5 times WWE Superstars suffered major in-ring injuries at the peak of their careers

WWE Superstars are highly-trained, professional athletes. There is no doubt, however, that serious injuries do still happen.

So heavy is their schedule and so high-octane is their workload, injuries are part and parcel of the profession. That said, there have still been moments where WWE Superstars sustained real-life injuries during matches that left them needing major surgery as a result.

Many recover to continue their careers almost immediately, while others were forced to spend years on the shelf or, even worse, never wrestle again.

We've reflected on just 5 of the serious injuries that have been sustained in the midst of WWE action:

#5. Stone Cold Steve Austin

Austin's career changed forever with the injury sustained moments after this picture was taken

Stone Cold Steve Austin is, without question, one of the biggest WWE Superstars of all time. Even more certain is his place at the very top of Attitude Era stars that defined a generation.

Despite all of his memorable successes, matches, moments and championships, however, it's true to say that it was very nearly all snatched away from him in a heartbeat before it had a chance to build. The moment in question came at Summerslam 1997 in a match that saw Austin challenge Owen Hart for the Intercontinental Championship. Austin later noted in his book that he had joked with Hart before the match about a spot they'd agreed upon involving a piledriver - Austin preferring the 'conventional' version of the move. At the same time, Hart insisted he wanted to go for a Tombstone-style version.

Come to the event, and it was the latter that played out and, as grim replays show, Hart slightly miscues the move and ends up impaling Austin, leaving him temporarily without feeling in his limbs. The two just about finished the match but, with numerous surgeries and issues following with Austin's neck, there's no doubt that all the triumphs that followed came with a degree of discomfort and uncertainty.

#4. Triple H

Triple H has been no stranger to serious injury

Triple H is another of WWE's true megastars - a colossal performer in the squared circle, and a major player behind the scenes, too. He is, however, another name that triumphed in a significant way despite a string of serious injuries.

One of the most concerning and painful of all of these injuries came in 2001. At the time, Triple H was part of a tag team with Stone Cold Steve Austin. The two, both heels, wore championship gold with Triple H the Intercontinental champion, and Austin, WWE Champion. Combined, they were also tag team champions and were defending against the team of Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho.

Near the end of the bout, Triple H landed awkwardly on his foot when trying to break up The Walls of Jericho, which Y2J had locked in on Austin. The terrible moment saw The Game tear his quadricep, he says, clean off the bone.

In a gutsy display, Triple H did his bit in finishing the match, but the impact of the injury was devastating. He required major surgery, and missed eight months of his career. Even more painfully, the multi-time former WWE Champion would tear the opposite quad some five years later.

#3. Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins suffered his injury at a WWE live event

Seth Rollins suffered a major injury back in 2015 during WWE's lengthy European tour.

The incident actually took place on the very first night of that tour, when Rollins met Kane in the main event of a show in Dublin, Ireland. Landing awkwardly in attempting a sunset flip over the Big Red Machine, it later emerged that he'd suffered a torn ACL, MCL and meniscus. Somehow, he managed to finish the match, delivering a hefty powerbomb to Kane just seconds later.

Rollins later recalled to me in an interview:

“[Getting hurt] is just as much part of the game as winning and losing and so every time you have significant injury it’s all about your perspective and how you attack it. My goal went from, say, winning the WWE Championship to just getting myself back to 100%. Overcoming obstacles and setting goals for yourself is a major part of being a success in every walk of life and the injury only motivated me to get back and be better than ever.”

Now the Monday Night Messiah on RAW, Rollins certainly managed to return better than ever from that set-back. In 2017, for instance, he triumphed over Triple H - with whom he'd been aligned at the time of his injury - in a key match at WrestleMania.

#2. Shawn Michaels

Shawn Michaels had to retire after the injury in this match

Another of the major legends to feature in this list, Shawn Michaels is an obvious contender for one of the greatest performers in WWE history. Sadly, his career was dramatically shortened by an injury he suffered at the beginning of 1998.

Michaels was meeting The Undertaker in a casket match for the WWE Championship at the time and took a seriously bad landing on his back when hitting part of the casket. As a result, he herniated two discs and would have to retire just a few months later after WrestleMania 14. It proved, thankfully for his fans, to be a temporary break from the ring for The Heartbreak Kid. He was away a long four years, but went on to add a further eight years to his active, in-ring career after returning.

For the record, Michaels went on to win the casket match in question - with help from Kane - but, undoubtedly, the injury at Royal Rumble in 1998 robbed fans of precious years' worth of matches from one of WWE's most popular performers.

#1. Darren Drozdov

Darren Drozdov was left without full bodily functions after his injury.

A star of one of the boom periods of professional wrestling, Darren Drozdov made his WWE debut during the Attitude Era in 1998. The former NFL player attracted the attention of Vince McMahon - someone who is always a fan of the extreme - for his bizarre skill of being able to vomit on cue.

Darren Drozdov had aligned himself with the Legion of Doom before they split during a UK pay-per-view late in that year. Afterwards, he had a short run as a heel in WWE that ended tragically when he sustained an injury during a match against D-Lo Brown at a taping of SmackDown in October 1999. The pair had been attempting to execute Brown's trademark running powerbomb, but an awkward landing broke two vertebrae in his neck. Despite emergency surgery and intensive care afterwards, Droz was left initially without any movement below his neck.

He has since been able to regain some movement in his upper body, but continues to use a wheelchair and requires constant care. Given SmackDown was taped as opposed to airing live that night, footage of Droz's accident has never been broadcast.