Happy Birthday Mark Henry - A look at the World's Strongest Man

Happy Birthday Mark..!!

Mark Henry, the World Strongest Man turns 44 today..!

Mark Henry, started his career as an Olympic Weightlifter and turned out to be a huge success in the professional wrestling field. A hulking presence around the ring for about 19 years now, there is only a little left for Henry to achieve inside the ring. Rampaging the ring with his immense strength and unparalleled force has conquered him an everlasting place in the hearts of WWE Fans.

His in-ring nickname, “The World’s Strongest Man” was not titled by the WWE Creative as part of any WWE storyline. Mark Henry has earned that title from his early powerlifting and weightlifting days. The Texas powerhouse started his career as a powerlifter at an early age. At the age of 18, Mark Henry was praised by Los Angeles Times as “the world’s strongest teenager”. He has set national records in all four powerlifting categories. He is credited for the biggest raw squat and raw powerlifting total ever performed by an American citizen, regardless of the weight class.

Mark Henry was a former Olympian and competed in 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics, where he set the record for the largest athlete in Olympic history. However, Mark Henry came up short in both Olympics leaving the arena in frustration. But, he didn’t realise he would have a great future in the world of Professional Wrestling at the time.

The impressive power and physicality of Mark Henry didn’t go unnoticed by the pro wrestling giant, WWE. Vince McMahon immediately connected with Henry and signed him for a 10 year deal as a professional wrestler. Henry made his wrestling debut in 1996, at the age of 24 when he press slammed Jerry Lawler. Henry then went on to decimate the likes of Triple H, Goldust and various other established superstars.

Though suffering from an injury, which halted his momentum in WWE and led to various infamous and embarrassing storylines, Mark Henry earned his name “The World Strongest Man” by winning the Strong Man contest “Farmers Walk” defeating veterans, which came as a shock to strongman experts worldwide since Mark Henry practised only for four months prior to the contest.

Mark Henry, is still a dormant monster, who was never utilized to his fullest potential. The best storylines for Mark Henry came in the form of “Hall of Pain” during 2011, when he conquered the World Heavyweight Championship and destroyed Randy Orton, Kane, Big Show, Vladimir Kozlov and The Great Khali in the process.

Mark Henry is more than a monster...he is a complete performer

His emotional retirement speech, which was revealed as a ruse to get a title shot at John Cena’s WWE Championship was hugely praised by critics and remains as one of the best segments in the history of Raw. Still, the WWE Championship remains an elusive dream for Mark Henry, the only title Henry never won in his long run with the company.

Whatever storyline WWE put Henry in, he mastered his role and gave the best he could. He went on from being the Sexual Chocolate to the Monstrous Heel and delivered in every role he performed. He even made an ordinary slam into an impactful, destructive finishing maneuver. This just is a testament to his in-ring capability and his passion for the sport. He put over quite a few young and upcoming superstars and sells much better than most ‘big’ men.

The man who remained loyal to the company, throughout his career(19 years), deserves one more major storyline as a proper sendoff to his career. We only expect and hope for a proper retirement match for the Silverback. As he celebrates his 44th birthday, he is poised for the best things to come out of his WWE experience.

A very happy birthday to legitimately “The World Strongest Man” Mark Henry.