7 WWE stars who were legitimate tough guys

Booker T once beat up Batista backstageThere are people who claim that wrestling is fake. It is well known that the industry is scripted, but the bumps and violence in most cases, is very real. Wrestlers can be some of the baddest, most dangerous men on the planet.No, Hulk Hogan wasn’t badass, neither was Ric Flair, this list will talk about the seven toughest wrestlers in real life, ranked in increasing order of toughness.So without further ado, we give you:

#7 Wade Barrett

Some may find this addition to the list to be weird, but Barrett’s ‘bare knuckle championship career’ that Michael Cole would keep bringing up was legitimate. Before being signed to WWE, in his early 20s, Barrett became a champion bare-knuckle boxer, fighting in various locations throughout Europe.

An infamous story about his career is that he once fought in a fight dubbed ‘Battle of the Buda’ and won a significant amount of money after defeating an illustrious fighter. In keeping with the shady nature of bare knuckle boxing, as Barrett attempted to hail a cab after the fight, someone stabbed him with an 8-inch Blade.

It is testament to his toughness that Barrett fought back and came away with the money. For legal reasons, he isn’t allowed to talk about the fight, but he has said that ‘the assailant incurred serious injuries, and Barrett escaped with the cash despite significant blood loss.’

The attack left him with a 12-inch scar that stretches from his upper back to halfway down his right triceps that he has now covered with a tattoo, but the scar and his crooked nose reminds one of the tough times he had to endure before he got to the relatively glitzy world of the WWE.

#6 Mick Foley

Mick Foley is literally THE hardcore legend. Okay, I might be cheating here since most of his pain was suffered within the business, but man was this guy resilient. His matches against Big Van Vader in WCW in 1993 were ahead of its time and truly remarkable to look back on.

Mick Foley made a career of hardcore bumps and badass moments. No one can forget his King of the Ring Hell in a Cell match against Undertaker when he took a bump off the cage through a table, got up, went through the top of the cage and through the ring. The scariest part, he wasn't supposed to fall into the ring from the cage. The 'hardcore legend' has truly earned his moniker and the fact that he got up and fought on despite concussions and a dislodged tooth shows his toughness.

Pre-WWE, he had an obsession with barbed wire and he wasn't scared to bump. Perhaps his most badass moment was when in a match against Vader, his ear literally popped out and he continued the match, finished it and then eventually went to the hospital. This man had an unmatched threshold for pain and was awesome.

#5 Harley Race

'King' Harley Race in the latter part of his WWE career

Harley Race is one of the all-time greats. Aside from his achievements inside the ring, chief among them being a multiple time NWA World Heavyweight champion in the 1970's, you know, back when the title meant something.

The man is renowned for his ability to drink an entire case of beer, smoke an entire pack of cigarettes and then put on amazing sixty minute matches against the likes of Ric Flair and Terry Funk. Race was involved in a horrific car accident in 1961 with his wife Vivian. His wife died on collision with a tractor trailer and Race was told he would never wrestle again.

One of his forearms was shattered and the condition of his right leg made the doctors ponder amputation. Yet, Race lived up to his tough-as-nails personality and came back to wrestling becoming one of the all time greats and a true legend of the industry. One last thing, Andre the Giant feared all of two people, one of them was Harley Race... Need I say more?

#4 Kurt Angle

Angle during one of his many memorable battles against Jeff Jarrett

The ‘Olympic Gold Medallist with a broken freakin’ neck’ was one of the best athletes in WWE during the latter days and after the Attitude Era. His Olympic gimmick was not just a gimmick, but a legitimate accomplishment.

That is right, Kurt Angle won an Olympic gold medal in wrestling at the 1996 Atlanta edition of the games. He never really had a bad match, but stole the show on many occasions. Even in his TNA run, he had amazing matches against the likes of Styles, Samoa Joe and Jeff Jarrett. Kurt Angle was and always has been a wrestling machine. Even today, in TNA, his matches against the likes of Drew Galloway are truly a sight to behold.

It is testament to his toughness that Angle has overcome problems with alcohol and pain killers and still continues to perform at the highest level. His laundry list of injuries would have retired many a man, but Angle is still going. There is a reason fans are clamouring for his return, he is just that good. And an Olympic gold medallist.

