13 Most Devastating Injuries In WWE History

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With the risks of being a professional wrestler, it is obvious that more than a few names will suffer some type of injury throughout their career. While most are pretty lucky and don't suffer anything too serious, others don't share that luck and end up on the receiving end of a career-threatening accident. Mostly involving broken bones, torn muscles, or freak pyro or prop accidents. Here are some of the most devastating injuries that WWE wrestlers have had to go through.

Professional wrestling is a spectacle due to the athletic ability that the athletes can showcase, but the crazy bumps and excellent moves that people can hit bring an increased risk factor. Over the years, there have been many tough injuries that wrestlers have suffered, showcasing just how tough the sport is.

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Because WWE is the biggest company in the world, whenever an injury does take place, it becomes a big deal that people are widely aware of. There have been plenty of issues that wrestlers have dealt with over the years, and while some have only been small injuries, others have ended up being far more serious.

UPDATE: 2024/02/14 14:30 EST BY ETHAN SCHLABAUGH

With the risks of being a professional wrestler, it is obvious that more than a few names will suffer some type of injury throughout their career. While most are pretty lucky and don't suffer anything too serious, others don't share that luck and end up on the receiving end of a career-threatening accident. Mostly involving broken bones, torn muscles, or freak pyro or prop accidents. Here are some of the most devastating injuries that WWE wrestlers have had to go through.

13 The Undertaker Gets Hit By Fire

Pyro Went Wrong During His Entrance

Happened During The Undertaker's Entrance At Elimination Chamber 2010.
Had To Stand In A Pod For Minutes While Suffering From The Effects Of The Flame.
Continued To Wrestle In The Match.

The Undertaker has suffered many serious injuries throughout his career, and they have all taken place inside the ring during matches. However, at the 2010 Elimination Chamber event, he ended up sustaining second-degree burns courtesy of the epic pyro he had during his entrance.

The Deadman was standing at the top of the ramp when someone hit the button for an explosion to go off, directly underneath him. Fortunately, the jacket he had on ended up saving him from sustaining more injuries, and he then went on to wrestle, but it was a major injury for him.

12 Cody Rhodes Scary Looking Pectoral

Continued To Wrestle An Amazing Hell In A Cell Match

Suffered A Torn Pectoral In The Build Up For His Hell In A Cell Match.
Still Wrestled In The Cage And Had A Great Showing.
Took About Eight Months Off To Recover Before Returning At The Royal Rumble.

Rumors started floating around that Cody Rhodes had injured himself in the build-up for his Hell in a Cell match against Seth Rollins. Fans weren't certain how bad it was until the show itself, when Cody removed his ring jacket. Cody was sporting a massive spot on his pectoral muscle and arm, proving exactly how injured the superstar was.

He would continue to work the match and even have spots focused on hurting the muscle, before coming out as the victor in a stellar performance. Cody then had to miss around eight months of work before he made a recovery and returned at the 2023 Royal Rumble.

11 Mick Foley's Entire Career Is Filled With Horrible Injuries

Happened Everywhere Foley Went To Wrestle

Foley's Career Of Hardcore Wrestling Has Left Him With Numerous Injuries.
Matches Like Hell In A Cell Majorly Changed His Life.
Foley Has Missing Teeth, Scars, And A Chunk Removed From His Ear.

Mick Foley has dealt with a lot of injury problems throughout his career, which is not a surprise to most, because he has been involved in some of the craziest bumps in wrestling history. However, his famous Hell in a Cell bout against The Undertaker was something that led to a lot of serious problems all at once.

He took two insane bumps in this match, being thrown off the roof to the floor and then slammed through the roof down to the mat. He sustained missing teeth, a dislocated jaw, a concussion, a bruised kidney, and a dislocated shoulder, with that culmination leading to a serious situation for him.

10 Triple H Tears His Quad

Missed Around Eight Months

Tore His Quad By Taking A Step In The Ring.
Continued To Be Placed In The Walls Of Jericho.
Came Back For The 2002 Royal Rumble.

Triple H's torn quadriceps is one of the most well-known injuries as he ended up being out of action for eight months and then made one of WWE's greatest returns afterward. He was in a tag team match and was placed in the Walls Of Jericho on the announce desk when his muscle tore.

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Even though he suffered one of the worst injuries a wrestler can sustain, Triple H somehow managed to finish the match, showcasing incredible grit and determination.

9 John Cena Rips His Pectoral Muscle

Showcased His Super Human Healing Ability

His Entire Pectoral Muscle Tore Off.
Was Scheduled To Miss Six Months To A Year.
Came Back Within Four Months And Won The 2008 Royal Rumble.

During a match with Mr. Kennedy on Monday Night Raw in October 2007, Cena tried to perform a hip toss when his entire pectoral muscle tore off. Cena and Kennedy finished the match and even delivered a post-match beating to Cena from Randy Orton.

The injury was planned to leave Cena on the shelf for around six months to a year before he could start even lifting weights or heavy objects. In typical fashion though, Cena would recover and by the Royal Rumble in January, he was able to return and win the big match, leading to the WrestleMania main event.

8 Sting's Temporary Retirement

Was The Conclusion Of A Pretty Poor WWE Run

Sting Would Suffer A Neck Injury During A Turnbuckle Powerbomb.
Announced His Retirement During His WWE Hall Of Fame Induction.
Debuted In All Elite Wrestling Five Years Later.

