8. Mark Henry
Original Gimmick: Ken Patera Patera was an athlete outside of wrestling prior to his debut; he would compete in weightlifting contests before going on to enter the Worlds Strongest Man competition in 1977. Sounding familiar? Sure, as it stands it is not actually a gimmick but rather a shared hobby; until the WWE endorse those achievements of course. Patera wrestled with incredible stamina and ruthless aggression, he would also find great pleasure in injuring other wrestlers, earning the character great heat. As a competitor, Patera was highly respected for his strength and had great matches with the likes of Andre the Giant and Bruno Sammartino
. Mark Henrys background is almost identical to Patera. Henry was signed by the WWE, after the company were made aware of his successes in weightlifting competitions; he also won the Arnold Strongman Classic contest, which is similar to The Worlds Strongest Man event. There are ways in which they do differ though; Mark Henry is the father of a hand. Patera is not. Within the ring, Henrys nickname is the Worlds Strongest Man and is also an aggressive heel that enjoyed injuring other athletes. In fact he even created a club called the Hall of Pain for them to join. Previous members include The Big Show and The Great Khali.