Athlete size has long played an important role in the world of wrestling.
In earlier years, wrestling fans loved the towering giants and so many wrestling promotions pulled out all the stops in an effort to capitalize on this new craze.
As most of the promotion went after the 7-foot giants especially during the Transition and Golden Age, a new product of the fight emerged.
Unlike the usual giants that many fans were used to, this new breed of boxer did little to stay healthy and ended up weighing over 600 pounds.
Although these wrestlers did not look like ordinary wrestlers, they were well received by wrestling fans at the time.
From the world’s heaviest twins The McGuire Twins to the likes of Happy Humphrey to the Giant Haystacks, these wrestlers have proven to be quite the hit, ending up filling arenas and arenas. – variety.
Due to their lack of athleticism, many of these wrestlers often relied on their great weight and tremendous strength during wrestling matches.
As a result, many of these wrestlers were undefeated for the greater part of their wrestling careers.
Moreover, many of these wrestlers are often placed in the royal family, which is not only entertaining but difficult for the average wrestler to throw them over the top rope.
A famous Japanese-American swimmer, Akebono Taro began his career as a professional Sumo wrestler in 1988.
In 1993, Akebono Taro made history when he became the first wrestler not born in Japan to hold the title of Yokozuna.
After the end of his sumo wrestling career, Akebono Taro entered the world of MMA and kickboxing after financial problems.
In 2005, Akebono made his on-screen debut for WWE, accepting the Big Show’s challenge in a sumo wrestling match.
During his WWE debut, Akebono managed to defeat legendary worker Eddie Vegas.
At WrestleMania 21, Taro faced The Big Show in a sumo wrestling match.
Akebono Taro would win the match after performing koshinage.
After his brief stint with WWE, Akebono Taro signed with AJPW in 2005, where he participated in both singles and tag team matches.
9. Andre the Giant: 525 pounds
One of the biggest and most popular wrestlers of the 1970s, Andre the Giant was a towering behemoth, unlike most wrestlers of his size who tried to wrestle.
Before signing with the WWWF, Andre the Giant was able to do a lot of drop kicks and other moves.
In 1974, the first year in the United States, the Guinness Book of Records announced that Andre the Giant earned $400,000.
However, as time went on, wrestling fans started to get bored mainly because Andre the Giant was simply unbeatable which made most of his bookings predictable.
The new proposal caused Andre the Giant to drop most of his moves and take a more hands-on approach to wrestling.
In 1980 Andre the Giant signed with WWE.
Although his body was falling apart at this point, Andre the Giant still managed to become a household name, thanks to McMahon’s involvement.
Andre the Giant, Hulk Hogan and Big John Studd were just a few of the wrestlers who played a major role in McMahon’s expansion plans.
8. Man Mountain Mike: 600 pounds
Before Yokozuna, Rikishi or The Big Show, wrestling fans had Man Mountain Mike and Haystacks Calhoun.
It turns out that you can eat a buffet, Man Mountain Mike is a towering behemoth that weighs about 600 pounds.
Despite his large size, Man Mountain Mike could put up a decent fight.
Since he wrestled at a time when many wrestling fans valued wrestling more than wrestling ability, Man Mountain Mike was often matched with or against Haystacks Calhoun.
While Mountain Mike was not signed to the WWWF(WWW), he was still a household name in Los Angeles, Florida and the AWA.
In the early 1970’s Man Mountain Mike signed with Florida based Championship Wrestling where he was involved with many royalty.
Due to his size, many of his opponents were unable to throw the 600 pound giant over the ropes and thus Man Mountain Mike ended up winning most of these events.
Because of his victories, the promotion and wrestling analysts called him the “King of Battle Royals”.
Man Mountain Mike later signed with the NWA, where he won the promotion’s tag team championship with Butcher Branigan.
After his brief stint with the NWA and Championship Wrestling, Man Mountain Mike began his journey in Japan.
While in Japan, Man Mountain Mike wrestled the greatest Japanese wrestler of all time, Antonio Inoki in several matches.
Due to Inoki’s dominance and popularity in Japan, Man Mountain Mike was unable to win any of these matches.
Considered the greatest wrestler of his time, Blimp Levy was a major wrestling attraction in the 1930s and 1940s.
The New York Times described Levy as “the biggest meat of all time, while The Boston Globe said that “it is not difficult for Levy to become the greatest in the world.
Before becoming a professional boxer, blimp Levy worked as a fat man in stage shows organized at Coney Island.
It was during his career as a fat man that Jack Pfeffer, a famous promoter, discovered Blimp Levy.
Unlike most wrestlers of his size, Blimp Levy was very agile in the ring and at one point managed to kick a metal can suspended six feet above the ground.
During his legendary wrestling career, Blimp Levy wrestled all over the United States.
