The big grapp
He’s so big in Hollywood now, his newest fans may not be aware that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson first found fame in the ring.
The star, 45, was a wrestling hero loved for his charisma and wit. He was a national championshipwinning American Football player at college before starting wrestling in 1995, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather.
The 10-time world champ left WWE in 2004, by which time he had already starred in The Scorpion King.
Since then, Californiaborn Dwayne has established himself as star with films such as San Andreas, Tooth Fairy, Baywatch, Jumanji, The Fast and Furious franchise and Disney’s Moana. In 2013, Forbes named him as the world’s highest grossing male actor. He’s even tipped as a future president... Now 52, Mark Calaway has wowed crowds for nearly three decades as The Undertaker.
Considered one of the greatest pro wrestlers ever, his spooky, horror-themed character supposedly has supernatural powers and is the storyline half-brother of fellow WWE wrestler Kane.
He remains one of the most popular stars, has deceptive athleticism and an array of classic finishing moves, plus a handy knack of surviving burning caskets and live burial.
When the legendary “Dead
Man” lost in the main event of last year’s Wrestlemania in
Orlando he dropped his gear in the ring, leading many to think he was calling it a day.
Then last weekend at Raw
25 he hinted at a return, saying: “For 25 years, I have taken legends and thrown them into the cold, dark earth.” Stalwart Cena has won 25 wrestling championships and been WWE world champ 13 times.
In the ring Massachussetts-born Cena maintains a squeaky-clean image young fans admire. Known for his extensive charity work, he holds the record for most appearances with the Make-a-wish Foundation, which helps children with lifethreatening illnesses.
Now 40, even though he spends less time in WWE, he’s still its top star in terms of merchandise, with almost 45 million friends on Facebook.
In 2005 he released a rap album and is also carving out a film career with roles in Daddy’s Home, Daddy’s Home 2 and the forthcoming Transformers spin-off, Bumblebee: The Movie. He has been with his partner, fellow wrestler Nikki Bella, since 2012. Sorry, Delia, but in most parts of the world Norwich’s most famous export is Saraya-jade Bevis, or Paige as she’s known in the ring.
Daughter of two pro wrestlers, her mum Julia Hamerbevis – aka Sweet Saraya and Saraya Knight – once unknowingly wrestled while seven months pregnant with Paige, so you could say she was born to be in the ring. Paige made her debut in 2005 aged 13 and became a champ at 21, after signing to WWE in 2011.
Now 25, it looked like Paige’s promising career was over when she suffered a horrific “stinger” whiplash injury at live event last month.
On medical advice she won’t compete at Sunday’s historic Royal Rumble, in which 30 women will take part in the signature match for the first time. But a ringside appearance during a tag-team bout at Raw 25 suggests Paige will be back in action soon. The only superstar more popular than The Rock, Austin’s legendary feud with his boss, WWE owner Vince Mcmahon, was the most successful storyline in the history of professional wrestling.
The Texas Rattlesnake was a hell-raising, beer-swigging, anti-hero who famously went head to head with Mike
Tyson. A knee injury and neck problems cut short his ring career but Austin has since starred in a string of action movies. Now aged 53, he hosts reality TV contests Redneck
Island and Broken Skull Challenge.
He was back at Raw 25 reigniting the feud with Mcmahon and his son Shane – the commissioner of Smackdown LIVE, whom he knocked down twice with his trademark Stone Cold Stunner. Shane later tweeted: “Privileged to share the ring with you @Steveaustinbsr.” The billionaire owner of WWE took wrestling from smoky theatres to sold-out arenas with his groundbreaking concept Wrestlemania.
Risking all on an event marketed as the Super
Bowl of wrestling, he invited stars such as Mr T, Muhammad Ali and Cyndi
Lauper, and did a deal with
MTV. The then-wwf become a global force and
Vince went on to portray the character of an evil boss warring with stars like Steve Austin and even competing in the ring. Aged 72 still pulls the strings backstage.
His daughter Steph an ex-women’s champ one of the sport’s big villains and in real life company’s chief bran officer. She says: “Mo Night Raw has been a part of my life. That is met my husband. It re this sort of Greek mythology, where characters have dual personas and everyone’s relationships are intertwined.”