Top 10 Wrestlers With Amateur Backgrounds In WWE History
Who successfully made the jump from amateur to professional?
Professional wrestling promoters have been scouting the amateur ranks for talent since the sport’s inception, and WWE are no different. From early pioneers like Verne Gagne and Danny Hodge to modern day superstars Brock Lesnar and Shelton Benjamin, pro-wrestling history is littered with former amateur standouts, and it’s easy to see why.
Despite the obvious “real vs. scripted” argument, there are a number of parallels between the two, and amateur wrestling provides an excellent athletic base for a budding sports entertainment career. Takedowns, joint locks, throws, grappling, and pins: so many amateur wrestling techniques are immediately transferable to the square circle, and it’s no surprise that some of the best technical wrestlers in history come from decorated amateur backgrounds.
WWE’s signing policy has fluctuated greatly over the years. Models, bodybuilders, footballers, and strongmen were often favoured as the company grew in popularity and placed a greater emphasis on aesthetics, and while Eva Marie and Braun Strowman show that this policy is far from dead, WWE continue to scour amateur circles for new talent to this day. American Alpha are the latest NCAA/Olympic standouts to make it to the main roster, and they won’t be the last.
Taking their success in both fields into account, here are the top 10 wrestlers who made the move from amateur to professional wrestling.
10. Gorilla Monsoon
Depending on your age, you’ll either remember Gorilla Monsoon as WWE’s on-screen President in the mid-'90s, Bobby Heenan’s long-time announce partner, or as a gigantic super-heavyweight battling the likes of André the Giant and Superstar Billy Graham. Monsoon made a huge impact on the company regardless of the role he was playing, and the foundations for his 30+ year WWE career were laid in college.
An outstanding multi-sport (football, track and field, and amateur wrestling) athlete throughout his high school career, the 350lbs Monsoon continued his sporting excellence at New York’s Ithaca College. Finishing second in the 1959 NCAA Wrestling Championships at the age of 21, Monsoon set a number of athletic records at Ithaca (including an 18-second wrestling pin), became captain of the school’s wrestling team, and was named its Most Valuable Performer in 1959.
Monsoon was a freakish athlete who combined imposing size with supreme stamina and athleticism. His pro-wrestling career started after signing for a New York promoter who’d scouted him throughout his college career, and by 1963, Monsoon was wrestling the legendary Bruno Sammartino for the old WWWF World Championship. Elected into his college’s Hall of Fame in 1973 and WWE’s 21 years later, Monsoon blazed a trail in both forms of wrestling.