13 Wrestlers Who Died In The Ring

13. Gary Albright

Gary Albright was a beast of a man. Standing 6’3″ and weighing in at 350 lbs (25 stone), he won many accolades as an amateur wrestler. Starting as a college wrestler, he won state, national and then world championships in the early 1980s. After graduating from university, he begun training in professional wrestling, With such legends as Lou Thesz and Billy Robinson training him, it was no surprise that he turned out to be a solid pro, with a realistic as opposed to showy style. His first major promotion was Stu Hart’s Stampede Wrestling in Canada, where he became a tag team champion with Makhan Singh (Mike Shaw, aka Bastion Booger). They defeated no less of a team than The British Bulldogs to win the titles.
However, with a style developed by training with Thesz and Robinson, Albright eventually found his true calling: a career in Japan. The UWFI had started up and Albright arrived there in 1991. Their style was very different from western pro wrestling, presenting the matches as legitimate fights, which emphasised strikes and submissions. Albright won his first match by knockout in seven minutes. The UWFI style was made for Albright, with his fearsome size and amateur credentials. Unlike western wrestling, Albright did not need to be a showman. He just wrestled. After UWFI folded, Albright moved to All Japan Pro Wrestling, where he made one unsuccessful challenge to Mitsuharu Misawa’s Triple Crown championship in 1996.