10 Notorious WWE Injury Spots (& How They Happened)

Injuries are unavoidable in the wrestling ring. These are some of the most notorious ones in WWE history.

Injuries are unavoidable when it comes to professional wrestling, as unlike other combat sports, pro wrestlers don't have a long cool-off period between matches. The wrestlers work under a tight schedule and work several contests in a week, and the extensive travel and rigorous training cause a lot of wear and tear in their bodies.

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Coupled with occasional mishaps that happen inside the ring, we have witnessed wrestlers enduring some of the most gruesome injuries over the years. With that said, let's take a look at ten of the most notorious injury spots in WWE history and how they happened.

Joey Mercury found his way into WWE in 2004 and became part of the MNM faction alongside Melina and John Morrison. He and Morrison went on to become 3-time tag team champions during their time together as a team and could've done even better things if it weren't for Mercury's untimely injury.

During a fatal-4-way tag team ladder match for the WWE Tag Team Championship at Armageddon 2006, Matt Hardy held Mercury and Morrison in the corner while Jeff Hardy jumped on the end of a ladder. The other end of the ladder catapulted into Mercury and Morrison's face, and while the latter didn't take much damage, Mercury got four bones broken in his face and immediately left the match and reportedly got 30 stitches in his face.

During a match against Brock Lesnar on the September 12, 2002, episode of SmackDown, Hardcore Holly allegedly tried to sandbag the new superstar while the latter tried to lift him up for a powerbomb.

However, Lesnar decided to go with the execution of the move despite Holly not pulling himself up, which resulted in the latter landing awkwardly on his neck. Hardcore Holly sustained a legitimate broken neck, which took him out of action for over a year, and he had to undergo surgery to repair the damage.

Beth Phoenix made her WWE main roster debut in 2006 and established herself and aligned herself with Trish Stratus during the latter's feud against Mickie James.

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She had her first singles match on WWE television when she took on Victoria on the June 5, 2006, episode of Raw. During the contest, Beth Phoenix took a slap from Melina which hit her harder than she expected. Phoenix's jaw got entirely severed as a result, and while she managed to continue and finish the match as per plan, she had to be taken out of action. She did return to in-ring competition in two months at OVW, but she spent a year tending to the injury as it let a part of her face numb.

Current AEW star Malakai Black spent a considerable amount of time in NXT during his early days in WWE, and he revealed during an interview on Sean Waltman's Pro Wrestling 4 Life podcast that he suffered a gruesome injury during his time in the Black and Gold brand.

He competed against Tommaso Ciampa at an NXT live event in 2018, during which he mistimed his landing while performing a move. It resulted in Black landing crotch first on the ring post, and while he managed to finish the match, he collapsed after getting backstage. He revealed that his testicle shattered into seven pieces, and that's the reason he missed his planned NXT title match at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn 4.

Former WWE Tag Team Champion Tyson Kidd's career came to an unexpected end when he sustained a gruesome injury while competing in a live event in June 2015.

He competed against Samoa Joe at the event, and during the match, the Samoan Submission Machine performed his signature Muscle Buster on Kidd. But the impact proved to be too severe as Tyson Kidd sustained a legitimate spine injury which ended his entire in-ring career. He had 16 staples, four screws, and a rod inserted in his neck, and he stated that only 5% of people survive such an injury.

The late Droz's neck injury is one of the most horrific injuries to happen inside a pro wrestling ring, as it ended up costing his in-ring career and left him paralyzed for the rest of his life.

He sustained the injury during a match against D'Lo Brown at a SmackDown taping on October 5, 1999. When Brown tried to perform his signature running powerbomb on Droz during the match, a series of botches resulted in the latter landing on his head and suffering two fractured vertebrae in his neck. Despite extensive medical care, the injury left Droz a quadriplegic at first, but he was able to regain movement of his upper body and arms.

Shawn Michaels is a veteran of the pro wrestling business who hung up his boots in 2010 after a nearly 26-year career. However, his career would've been much shorter if he hadn't recovered from the gruesome back injury he sustained in 1998.

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During his WWE Championship Casket Match against The Undertaker at Royal Rumble 1998, Shawn Michaels took a back body drop to the outside of the ring. But he hit his lower back on the casket during the landing, which caused him to herniate two discs and crush one completely. Despite his efforts to overcome the injury, the damage forced him to retire after his match against Stone Cold Steve Austin at WrestleMania 14. But HBK made a full recovery and returned to in-ring competition in 2002 and competed full-time until his retirement in 2010.

The Game Triple H sustained multiple injuries throughout his decorated in-ring career with WWE, and one of the most gruesome among those was the quad injury he endured in 2001. During a tag team match on the May 21, 2001, episode of Raw, Triple H tore his left quadriceps muscle as he ran into the ring to save his partner Stone Cold Steve Austin from the Walls of Jericho.

The Game managed to finish the match despite the injury, but it resulted in him undergoing surgery and taking him out of action for eight months.

Stone Cold Steve Austin was at the height of his popularity when he retired from in-ring competition in 2003. He was only around 39 years old when he stepped away from the ring and could've had a longer career if it weren't for the neck injury he sustained in SummerSlam 1997.

He competed against Owen Hart for the Intercontinental Championship at the event, and during the match, the latter performed a Piledriver on Austin. However, Austin landed head-first onto the mat, which resulted in him sustaining a legitimate broken neck. The injury continued to trouble Austin over the years and caused his career to end prematurely after his match against The Rock at WrestleMania 19.

The impact of a neck injury has already been stressed enough with the Droz, Steve Austin, Tyson Kidd, and Hardcore Holly entries, and former WWE Champion Big E, unfortunately, became the next person added to that list when he sustained a similar injury in 2022.

During a tag team match against Sheamus and Ridge Holland on the March 11, 2022, episode of SmackDown, Big E took a belly-to-belly suplex from Holland outside the ring. But the landing got botched, and Big E landed awkwardly on his head and suffered a broken neck and fractures to his C1 vertebrae and C6 vertebrae, but thankfully didn't sustain any spinal damage.

Kebin Antony is a God-fearing, peace-loving pro-wrestling fanatic from South India. He's been a fan of the sport since 2004, and also has a little experience by wrestling pillows in front of an imaginary crowd. He now works as a wrestling list writer for Valnet, Inc, covering thesportster.