12 Wrestlers Who DESTROYED Their Bodies For The Business

Japanese great Keiji Mutoh formally retired from the ring in 2023. That put a tin lid on his outstanding 39 year career, and it was overdue. After all, Mutoh (who was also known as The Great Muta) first started to suffer incredible knee pain as far back as 1998. Regardless, he kept wrestling for another 25 years. No big deal, eh? Shaking off all those surgeries can't have been easy, even for someone as tough as Muta.

It was a smart move to quit using his trademark Moonsault Press during matches though. There was no need to inflict more damage on himself as he aged, and Mutoh knew he was a skilled enough worker to offset dropping such an iconic spot. Besides, he could still use his Shining Wizard knee strike, somewhat ironically. Even that lessened in impact as the years rolled on and Keiji got closer to retirement.

No wonder. Someone with injured knees should be avoiding any and all moves related to the joint!

Though people still loved to see him work, even Muta's biggest fans could see he was slowing down from the late-90s onwards. Yes, he was still capable, but the great man couldn't keep going forever. After so many years of in-ring abuse, it's a wonder that Keiji was able to walk to the ring for his final in-ring bow at all.

Wrestling gave him everything, but it also claimed full physical health from Mutoh. He's another who'll probably never be able to stand upright without feeling all of those bumps from New Japan classics of yesteryear.