High Chief Peter Maivia's death?
High Chief Peter Maivia is considered wrestling royalty, and that isn’t just because of his name. Though not actually related by blood, Amituanai Anoa’I, the patriarch of the Anoa’I wrestling family, considered Maivia a blood brother, and thus someone to be treated like family. Maivia was a champion in several regional NWA promotions, and even managed a cameo in the James Bond film ‘You Only Live Twice’. In that film, Maivia plays the role of a car driver that ends up in a fight with Sean Connery’s James Bond.
How did Mitsuharu Misawa die?
Mitsuharu Misawa is one of the best wrestlers of all time. During his 28-year career, Misawa achieved considerable success due to his outstanding and dramatic matches. Even in front of a traditional Japanese audience, which is known for its respectful silence, Misawa could get his audience to cheer loudly as if he were performing in front of an American one. Misawa won numerous world championships and has been praised many times by wrestling journalists for his toughness, technique and natural abilities.
What was the cause of Viscera's death?
Viscera was one of the biggest wrestlers of the past twenty years…literally. The man behind the gimmick was a very heavyset wrestler, tipping the scales at around 485lbs. He was often a target for criticism due to his incredible girth and lack of athleticism stemming from this. This criticism reached a fever pitch in the mid-to-late 2000s when the newly-named Big Daddy V would wear a singled that exposed his torso. Not only did this reveal several never-before-seen tattoos, but also much more body fat than what anyone had believed beforehand.
Wrestling trainee Brian Ong died shortly after he took an improper Flapjack from a wrestler. Who was that wrestler?
The Brian Ong incident was a quiet scandal that rocked pro wrestling in 2001. Brian Ong was a wrestling trainee that sought to learn how to wrestle by training in the promotion All Pro Wrestling (APW). In May 2001, Ong suffered one concussion but was cleared to keep training nonetheless, and without any protective equipment at that. Soon afterwards, Ong received an errant flapjack from another wrestling trainee – one that became a WWE Superstar – which is said to have led to Ong’s death.
How did Hayabusa die?
Hayabusa was one of the best high-flyers of the 1990s. His excellent wrestling ability combined with his great look made him a standout wrestler in Japan and the heart and soul of Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling (FMW). Sadly, his wrestling career ended in 2001 when he botched a springboard Moonsault and ended up paralyzed instantly when two of his vertebrae cracked from the accident. He was confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life, but did manage to walk on his own on a few occasions.
Which of these four wrestlers died the most recently?
The Anoa’I family is arguably the most extensive wrestling family in all of pro wrestling. They have been performing and headlining in various wrestling promotions for decades, and many of them have become bona fide legends in the industry. However, despite their varying degrees of success, many members of this family have also suffered from various health problems. Several have been fired from WWE for being overweight, and a few have actually died from various health-related issues, including the most recent Anoa’I to pass away.
How did Luna Vachon die?
Luna Vachon was one of the most unique women’s wrestlers in her day. Unlike the majority of her compatriots at the time, Vachon wasn’t meant to be a ‘pretty face’, and was a staple of the WWE’s revived women’s division in the mid-to-late 1990s and early 2000s. She was put in several ‘oddball’ pairings throughout her career, such as with Bam Bam Bigelow and later as the ‘dominatrix’ mistress of the Artist Formerly Known As Goldust. Oddly, though, she never won the WWF Women’s Championship.
How did The Renegade die?
Rick ‘the Renegade’ Wilson was a victim of bad circumstances. His debut was hyped as ‘the Ultimate Surprise’, with vignettes showing a silhouette with the same physical appearance as the Ultimate Warrior. When he finally did debut, however, the audience was less than enthused. Renegade’s career was very disappointing overall, with most people considering the character a flop and a cheesy rip-off of the superior Warrior character. He became a jobber by the end of 1998, before being released from WCW in December of that year.
What was the cause of Lance Cade's death?
Lance Cade was one of WWE’s most surprising WWE releases of the 2000s. By all accounts, he had all the tools needed to succeed. He had the look, he was trained by Shawn Michaels (and had worked with Daniel Bryan), and had a great finisher. His promos weren’t the best at the time, but he learned quickly through pairings with the likes of Chris Jericho and took part in segments with Shawn himself. This is why it was bizarre that he was released from WWE in 2008, given that he looked like a future star.
How did Rikidozan die?
