10 Pro Wrestlers Who Would Have Made Intriguing MMA Fighters

“Dr. Death” Steve Williams

The only pro wrestler on this list to compete in an MMA bout, “Dr. Death” was brutalized in 22 seconds by Alexey Ignashov at the age of 43 with throat cancer beginning to grow in his body. Do not let that result fool you. Williams in his prime was a dangerous force who could have taken to MMA well.

Williams had a unique athletic background. Today, most young athletes have to choose a sport. Williams was a college All-American in both football and wrestling. He competed for successful football teams under Barry Switzer at the University of Oklahoma and then switched midseason to wrestling and still excelled there. Olympic medalists like Bruce Baumgartner and Jeff Blatnick raved about his ability. He was known as a tough street-fighter, to boot.

A physical force like that could have made waves if put into shoot competition at a young age. Unfortunately for Williams, he was only thrown into such competition after a successful 15-year pro wrestling career that had ravaged his body. The timing was all wrong, but the man was no joke.