#3 Brock Lesnar

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Brock Lesnar is a beast. A true physical specimen, Lesnar has dominated in all facets of his life. As an amateur wrestler, he won the NCAA Division 1 Heavyweight Championship in 2000. He came to the WWE with a 106-5 win-loss record in amateur wrestling and from the beginning was booked as a threat.

He won the WWE championship in his first year, also conquering Undertaker’s streak after his return to the company. In the middle, Lesnar won the IWGP heavyweight title in the NJPW promotion in Japan and would go on to pursue a successful MMA career. Lesnar won the UFC heavyweight title, beating Randy Couture in only his second match via technical knockout.

Lesnar further proved his toughness in the main event of WrestleMania XIX against Kurt Angle, when he botched a shooting star press, landing on his head. The move would have perhaps paralyzed a normal man, but Brock escaped with only a concussion and completed the match. When he debuted in WWE, Lesnar looked like a badass. When he won the UFC title, he proved it to be true.

#2 Vader

The Man they call Vader was a rip-roaring success in WCW and before that, Japan. While in NJPW and fighting for the IWGP world title in a match against Stan Hansen, Vader got hit by Hansen's cowbell and his nose was broken.

Now, both Vader and Hansen are notoriously stiff workers. This served to anger Vader further and this match was too real for pro wrestling. That's not it, after this Hansen accidentally poked Vader's eye and it popped out of his socket. And Vader continued the match! He took off his mask and popped his eye back in manually and finished up the match.

Vader once punched Ken Shamrock of UFC fame in the face when he was working too stiff and in the video, you can notice that Shamrock immediately eased up and finished the match smoothly. There is also the incident where Vader beat up a talk show host in Kuwait who said wrestling was fake. Vader was old school and tough and scary as hell.

#1 Meng/Haku

Haku’s toughness is legendary in the wrestling world. If you have any doubts, just read and judge for yourself (it may be long, but it will be worth it):

On a trip to Puerto Rico, Meng was walking with fellow wrestler Jesse Barr when Barr decided to kick dirt onto a man who was digging ditches. Meng was upset by it and told Barr he shouldn’t have done it.

Barr decided to get in Meng’s face and argue with him, which turned out to be a bad idea. Meng grabbed him and popped his eyeball out of socket. Some wrestlers claimed he completely tore it out, but Meng said that wasn’t true. Barr ended up getting fired for the incident.

In his biography, “Arn Anderson: 4 Ever” Anderson claims that there are three types of men in the world. There are tough men, there are wrestler-tough men, and then there’s Meng. He was in a completely different category than anyone else on the planet. Anderson recalls one instance where a large cowboy was arguing with Meng and he pushed the cowboy through two different sets of doors using only one hand.

The Million Dollar Man said that one time they were in a rough part of St. Louis for a show. Everyone had been drinking and a large fight broke out, which resulted in the police showing up.

Meng had a few drinks, but saw the fight break out so he started trying to break it up. In the process, police thought he was part of the fight and maced him then handcuffed him. He said that Meng was cuffed behind his back, looked at the police, and snapped the handcuffs.

Wrestler Perry Saturn, when asked who would win a bar fight between several legitimately tough wrestlers, said, “Tonga. Nobody else would stand a chance. Not even a question. He could kill everyone without blinking and there is nothing anyone could do about it.”

Jake “The Snake” Roberts said during one of his shoot interviews: “If I had a gun and was sitting inside a tank with one shell left and Meng is 300 yards away, he’s mine, right? Well the first thing I’m going to do is jump out of the tank and shoot myself because I don’t want to wound that son of a b*tch and have him pissed off at me.”

In a shoot interview, Bobby Heenan talked extensively about Meng and referred to him as the toughest man he’s ever met in his life. The most extreme story he shared was in regards to a bar fight in which he claimed Meng “took his two fingers on his right hand, his index finger and trigger finger, and he reached into the guy’s mouth and he broke off the guy’s bottom teeth.” Heenan said that if he hadn’t been there and seen it himself, he wouldn’t believe it. Heenan was also close friends with Andre the Giant and claimed that the only two men in the world that Andre feared were Meng and Harley Race.

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