Rikidozan is considered the ‘Father of Puroresu’, the man who helped bring Japan out of post-war depression and rebuilt an entire country. Through careful booking, Rikidozan defeated one ‘gaijin’ after another, which allowed the then-melancholy Japanese populace to rally behind someone and regain a sense of national pride. Rikidozan’s exploits allowed for pro wrestling to become widely popular in Japan, and led to a surge in interest in the sport. Without Rikidozan, there wouldn’t have been any explosion in pro wrestling in Japan at all.
How did Louie Spicolli die?
Louie Spicolli was once a promising wrestler that had dreams of making it big. Between 1995 and 1998, Spicolli transitioned between working for all three of the biggest wrestling promotions in the United States: WWE, ECW, and WCW. Despite working for these promotions, Spicolli had his fair share of personal problems with substance abuse. His release from WWE stemmed from a drug-induced seizure, and his tenure in ECW was likewise controversial as he left on bad terms due to wanting to wrestle for WCW instead.
How did Giant Baba die?
Giant Baba is one of the most revered and respected wrestling promoters of all time. He was a very gracious and appreciative promoter that trusted his wrestlers to do whatever they needed to in the ring; he was the opposite of a micro-manager in that he trusted his wrestlers. Baba’s booking has been widely praised by wrestling observers and critics, as his ‘King’s Road’ style during the 1980s and 1990s led to one of the most financially and critically-successful main event wrestling runs of all time.
What was the cause of Mr. Pogo's death?
Tetsuo ‘Mr. Pogo’ Sakigawa was one of the pioneers of hardcore wrestling in Japan. His wrestling style and emphasis on theatrics and weapons (his favorite ‘foreign object’ to use was a fireball) led to the growth in popularity of such promotions as Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling, W*ING, and Big Japan Pro Wrestling. As this style of wrestling evolved and grew more popular, so too did Mr. Pogo’s violent tendencies in the ring. Barbed wire, deathmatches and high-risk situations were all Pogo’s calling cards.
How did Perro Aguayo, Jr. die?
Perro Aguayo, Jr. was a popular wrestler throughout Mexico. He was wildly popular in that country, both as a babyface and as a heel. over the course of his near-twenty-year career, Aguayo had many dramatic and exciting matches, especially those contests known as ‘Luchas de Apuestas’, or ‘wager matches’. In these high-profile matches, Aguayo risked his hair against either another wrestler’s hair or their mask. Aguayo never lost any of these matches, which only further added to his prestige and reputation among wrestling fans.
How did Abismo Negro die?
Abismo Negro, Spanish for ‘Black Abyss’, was a very popular wrestler in his native Mexico. He worked primarily for Asistencia Asesoría Y Administración (AAA), in which he was a multi-time champion. Abismo was a heel/’rudo’ character that sometimes spat fire through a ‘flamethrower’, and became a truly detested heel when he started using the standard Piledriver as his signature move. This was an issue because the Belly-to-back Piledriver is banned in Mexico, which made him truly hated among AAA’s faithful fans whenever they saw him use the move.
How did Gary Albright die?
Gary Albright was a successful amateur wrestler that achieved some degree of success in the professional world as well. Despite being a member of the Anoa’I wrestling family by marriage – his wife was one of Afa Anoa’I’s children – Albright wrestled mainly in Japan, where he was respected for his amateur credentials and natural working ability as opposed to the entertainment-centric WWE. Albright focused mainly on tag team wrestling, working alongside fellow gaijins Stan ‘the Lariat’ Hansen and ‘Dr. Death’ Steve Williams.
How did Shinya Hashimoto die?
Shinya Hashimoto was once considered the heart of New Japan Pro Wrestling. A master martial artist, Hashimoto was known for his array of stiff kicks and wearing a badass martial arts headband. Hashimoto was one of NJPW’s ‘Three Musketeers’, and achieved great success in that promotion throughout the 1990s. Hashimoto left NJPW in 2000 following poor booking decisions by Antonio Inoki, and opened his own promotion, Pro Wrestling Zero1. He’d perform in and run that promotion until his sudden death in 2005.
How did Dick 'the Destroyer' Beyer Die?
Dick Beyer was one of the most popular masked wrestlers of all time. He was a major draw throughout the world, especially in Japan. He also holds the distinction of wrestling in one of the most-watched matches of all time: a one-on-one match with Rikidozan that was watched by 70 million TV viewers. Keep in mind that this match took place in early 1963, at a time when televisions weren’t as widespread as they are today. Even in modern times, the Destroyer is revered as one of the most iconic wrestlers in Japanese history.