Towards the end of his wrestling career, Blimp Levy won against Buddy Rogers “The Nature Boy”, Gorgeous George, and Tor Johnson.
In Paul Boesch’s autobiography, Paul says that Blimp Levy was not only one of the greatest wrestlers of his time but also sold out every arena he wrestled in. that’s it.
As a result, Levy began wrestling in other territories such as Singapore and Malaysia.
In 1951, Levy officially retired from professional wrestling.
Best remembered for his Hill-Billy show, Haystacks Calhoun was one of the most popular wrestlers of the 1960s and 1970s.
His large size saw him become a fan favorite and often placed in matches against his fellow behemoths.
Although Haystacks was not born in Arkansas, many wrestling promotions often used this angle and to add more realism to the hillbilly person, Haystacks had to wear a white T-shirt, a beard thick, horseshoes around the neck and blue clothes. .
Due to his large size and ability to dominate the game, Haystacks Calhoun rarely lost the games he participated in.
Because of this, many wrestling promotions early in his career often placed him in either battle royals or handicap matches.
During the early 1960s, Haystacks Calhoun teamed with fellow giant Happy Humphry in a series of sold-out matches at Madison Square Garden.
Because Happy Humphry was heavier than Haystacks Calhoun, he was often slow and often defeated easily by count-out because he could not get back to the ring in time.
5. Giant Powder: 686lbs
The Loch Ness Monster was undeniably one of the most popular wrestlers on the English wrestling scene in the 80’s and 90’s.
Because of their large size, Giant Haystacks are loved by fans.
During his illustrious wrestling career, Giant Haystacks won not only the English heavyweight championship but also the European title.
Often depicted in heavy heels, Giant Haystacks teamed up with Big Daddy, with one mission in mind; to crush every blue-eyed babyface in the company.
The result was a relatively long and entertaining feud that boosted ITV’s ratings as more and more wrestling fans became interested in this great fight.
The giant straw managed to become a household name in its home country, often attracting the attention of various promotions around the world.
While wrestling in Canada, the Giant Haystacks managed to win the Stampede Tag Team titles on two different occasions with Bret Hart and Dynamite Kid. In 1996, Giant Haystacks retired from pro wrestling after being diagnosed with cancer and returned to his home country of Great Britain.
Weighing in at 750lbs, Yokozuna is the heaviest WWE Champion of all time and one of the strongest wrestlers to ever step into the squared circle.
During his meteoric rise to WWE’s top card division, Yokozuna defeated seasoned wrestlers such as Bret “The Hitman” Hart, Hulk Hogan and The Undertaker.
Unlike many main event wrestlers, Yokozuna was a heel who could go to great lengths to win matches.
In his second match for the promotion, Yokozuna abandoned his old gimmick and used his new gimmick Yokozuna, a Sumo wrestler.
This win cemented Yokozuna’s place in the promotion’s main event scene and as one of the top dogs in the company.
Currently, Yokozuna holds the fourth-shortest post-debut WWF Championship reign, behind Rick Flair, Sheamus and Brock Lesnar.
Billy McGuire is the third heaviest wrestler of all time and weighed an average of 784 pounds during his wrestling career.
Like his brother Benny McGuire, Billy McGuire was also seriously injured, however, it was his weight that caused the injury rather than the fans.
Because of their size, the McGuire brothers have had rings collapse on them at various times.
In the Big Men Tournament held at Madison Square Garden, all the wrestlers who competed were over 400 pounds.
Wrestlers involved in this match included Andre the Giant and Haystacks Calhoun.
Like most giant wrestlers, Billy and Benny weren’t always big.
Known for their great wrestling and steamroller moves, the McGuire twins were popular in the 1960s.
The twins really dominated the tag team division in every promotion they were in and that often didn’t sit well with many local fans especially those outside of the United States.
After eliminating the Japanese tag team champions and local favorites back in Tokyo, an angry fan fought back and inflicted a 6-inch knife wound on Benny McGuire.
According to both of them, Japan is one of the countries that the wrestling fans really hated.
This will mark one of the many instances where the McGuire twins have been at the receiving end of fans.
Considered the greatest wrestler of all time, Happy Humphrey was undeniably a powerful force and one of the most popular wrestlers of the 1950s and 1960s.
Although he was around 750 pounds for most of his wrestling career, historical records show that Happy Humphrey topped 900 pounds.
Because of his size, Happy Humphrey was often pitted against his personal giants, Haystacks Calhoun.
Although he previously had a promising wrestling career, Humphrey’s most memorable match would come in Madison Square Garden against Calhoun under the promotion of Vince McMahon.
While the Humphrey’s size has become a big selling point for many promoters, there have been some challenges with its weight.
After struggling for more than a decade, Happy Humphrey suffered a heart attack that forced him to retire early.
After following a strict diet, Happy Humphrey managed to lose more than 570 kilograms, setting a new Guinness World Record.