5 WWE superstars who won titles in other sports

Professional wrestling often has the habit of taking over the lives of everyone who gets involved with the business. The non-stop nature of the travel schedule makes it almost impossible for superstars to focus their attention on other things, and it’s extremely rare that you see wrestlers transition into other sports following their time in the industry.

When it comes to their careers prior to wrestling, however, you can often find many interesting tidbits in the way of big names competing in other sporting events. A few of the names on this list have actually managed to thrive after life in the WWE despite many people thinking it was impossible.

Of course, as you can tell by the title of this piece they were successful by definition, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll be remembered as legends in years to come. From A-list talents all the way down to mid carders, the range in quality here is obvious for everyone to see but anyone with multi-sport accolades deserves a massive round of applause.

So with all of that being said, here are 5 WWE superstars who won titles in other sports – and who we seriously don’t want to mess with.

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#1 Brock Lesnar – MMA

This one is the most obvious of the bunch, but that doesn’t make it any less impressive. In fact, there’s an argument to be made that Brock Lesnar is the most impressive crossover star in the history of mixed martial arts. After all, he’s got the pedigree and background to back it up in addition to his eventual reign as UFC Heavyweight Champion.

The fact that he was still able to perform at the highest level whilst being incredibly ill with diverticulitis tells the entire story, and it’s no exaggeration to call this man a freak of nature. Brock is the benchmark for which all future wrestlers should be measured in the world of MMA, and that’s going to be the case for quite some time to come.

This isn’t really ‘bad’ news.

#2 Wade Barrett – Bare knuckle boxing

(Video Courtesy: British Wrestling Classics)

Ah, Wade Barrett – the ultimate waste of potential within the WWE. This is a man who was handed mediocre storyline after mediocre storyline, and yet whenever this happened he was able to knock it out of the park. He’s got a great look, he can talk, and his style of wrestling is desperately needed in this independent-heavy era.

Before his pro wrestling adventure began, though, Wade was a legitimate bare-knuckle boxing champion. Of course, it’s not exactly something that you’d want to promote or encourage (although that’s exactly what WWE did), but that doesn’t mean we should ignore it.

Barrett is as hard as nails, and we have no doubt in our minds that he’ll continue to prove that.

#3 The Rock – American football

(Video Courtesy: ACC Digital Network)

By no stretch of the imagination was Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson the greatest American football player that has ever lived. He was a capable performer in his role for the Miami Hurricanes, but beyond that, he was never really destined to reach the lofty heights of the National Football League.

Still, you can’t ignore the fact that the man played a helping hand in guiding the Hurricanes to a College National Championship prior to his many world title reigns in World Wrestling Entertainment.

Johnson is and was a born champion, and for years on end, whether it be in football, wrestling or Hollywood, he has always managed to sniff out success.

#4 Bobby Lashley – MMA

Oh, what could’ve been. If WWE were to have taken a page out of TNA’s booking playbook when it comes to Lashley, they might have had a global Superstar on their hands. The guy has been tearing through Impact Wrestling over the last few years, and it’s not surprising to hear that wrestling isn’t his only form of combat success.

Lashley has also captured Heavyweight MMA Championships for Shark Fights and XFN, in addition to being a top 10 contender within Bellator’s heavyweight division.

Some may not consider these achievements all too prestigious, but Lashley is probably behind only Lesnar when it comes to making a strong transition.

#5 Baron Corbin – Boxing

Baron Corbin is the definition of intimidating, with his cold and calculated glances only being matched by his phenomenal size and strength inside of a wrestling ring. As many people know, Baron produced the goods in the NFL a few years before entering NXT, but that wasn’t his only non-WWE sport.

Corbin was a three-time Golden Gloves boxing champion, and if you aren’t entirely sure as to what that means, then essentially the definition is this: don’t mess with Corbin.

Sure it may only be an amateur competition, but Baron would certainly be able to take on any WWE Superstar with a pair of gloves.