Rikishi was a popular superstar during the Attitude Era and in the years that followed it, but during his most successful run with WWE, announcers never acknowledged the deep scar running down the front of his stomach. While many may have assumed it was the result of a ring-related incident and surgery, his scar had nothing to do with his career as a wrestler. Before ever making it to WWE, Rikishi was badly injured in a drive-by shooting. The wrestler later described the incident, which took place in 1987, as leaving him clinically dead for three minutes. With the support of his wife and children (among them a young Jimmy and Jey Uso), Rikishi was able to make a full recovery. Still, the scar he bears is a reminder of the devastating injury he suffered as a young man.
Scott Fried is a Slammy Award-winning* writer living and working in New York City. He has been following/writing about professional wrestling for many years and is a graduate of Lance Storm's Storm Wrestling Academy. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/scottfried.
*Best Crowd of the Year, 2013
