The wrestling business has long had a tradition of super-heavyweight superstars. In an industry that is often built on spectacle, the novelty of watching men much larger than regular-sized humans performing insane feats of strength and agility will likely never wear off. The 'giant' will certainly always have a place in sports entertainment and pro-wrestling.
This article will look at the five heaviest wrestlers in history, but will also spotlight five current WWE superstars who are heavier than you might think.
10 HEAVIEST EVER: YOKOZUNA - 589 lb
Yokozuna's standard billed weight was 589 lb, which is mind-boggling when you think about it. However, there is some room for maneuver when it comes to his weight. He was reportedly 550 lb when he won the WWF title at Wrestlemania IX in April 1993, but had grown to 568 lb by that year's Summerslam.
It's even thought that he tipped the scales at a gargantuan 641 lb when he won the Tag Team titles alongside Owen Hart in 1995. We're going to split the difference and list him at 589!
9 HEAVIEST EVER: HAYSTACKS CALHOUN - 663 lb
Haystacks Calhoun was one of the premier attractions during the 'kayfabe era' of the 1950s and '60s. Standing 6'4'' tall and weighing in at 663 lb, he was a mass of humanity that had to be seen to be believed.
People came from far and wide to watch him perform ridiculous feats of strength but, to his credit, he was determined to be more than a carnival attraction and so he was the first super heavyweight who trained regularly and was a credible in-ring worker. Being the only person to lift Calhoun off his feet added to the legend of Bruno Sammartino and Calhoun also wrestled the likes of Buddy Rogers and Man Mountain Mike.
8 HEAVIEST EVER: GIANT HAYSTACKS - 690 lb
UK wrestling fans of a certain age will remember Giant Haystacks very fondly, as he was the biggest star of World Of Sport Wrestling, which aired on Saturday afternoons on national TV throughout the 1970s and '80s.
He was a true giant, weighing 690 lb at his heaviest and standing 6'11'' tall. In 1996 he made the jump to the US, debuting in WCW as Loch Ness, a member of the monstrous Dungeon Of Doom. Sadly, he was diagnosed with cancer soon after that and moved back to Britain, before passing away in 1998.
7 HEAVIEST EVER: THE MCGUIRE TWINS - 743 lb and 723 lb
Billy and Benny McCrary wrestled throughout the 1970s as the McGuire Twins. They were listed in the Guinness Book Of World Records as the 'World's Heaviest Twins', and at 723 lb and 743 lb respectively, it's easy to see why.
Unlike Haystacks Calhoun and Giant Haystacks, who made genuine efforts to perform in the ring, the McGuire Twins were very immobile due to their incredible bulk, so weren't exactly good workers. Billy tragically died in 1979 in a motorcycle accident, while Benny lived until 2001 before dying of heart failure.
6 HEAVIEST EVER: HAPPY HUMPHREY - 802 lb
Happy Humphrey is the heaviest professional wrestler to ever compete in the business. At a billed weight of 802 lb (which even rose to a high of 900 lb after he quit wrestling), it's unlikely that anyone heavier will come along in the modern age.
He began his wrestling career in 1953 by wrestling a bear for 28 minutes, which is just as insane as it sounds. His career highlight was facing Haystacks Calhoun in a sold out Madison Square Garden. Amazingly, after retiring he checked himself into the Medical College Of Georgia's Clinical Investigation Unit, where he lost 570 lb during two years on a weight loss program!
5 HEAVIER THAN THEY SEEM: BRAY WYATT - 285 lb
Bray Wyatt recently returned to WWE television with the repackaged gimmick of a sinister children's television personality. It's undoubtedly a creative risk, but it seems to be paying off so far for Wyatt, whose career had hit a wall as the 'Eater Of Worlds'. One interesting thing about Wyatt is that, considering he's 6'3'' tall and weighs 285 lb, his massive physical presence has never really been emphasized as part of his character.
He's always been more about the character and promo work. To put it into perspective, though, Drew McIntyre is currently presented as a dominating physical force who tears through people on the roster; yet McIntyre weighs a full 20 lb less than Wyatt!
4 HEAVIER THAN THEY SEEM: AJ STYLES - 218 lb
AJ Styles is one of the greatest wrestlers in the world and has excelled in WWE ever since his debut in 2016. Despite being one of the smaller guys on the roster at 5'11'', he has still been an almost permanent fixture of the main event scene.
Why? Perhaps it's because Styles is bulkier than he may seem, in terms of his weight and musculature. Tipping the scales at 218 lb, he's easily one of the heaviest superstars of his height. By comparison, Finn Balor (5'11''/190 lb), Ali (5'10''/182 lb) and Xavier Woods (5'11''/205 lb) would all qualify to wrestle on the Cruiserweight show 205 Live!
3 HEAVIER THAN THEY SEEM: REY MYSTERIO - 175 lb
Rey Mysterio is undoubtedly the most popular Luchador to ever compete in WWE, and his current run with the company has seen him capture the United States Championship (which had previously eluded him). Rey is billed as 175 lb, which might seem accurate for his billed height of 5'6".
But there's always been some mystery about Mysterio's true height, with many people believing he's more likely somewhere between 5'2'' and 5'4''. This makes his weight more impressive, as he would have to pack on some serious muscle to weigh that much with such a small frame. By comparison, Ricochet is 5'9''/188 lb; only 13 lb heavier than Rey, despite being considerably taller.
2 HEAVIER THAN THEY SEEM: ASUKA - 137 lb
Asuka is 5'3'' tall and weighs 137 lb. Compared to other women of a similar height in WWE, she's considerably heavier. For example, Alexa Bliss is 5'1''/102 lb and Mandy Rose is 5'4''/120 lb.
But it's when you start comparing her to taller women that her true physical stature comes into play: Becky Lynch and Bayley are both 5'6'', a full three inches taller than Asuka, but both weigh less (135 lb and 119 lb respectively). Even Charlotte Flair, who is a massive seven inches taller, only outweighs Asuka by around six pounds. It's no wonder Asuka was presented as such a dangerous competitor in her first few years in NXT/WWE.
1 HEAVIER THAN THEY SEEM: DANIEL BRYAN - 210 lb
Daniel Bryan's recent heel run has been incredible, especially when you consider that he had all the goodwill in the world from fans after miraculously coming out of retirement. He's somehow managed to get those same fans to boo him, which is a feat in and of itself. Bryan has always been an underdog in his career, regularly being the smaller superstar in most of his matches.
However, at 5'10''/210 lb, he compares favorably to other superstars who are taller than him. For instance, Seth Rollins is three inches taller but only outweighs Bryan by seven pounds and CM Punk is four inches taller but only outweighs Bryan by eight pounds. Bryan packs a lot of muscle in his frame.