Tyson Fury, Muhammad Ali, Ricky Hatton, Mike Tyson and other boxing legends who took on the WWE and how they fared
OVER the years, boxers have fancied themselves as wrestlers.
Why else would the likes of Tyson Fury, Mike Tyson and Ricky Hatton try their hand at the WWE?
But most of them have had mixed results. SunSport takes a look at nine other times boxers have tried their hand inside a different squared circle.
TYSON FURY
The 31-year-old underwent intense training with WWE legend and Executive Vice President of Talent Triple H ahead of his wrestling bow in Saudi Arabia last year, before his rematch with Deontay Wilder.
He was believed to haved earned around £12MILLION for his switch to the sports entertainment brand as well as a huge boost in his profile around the world.
Fury took on Braun Strowman at WWE Crown Jewel, and made mincemeat of him.
It showed he was a real jack-of-all-trades, and the WWE must desperate to get him back.
MUHAMMAD ALI
One year after defeating Joe Frazier in the famous Thrilla in Manila, the Greatest decided it was time for a new challenge and crossed over to the wrestling ring.
Ali donned boxing gloves for a 1976 bout with Japanese wrestler Antonio Inoki in which suplexes, head-butts, and kicks above the waist were banned.
The bizarre spectacle was deemed a draw but Ali had already shown up inside a WWE ring to hype the fight earlier that month, and ultimately took a slam from Gorilla Monsoon.
Nine years later he helped promote the first WrestleMania, featuring as a guest referee for the main event between Hulk Hogan and Mr. T vs Paul Orndorff and Roddy Piper.
MIKE TYSON
Before Gypsy King Tyson, came Iron Mike Tyson, who was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2012 for his memorable stint in the company.
The self-proclaimed “Baddest Man on the Planet” served as the special enforcer in Shawn Michaels and Stone Cold Steve Austin’s clash at WrestleMania 14 in 1998.
The former boxer had pledged his allegiance to the Heartbreak Kid’s D-Generation X stable ahead of the match.
However, Tyson turned on Michaels when he counted a fast three-count for Austin to claim the World Heavyweight Championship and later delivered a famous knock-out punch to an irate HBK.
Iron Mike would later return to RAW to face his old foe in 2010 for his first-ever wrestling match in a tag-match with Chris Jericho and Triple H.
He is said to have priced himself out of a return to Wrestlemania 17 by Triple H after demanding “ludicrious money.”
EVANDER HOLYFIELD
The Real Deal became the first boxer since Muhammad Ali to win a world heavyweight title three times in 1996, and he later followed in The Greatest’s footsteps by making his way to WWE.
Holyfield may be best remembered for his two wins over Mike Tyson, but his stint under Vince McMahon was far less memorable.
The 57-year-old did not wrestle but instead faced off against Matt Hardy in a boxing match at WWE Saturday Night Main Event in 2008.
But true to form, Holyfield’s only match in the sport ended with him knocking out MVP, who had been in his corner, before consoling a battered Hardy in the ring.
RICKY HATTON
In a one-off appearance in WWE, the Hitman was the special guest host of an episode of RAW on November 9, 2009.
Hatton was later inserted as a participant in a Boxer vs Wrestler match with Chavo Guerrero after he had got involved in his feud with Santino Marella.
The 41-year-old dominated the fight and quickly won via knockout.
FLOYD MAYWEATHER
After Money knocked out Ricky Hatton to cement his place as No 1 boxer on the planet he decided to take a year off from the sport, and compete in the ring in a different capacity.
Floyd spent 2008 training with WWE legend Triple H in a build-up to No Disqualification match at WrestleMania 24 against the Big Show in 2008.
Mayweather was reportedly paid over £15million for the fight, which he won with a set of knuckle dusters in just under 12 minutes to remain undefeated inside the ropes.
Mayweather even broke the Big Show’s nose for real prior to the clash, at the No Way Out PPV.
The Welterweight boxer returned to WWE a year later as a guest host on RAW, costing the World’s Largest Athlete a tag match with Chris Jericho against MVP and Mark Henry.
BUTTERBEAN
Eric Esch appeared twice in WWE events, defeating former Golden Gloves champion Marc Mero in a boxing match at D-Generation X: In Your House in 1997.
But it was his second match, 15 months later, that still makes headlines today after he was involved in a shoot fight with Brawl For All champion Bart Gunn at WrestleMania XV.
Butterbean won the fight via a brutal knockout in just 34 seconds.
Speaking to Wrestling Inc earlier this year, he said: “It was pretty bad for Bart.
“Bart actually wanted to get out of wrestling and go into boxing and he had made Vince (McMahon) mad because of the whole Brawl For All thing. Vince wanted him to throw one, he wouldn’t do it, so I was his punishment.”
BUSTER DOUGLAS
Mike Tyson later became one of the most famous crossover stars to ever appear in WWE with his stint with Stone Cold Steve Austin in the late 90s.
But Iron Mike was initially supposed to referee the WWF Title match between Hulk Hogan and Macho Man Randy Savage in 1990.
Yet his shock defeat to Buster Douglas at the Tokyo Dome earlier that year saw the heavyweight champion disappear from the public eye.
The 59-year-old then replaced Tyson for the WWE spot and was provoked into knocking out Randy Savage after the match, but he retired from boxing later that year after losing his world title to Holyfield.
JOE FRAZIER
Smokin’ Joe was Mr. T’s cornerman for his boxing match against Rowdy Roddy Piper at WrestleMania 2.
But Frazier had already been inside a wrestling ring before, as he acted as the special guest referee for the main event of NWA’s Starrcade between Rick Flair and Dusty Rhodes in 1984.
While Joe Frazier never made a full switch of sport, his son Junior began training for a career in professional wrestling last year under the influence of WWE star Heath Slater.
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JOE LOUIS
The Brown Bomber was undisputedly the best heavyweight boxer in the world for a long period of time, holding the title for over a decade between 1937 and 1949.
However, Louis’ money problems led him to engage in numerous incomes outside the ring, one of which was to become a professional wrestler.
He made a victorious debut on March 16, 1956, at the Uline Arena in Washington, defeating Cowboy Rocky Lee.
But Louis discovered he had a heart ailment after a few matches and retired, but continued as a wrestling referee until 1972.
