17 Things You Didn't Know About Wade Barrett

The rumour of the past week, if you€™re a fan of giant, gruff northern wrestlers with broken noses, is that King Wade €˜Bad News€™ Barrett of the Barrage, hero of the Battle Of Buda - to give him his full name and title - may not be on WWE television that much longer. Scuttlebutt (like gossip with a totally, 100% legit bare knuckle boxing background) says that Stuart Alexander €˜Stu€™ Bennett, BSc CertRP DipRM DipRL (to give him his full name and title) is probably not going to re-sign with the company when his contract comes up for renewal in a few months. Although these stories are nothing but hot air half the time, Bennett seemed to tacitly admit to the truth of them in recent tweets, clarifying that he€™ll go into more detail when it€™s appropriate, but that €œfor now I'm 100% focused on doing my job for @WWE.€ Barrett€™s one of those WWE Superstars who€™s always seemed to have more of an upside than WWE wanted to admit, or to exploit. He€™s a big lad with the gift of the gab on the mic, a classic technical brawler€™s style that suits WWE down to the ground, and currently a lean, piratical look that matches his wicked leer and ripped physique. More than that, Barrett has presence, real charisma. Whether cutting a promo or just lurking malignantly in the background, he draws the attention. But then most people know that Barrett hasn€™t been used effectively for his many talents in the biggest wrestling company on earth. The question is, what don€™t we know about this twelve year veteran of the squared circle? There are seventeen answers on the way. Let€™s see how many you knew about beforehand...

17. Mick Foley Inspired Him To Become A Wrestler

Stu Bennett was a wrestling fan ever since he was a kid, all the way through the ups (rock n€™ wrestling, Hulkamania, the Attitude Era) and the downs (most of the 1990s). He stayed a fan when his friends gave up watching, and remained a fan when they came back in droves: he was one of those English kids who€™d set his alarm to wake him up to sneak downstairs and watch the US pay-per-views at 1am. For as long as he can remember, professional wrestling has been his favourite form of entertainment€ but he never really thought about actually doing it himself, until he read Mick Foley€™s first memoir, Have A Nice Day!, while at the University Of Liverpool studying Marine Biology around 2001. Although tall, Bennett has a ectomorphic body type, meaning that his physique naturally veers more towards a lanky, skinny frame. At twenty or twenty-one, he was only about twelve stone (roughly 170 pounds), gangling at around six foot five, six foot six inches tall - meaning that he looked like a must have found it next to impossible to find clothes that fit him, poor kid. Foley wasn€™t your traditional kind of wrestling build either, a big but dumpy dude who€™d nonetheless managed to claw his way to the main event of the WWF through sheer testicular fortitude. Bennett felt inspired, and signed up to the university gym that day, hitting the weights for the first time ever.