5 greatest moments of Mark Henry's career

Mark Henry debuted in WWE at the age of 24 in 1996. The former power-lifter and genuine contender for the title of World's Strongest Man had won numerous weightlifting competitions, including National Championships and the Arnold Strongman Classic.

There was no doubt that Mark Henry was set to be a star in the hyper-athletic world of the WWE. Henry's career has included several top-tier story-lines, a prestigious hall of his own, and multiple Championship wins.

All of this has culminated in Mark Henry's induction into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2018. Therefore, it is time to analyze the World's Strongest Man's amazing career and list his top five most entertaining moments in the WWE.

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#5 ECW Championship run

Mark Henry with the ECW Championship alongside his manager at the time - Tony Atlas

While the ECW Championship was not Mark Henry's first title in WWE, it was the first time that WWE gave him a real shine in the spotlight. Even though it wasn't on par with the WWE title, the ECW Championship was considered a top-tier title, as it represented an entire brand.

Henry's debut match as an ECW Superstar was against Kane and The Big Show in a triple threat match where he won the Championship. This was a real show of confidence in Mark Henry, as his win marked the return of the ECW Championship to the ECW Brand. (Kane, who held the Championship previously, was technically a Raw Superstar.)

#4 Feud with The Undertaker

Mark Henry battling The Undertaker at WrestleMania 22

It goes without saying that The Undertaker's match at WrestleMania every year is always one of the most important. After costing The Undertaker his World Championship by attacking him during a Title match against Kurt Angle, Mark Henry positioned himself strongly in his most important rivalry to date - against The Phenom.

At this point, The Undertaker was in the middle of his legendary undefeated streak, so of course the question had to be asked, could the World's Strongest Man break the streak? While Mark Henry was not successful in beating The Undertaker, he put up a valiant effort in a casket match at WrestleMania 22. The fact that he was selected to go against Taker, and managed to maintain an entertaining and believable feud with The Deadman, is memorable in and of itself.

#2 Sexual Chocolate

Mark Henry arm in arm with WWE Hall of Famer Mae Young

His first Championship in WWE, Mark Henry held the European title for a month in 1999 after being awarded it by Jeff Jarrett. Henry proved to the WWE that he had what it took to carry a mid card feud. Henry was soon catapulted from here, into one of his most memorable runs in the WWE, as the fan favourite Sexual Chocolate. Henry was given the character of a womanizer, leading to him having various memorable and hilarious interactions with the likes of Chyna and of course Mae Young.

While his gimmick was not the most serious or dominating, Mark Henry showed his lighter side and created one of the most iconic comedy gimmicks of this generation.

#2 The Fake Retirement

Mark Henry in his iconic pink suit, faking his retirement

While the fake retirement angle only led to a rather short feud with John Cena for the WWE Championship, there is no doubt that this was one of the greatest swerves that WWE have ever pulled. Interrupting WWE Champion John Cena after weeks of cryptically teasing his retirement on social media, it seemed that the time had come for the World's Strongest Man to ride off into the sunset.

After taking the crowd and the entire WWE Universe on an emotional ride, Henry embraced John Cena in an act of respect. In what turned out to be a transcendental moment, Henry dashed all those emotions in an instant and gave Cena a World's Strongest Slam.

Henry then proceeded to demand an opportunity for John Cena's WWE Championship. Even though he was ultimately defeated at Money In The Bank, Henry's last high profile feud in WWE just might have been his best. He created a legendary moment, entertained the fans, and gave John Cena exactly the credibility that he needed, going into a feud with the red hot Daniel Bryan.

#1 The Hall of Pain

Mark Henry with the World Heavyweight Championship

After being drafted to SmackDown in 2011, Mark Henry embarked on the most captivating run of his WWE career. Henry created the "Hall of Pain" - a fictional Hall in which he put his opponents in after (kayfabe) injuring them. His victims included the likes of Vladimir Kozlov, Great Khali and the Big Show. After inducting Sheamus into the Hall of Pain, Henry earned a World Championship shot against Randy Orton, in which he successfully became the fifth African American to win a world Heavyweight title.

Henry conquered Randy Orton and then moved on to a rivalry with the Big Show over the World Heavyweight Championship that consisted of many great moments such as breaking the ring at Vengeance 2011, as well as catapulting then Mr. Money In The Bank, Daniel Bryan to his first World Championship win.

Henry didn't have the longest World Title run, but without a doubt, his Hall of Pain storyline was an integral part of making SmackDown entertaining week after week at the time, as well as ensuring that both Big Show and Daniel Bryan gained higher status in WWE as a result of his feuds with them.