Posted on by bdamage1
Brian Damage
Professional wrestling is all about the art of storytelling. Some of it good, some of it bad, but there is almost always a story. Then there are the wrestlers themselves, whose bodies could tell another thousand stories. From the scar tissue that looks like a road map on their foreheads from all the blading they’ve done, to the cauliflower ears from the stiff shots they received upside their heads. Body scars are a part of the wrestling business whether it was in or out of the ring.
Some of these scars are obvious, while others not so much. This piece will look at various “disfigurements’ that we as fans have seen over the years, but perhaps never knew where they came from. The backstories as to how a wrestler received his battle scars. Some of which wore like a badge of honor.
William Regal’s Upper Lip
AEW’s Steven/William Regal has a few scars on his face, but one of the most noticable ones is on his upper lip. Regal received that one from an accidental stiff punch from ‘The Boogeyman’ in WWE. Regal received stiches for the wound outside and inside his mouth. He also stated that his upper lip is still occasionally numb to this day.
Mike Foley’s Ear
One of the most famous battle scars is Mick Foley’s missing ear. He was wrestling a match as ‘Cactus Jack’ in WCW against Big Van Vader in Munich, Germany in 1994. Foley got his head tangled in the ring ropes and his ear was ripped off in the process.
Steve Austin’s Lip
Steve Austin received a scar on his bottom lip from a match he had with Marc Mero back in 1996. It was a King of the Ring semi final match and the injury caused Austin to receive 17 stitches to close the wound.
Sabu’s Arm
Sabu is another wrestler whose body is ravaged by scars from brutal and violent matches. One of the most prominent scars, is from his barbed wire match with Terry Funk in ECW in 1997. Sabu got his arm entangled in the barbed wire ripping it completely open with an 11 inch gash. Sabu being Sabu, he simply taped up the arm and continued the match.
KENTA’s Shoulder
KENTA suffered the serious shoulder injury in 2015, while wrestling as ‘Hideo Itami’ for NXT. While the exact point of how and when the injury occurred was not known…the injury was so severe that the projected 6 to 8 month recovery turned into over one year. The surgery was from the top of his shoulder down to his arm pit. His arm ended up atrophied due to the extent of the work done on him.
Brock Lesnar’s Below Eye
“The Beast Incarnate” Brock Lesnar has a scar directly under his left eye. Brock Lesnar suffered the nasty gash under his eye during a UFC fight against Cain Velasquez.
Dean Malenko’s Neck
Dean Malenko was involved in a car crash back in 1977, which broke his neck. The injury ended his amateur wrestling career. He underwent surgery which fused his neck and spine leaving a scar from his head to the bottom of his neck.
Shawn Michaels Lazy Eye
‘The Heartbreak Kid’ Shawn Michaels was a boy toy and a sexy boy..etc, etc. In 2004, he wrestled a no disqualification match against Kane. HBK was hit with steel steps that may have caused the injury which progressively became worse throughout the years. The lazy eye is distinctively a part of who Shawn Michaels is now.
Rikishi’s Stomach
Rikishi’s very noticeable deep stomach scar was a result of being the victim of a drive by shooing during his youth. More details about the incident that nearly took his life…here.
The Junkyard Dog’s Arm
The Junkyard Dog aka Sylvester Ritter had a very noticeable scar along his arm. The marking was actually a branding from a fraternity when Ritter attended Fayetteville College back in 1974.