9 Times Injuries Actually Helped A Wrestler's Career

Okay, so maybe this is cheating just a tad, because unlike the others on this list, Foley's injuries weren't the type of thing where he went away and returned for an epic comeback some months or years later. No, Foley's injuries didn't even keep him from competing five minutes later.

I'm talking, of course, about his fabled Hell in a Cell Match against The Undertaker at 1998's King of the Ring. Going into this event, Mankind was a fairly popular entity in the WWE, but he was popular in the same way that Steve Buscemi is popular. Sure, everyone loves to see Buscemi on the big screen, but no one actually expects him to carry a movie.

And while no die-hard wrestling fans would have ever dared question Foley's hardcore credibility, even back then, everyone who watched him get tossed off the top of the cage that night instantly dubbed him the undisputed King of hardcore.

But then he refused to be carried away on a stretcher or end the match. Instead, he climbed back up the cage only to be (accidentally) chokeslammed through the cage ceiling and onto the ring fifteen feet below. 

Amazingly, Mick walked away with only a concussion, a dislocated shoulder, bruised ribs, some internal bleeding, a dislocated jaw, and a few lost teeth. It's debatable whether all of that was worth it, but immediately after the match, Foley skyrocketed toward the top of the card, and eventually earned himself the WWE Championship. Would all that have happened without those iconic bumps?