10 Wrestlers Who Broke Their Neck For The Business

1. Yoshi Tatsu

AJ Styles Yoshi Tatsu
NJPW

The most high profile Styles Clash neck knock during a spate of them, Yoshi Tatsu's chin-tucking instincts resulted in a November 2014 clash between the pair being his last match proper until April 2016. The move requires performers to put their head back - a contravention to bumping norm - and Tatsu's errant split-second decision resulted in a terrifying plunge that broke two bones in his neck.

Remarkably, Tatsu didn't feel an immediate impact. He finished the Power Struggle pay-per-view match with 'The Phenomenal One' and even absorbed a Jeff Jarrett guitar shot on his damaged dome. It was only after the opening match of the 2014 World Tag League tournament in November did he realise there was something significantly wrong, with the diagnosis potentially worsening had he continued to wrestle carrying such serious injuries.

The break did result in his 'Bullet Club Hunter' gimmick failing to catch fire, with a reimagining as a Triple H cosplayer lacking much of the original spark when he did resurface. Pleasingly though, his return was a full time one. The former WWE comedy star lasted nearly two more years with NJPW before debuting with All Japan Pro Wrestling in September 2017.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 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. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, 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