8 Wrestlers Who Were Nearly KILLED By Fans

One grisly incident on the night of 15 October 1952 led to a heel by the name of Wladek Kowalski becoming part of wrestling folklore. It also made his career.

Whilst grappling with fellow Canadian Yukon Eric in Montreal, Kowalski leaped off the rope to deliver a knee to his opponent's mangy cauliflower ear. "I thought I missed," he later recalled to The Chicago Tribune in 1989. "But all of a sudden, something went rolling across the ring."

It was Eric's ear.

The next day, Kowalski visited his be-lugged adversary in hospital - with the local press in tow. When he spied the 6'5", 280lb Yukon Eric wrapped up like an Egyptian mummy in his bed, Kowalski burst into laughter. The pair had a big joke about it, but the next day, reporters led with 'Kowalski Visits Yukon and Laughs'. When he climbed in the ring that night, it was to shouts of "you're an animal, you're a killer!"

Thus, 'Killer Kowalski' was born.

It was a reputation that'd lead some fans to think everything was on the table when it came to comeuppance. The wrestler had pigs' ears tossed his way, was pelted by pea shooters, and was even burned. But the worst was the time he was stabbed.

Following a match, a woman approached Kowalski, and - seemingly sincerely - told him, "I'm glad you didn't get hurt." Little did he know it was because she wanted to deal the damage. She then stabbed him in the back.

Hard as he was, Kowalski nevertheless started showing up to events with a police escort soon after that near miss.