10 Wrestlers Who Competed In Matches In Their 70s And Beyond
These golden oldies proved that they could still hang, even in the twilight of their years.
To quote SpongeBob SquarePants - "Old People Are Our Greatest Natural Resource".
Yes, they might not be able to drive as well as they used to. Yes, they use words that aren't OK. But old people are, on the whole, pretty great.
Especially when they can step between the ropes of a wrestling ring.
For decades, wrestling companies have relied on the shock factor of older performers still being able to go to pop a rating or draw money.
The chant "You Still Got It" is popular for a reason, as fans love to see that their heroes from yesteryear can still hang with the current crop.
Sometimes this is taken to an extreme and wrestlers who are seemingly far too old to step back in the ring surprise everyone by putting on a match.
The following ten wrestlers were all into at least their seventies when they competed in their final or most recent matches. Some of them were able to win against much younger opponents and a few even captured championships at their ripe old age.
Please enjoy these ten old-timers who just didn't know when to quit, but maybe keep this list away from Grandma.
She might get ideas.
10. Jerry Lawler (70)
Jerry Lawler is a man who should not still be wrestling.
On 10 September 2012, Jerry suffered a real-life heart attack after wrestling a match on Monday Night Raw. He was clinically dead for half an hour before being revived by CPR and treated in hospital.
The moment was incredibly scary, even more so when you realise that this was all playing out on live TV. It was a stark reminder of the physical toll that wrestling takes on the body and that, no matter how much larger than life your favourite wrestlers are, they are as human as you and me.
So, naturally, Lawler decided to step back into the ring multiple times.
Somehow, Jerry was medically cleared to compete after recovering from the heart attack and whilst he hasn't wrestled for WWE since, he was performing for independent promotions as recently as this year.
And these weren't just exhibition matches.
On 18 January 2020, Lawler fought Matt Rivera in a Career vs. Title match for Championship Wrestling Arkansas. Not only did he compete in the match, he won it, capturing the Arkansas Heavyweight Championship at the age of 70 years and 50 days.
All hail The King