Many professional athletes have crossed over from sports to pro wrestling and failed in their transition. Bill Goldberg, Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone are just three examples of former pro athletes who tried their hand in the ring only to fail miserably. Goldberg, for example, let a simple tazer stand in the way of his perfect record. Just disgusting.
One athlete who made the transition better than all of the others though was Steve "Mongo" McMichael. His impact on pro wrestling was legendary, as he turned on Kevin Greene and subsequently joined the Four Horsemen in his first official match. Immediately he became the second greatest Horsemen ever besides Paul Roma. Not only was Mongo's impact in the Horsemen felt at the time of his career, but look at his legacy today in comparison to the other Horsemen:
Flair - Broke
Luger - Wheelchair
Windham - Stroke
Benoit - Dead
Malenko - Midget
Pillman - Dead
Roma - Pretty
Arn - Crippled
Ole - Multipleschlorsis
Meanwhile Mongo is a successful businessman and leader in the community; a top notch kind of guy.
So whether it was his impact in the ring, or out of it, Mongo has earned his place as the 46th greatest grappler of all time. Had this list been the 50 greatest grapplers of all time who hit people with Halliburton Briefcases, he would have easily come in at #1. Regardless, all hail Mongo.
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