10 Random Acts Of Wrestling Violence You Totally Forgot About

9. Funk & Foley Punches

Big Show Undertaker
WWE

Somewhat sardonically, Mick Foley was perfect for the relaunched ECW in 2006.

Working a tongue-in-cheek take on his beloved 'Anti-Hardcore' character from the original incarnation, Foley sided with his former rival Edge against hardcore purists Tommy Dreamer and Terry Funk ahead of 2006's 'One Night Stand' pay-per-view to kick off WWE's doomed relaunch of the fabled brand. Ahead of the supercard sequel, 'The Hardcore Legend' came up with a reckless way to present their the two as serious contenders.

On an all-but forgotten television special, old brawling buddies Funk and Foley came to painfull real blows - 'The Funker' landed several legitimately brutal punches under Mick's left eye, opening him up as the show went to a commercial break. Though the instant blood and bruising added gravitas to Foley's promo in the follow-up segment, that speech (and the whole show it featured on) was redundant within weeks as WWE rapidly grew disinterested with the rebirth at large.

For all of the angle's partial success as a standalone segment, Foley's courage generated no posterity replays once the programme had passed.

 
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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett