In one of his last matches, Adonis had even competed as part of a team with the late, great Owen Hart - who would go on to be the subject of a heartbreaking Dark Side of the Ring story of his own. Still, his career wasn’t slowing down, as Adonis continued to wrestle as “Adorable” Adrian in AWA and New Japan Pro Wrestling. In 1987, Adonis was fired by WWF for reasons that aren’t entirely clear. During his run, Adonis had even competed against Hulk Hogan for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship. Originally entering the business with the gimmick of a masculine bruiser, Adonis adopted the “Adorable” moniker during his time in WWF (now WWE), bleaching his hair and donning pink wrestling tights. A few years later, Smith died of a heart attack in 2002 at the age of 39.ģ “Adorable” Adrian Adonis Dies in a Car CrashĬlassic wrestler Adrian Adonis is among the most memorable wrestling villains of the mid ’80s, competing for the World Wrestling Federation under the management of Jimmy Hart. The incident left him nearly paralyzed and fueled a dangerous addiction to painkillers. During a stint in WCW, Smith had landed awkwardly on a hidden trapdoor beneath the mat of the ring, causing a severe back injury. Things didn’t turn out much better for Davey Boy Smith, either. ![]() Tom “Dynamite Kid” Billington would later die on his 60th birthday in 2018. ![]() By 1997, the wrestling star was wheelchair-bound, and based on the bad blood with Smith and WWE, he never formally returned to the company for any kind of special appearance. The partnership came to an end in 1990 when Dynamite and Smith had a falling out, leading to Smith returning to WWE solo and taking the “British Bulldog” name along with him.Īfter disbanding the tag team and feeling the pain of his real-life injuries, Dynamite retired in 1991, though he made sporadic wrestling appearances over the next few years. Consisting of the Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith, the team competed in multiple promotions during their prime, and that includes a run in WWE. One of the most popular wrestling tag teams from the 1980’s would be the British Bulldogs. May things have gone differently had Hennig stayed with the world’s top promotion the year before? We’ll never know for sure. Leaving behind four children, Hennig was just 44 years old at the time of his death. Reportedly, his death was due to acute cocaine intoxication. Just over a year after his firing, Hennig had been wrestling for independent promotions when he was found dead in his hotel room in 2003. One of them had to go, and it wasn’t going to be Lesnar, whom the company had considered to be one of its biggest stars. ![]() The dismissal came as a result of scuffling with Brock Lesnar on the infamous “Plane Ride from Hell” (which also deserves a separate episode of its own, really). Although he had a very impressive performance when he returned for that year’s Royal Rumble match, Hennig would find himself fired from the company just a few months later. In 2002, after spending several years working for competitors, Hennig returned home to WWE to wrestle as Mr. In AWA, WWF/WWE, and WCW, Hennig was a legend in the ring, and if he were still around, chances are he’d still be very involved in the business today. ![]() As his moniker would suggest, Hennig appeared to be flawless with everything that he did. Perfect, Curt Hennig will always be considered one of the most talented performers to ever lace up a pair of boots.
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