The former face of World Championship Wrestling finally made his long-awaited debut in the WWE at Survivor Series 2014 to stop The Authority from winning in the main event. Sting would be off-screen mostly until around WrestleMania 31 when it was announced he would face Triple H at the Showcase of Immortals.

After suffering a loss at the show, Sting would be granted a WWE Championship match against Seth Rollins at Night of Champions later that year. The match saw a typical spot Rollins did by powerbombing Sting into the turnbuckle, which caused a severe neck injury that was later confirmed to be the reason Sting needed to retire from in-ring action.

7 Seth Rollins Blows Out His Knee

Ending Rollins' First WWE Championship Reign

Happened During A House Show Match With Kane.
Caused Rollins To Miss WrestleMania 32.
Forced Him To Vacate His WWE Championship.

Seth Rollins was having the run of his career after cashing in the Money in the Bank briefcase at WrestleMania 31 and carrying the WWE World Heavyweight Championship for the following months. It was a live event taking place in Dublin, Ireland that saw Rollins blow out his knee and tear his ACL, MCL, and meniscus during a match with Kane.

Rollins attempted to Sunset Flip over Kane from the top rope and powerbomb the Big Red Machine through a table when the injury occurred. The aftermath saw Rollins have to vacate the championship and step away from in-ring action until his return at Extreme Rules 2016.

6 Joey Mercury's Takes A Ladder To The Face

Causes A Massive Amount Of Blood

A Ladder Spot Caused Joey Mercury's Nose And Orbital Bone To Break.
Matt Hardy Described It As Someone Turning A Sink Faucet On Due To How Much Blood There Was.
Mercury's Partner, Johnny Nitro, Was Hit In The Throat By The Ladder.

Joey Mercury sustained one of the most memorable injuries in WWE history, mainly because it looked so devastating and caused a huge visible scar afterward. Mercury ended up having a ladder smashed up into his face, and that instantly led to blood pouring out as it became clear things didn't go to plan.

He wound up breaking four bones in his face, which required 30 stitches and resulted in him almost losing his eye. It was a serious situation and a scary one at the same time that can be difficult for any to rewatch.

5 Shawn Michaels' Back Injury

Changed HBK's Career Forever

Michaels Took A Hard Bump Off The Side Of A Casket.
Caused Two Herniated Discs And Crushing Another.
Would Continue To Work Through WrestleMania Before Taking Four Years Away.

Shawn Michaels is one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, but he did have a four-year period where he didn't compete at all, highlighting just how serious his back injury was. At one point, it wasn't clear if the Heartbreak Kid would ever be back.

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He sustained it during a casket match against The Undertaker when he was thrown out of the ring, glimpsing the casket itself before landing on the floor. It was that glimpse that caused him to herniate two discs, which was a big problem for him.

4 Big E Breaks His Neck

Still Working Through Recovery

An Accidental Suplex Botch Caused Big E's Neck To Break.
Has Been Advised Not To Wrestle Again By Specialists.
Big E Is Luckily Able To Walk And Move His Head.

Big E sustained one of the most serious injuries in WWE history as he broke his neck after he landed directly on his head outside the ring. Ridge Holland tried an overhead suplex which didn't go to plan, and that was visibly difficult for people to watch.

The long-lasting impact of this situation is still not fully clear as Big E remains on the shelf recovering. While he thankfully can walk and move around, when it comes to getting back inside the ring, that remains to be seen.

3 Steve Austin Breaks His Neck

Takes Years Off Of Austin's Career

Came From A Piledriver By Owen Hart.
Was The Major Factor In Austin Retiring In 2003.
Left Austin Unable To Move For A Short Bit.

Another wrestler who unfortunately broke his neck inside the ring was Steve Austin, with his injury being a difficult one to see. It took place when Owen Hart hit him with a piledriver, slamming Austin head-first down to the mat, which caused the problem for him.

Austin lost the ability to move for a moment in time, showcasing just how serious the problem was for him. While Austin was able to return from this issue, it was something that impacted him for the rest of his run. By 2003, he would officially retire from in-ring action as problems with his neck were impacting him more and more.

2 Tyson Kidd's Neck Injury

Put An End To Kidd's Career

Suffered An Injury That Most People Either Die Or Are Left Paralyzed From.
Can Walk But Won't Be Able To Wrestle Again.
His Injury Is An Amped Up Version Of What Saraya/Paige & Adam Copeland/Edge Dealt With.

While Austin was able to wrestle again and the potential remains for Big E to do the same, that cannot be said for Tyson Kidd. He sustained a broken neck during a dark match that fans didn't see as he was hit with Samoa Joe's Muscle Buster finish.

It didn't go to plan and Kidd ended up sustaining an incredibly serious broken neck that almost cost him his life. While he thankfully survived, Kidd has never wrestled since, which made this problem such a big one.

1 Droz Breaks His Neck

Left Him In A Wheelchair For Life

Droz Lost Movement In His Entire Body.
Was Able To Regain Movement In His Upper Body And Arms.
Admitted He Never Had An Animosity Toward D'Lo Brown For The Accident.

Droz was another wrestler who suffered a broken neck inside a WWE ring. However, his injury ended up being far more serious than any others. While the likes of Austin and Big E were able to walk afterward, Droz was quadriplegic, showcasing just how impactful this injury was.

Not only did it end his career, but it completely changed his way of life. This came when D'Lo Brown hit him with a powerbomb, but the landing didn't go to plan, and it ended up having massive implications. Droz would sadly pass away in 2023 after years of living with his injury.

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