The announcement that Mark Henry would be inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame’s Class Of 2018 was befitting of the man himself; understated, quiet and resonant.
The news that the World’s Strongest Man would be joining some of the industry’s greatest at the Induction Ceremony on April 6 came via an interview with the former World Heavyweight Champion in the latest issue of WWE’s WrestleMania magazine.
Titled ‘From Hall Of Pain To Hall Of Fame’, the interview chronicled Henry’s storied career before quietly slipping in the news that the former Olympian and long-time powerlifting world record holder would take his place on this year’s stage alongside the Dudley Boyz, Ivory, Goldberg, Jeff Jarrett and others.
Even dedicated followers of WWE might be forgiven for doing a double take at realising that Henry made his on-screen debut for the company all the way back in 1996; press slamming Jerry Lawler on the March 11 broadcast of Monday Night RAW after some typically vicious goading from The King.
For a little perspective, Hogan had yet to kickstart the new world order of professional wrestling, brother. Scott Hall and Kevin Nash had yet to even leave the WWF. Bret Hart was 20 days away from dropping the WWF Championship to Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 12 in a 60-minute Iron Man match that many still cite as one of the best of all time.
Indeed, Henry has seen and done it all in professional wrestling, and his imminent induction into the WWE Hall Of Fame is not only deserved, but a necessary spotlight on one of the industry’s denizens.
Born in Silsbee, Texas, in 1971, Henry made his name prior to his arrival in wrestling in powerlifting, weightlifting and strongman competitions; setting a staggering number of world records in every category he competed in, many of which remain unbroken today.
By the tender age of 24, a rare consensus had been reached by those in the know: Henry was undoubtedly the world’s strongest man. His total lift for all five categories he competed in to earn selection for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics was the largest in history and has yet to be bettered 22 years on.
Signing Henry was quite the scoop for Vince McMahon. After all, the Texan was one of the hottest properties in all of sport. His growing profile and competitive history seemed a cast-iron guarantee of a lucrative career in wrestling. McMahon was so sure of Henry’s marketability that he granted him a 20-year contract with a high salary.
There is, of course, no such thing as a sure bet; not even in the massaged reality of wrestling. Henry’s WWE tenure, punctuated by memorable and consistent success, was not always perfect. The two decade deal was to be both Henry’s blessing and curse during his time with the company.
His first forays into WWF television after press slamming Lawler were promising, pinning him as a regular face on the Attitude Era dartboard. His run with the Nation Of Domination culminated in a victory over The Rock at Judgement Day: In Your House in 1998.
After a brief spell as European Champion – the title gifted to him by Jeff Jarrett – Henry fell into his most famous and controversial gimmick: Sexual Chocolate.
Henry’s stint as the lovable, strong lothario endeared him to the late-90s WWF audience who demanded a little more bang for their buck, and they certainly got it with Sexual Chocolate.
Henry was certainly made to jump through hoops during this period. Placed in storylines that veered from ridiculous to controversial, Henry found himself ‘tricked’ by a transvestite; a trope that is as outdated as it is unfair and untrue. Latterly, Henry found himself engaged in an on-screen tryst with game old Mae Young.
Do you remember how that angle climaxed? Here’s a reminder: Mae Young gave birth to a hand. A rubber hand. On television. God damn you, Russo. God damn you to HELL.
At the time, the dirtsheets and growing traffic online (aka The Good Old Days) said that Henry was being waltzed into bad gimmicks and angles as a means of getting him to leave WWE of his own volition. That 20-year contract was already starting to look like a bad return for the company, with Henry sluggish in the ring and struggling to maintain the strength and physique that had got him there in the first place.
The writing seemed to be on the wall when Henry was busted down to OVW through 2000 and 2001 – a fate suffered by Big Show among others – for further training and an emphasis of regaining fitness.
Where most would have buckled under the pressure, signed off from wrestling and scurried away to lick their wounds, Henry knuckled down and proved himself. Here, the characteristics that have carried him through twenty years at the top table of wrestling came to the fore: quiet perseverance, intelligence, forward thinking and a determination to succeed.
It’s no accident that since that low point, Henry has been brought back to WWE television time and again to serve a purpose and do a job. When the time comes for a legitimate tough man, a monster that needs to dominate so as to finally be slain by the heroic babyface, a man like Henry was the perfect fit.
Over the course of a decade Henry was called upon to feud with the likes of Batista for the big gold belt, for a Casket Match with the Undertaker at WrestleMania 24 and to hold the ECW Championship to plug the gap at the top of WWE’s former third brand.
His run at the top in 2011, when he secured the World Heavyweight Championship as part of his Hall Of Pain gimmick, saw him carve through the SmackDown roster to cement his legacy as one of the industry’s understated greats.
Over two decades, Mark Henry proved to be one of WWE’s most reliable, consistent and enduring performers; putting up with years of questionable gimmicks and directionless booking to emerge at the other side looking like a true champion.
Outside of the ring, Henry has continued his work with WWE in an ambassadorial role, allowing his moral conscience to inform his work. Most recently, he spoke out against the possibility of Hulk Hogan returning to WWE in the aftermath of the racial controversy that saw the company wash their hands of him in the first place.
Among a divisive Hall Of Fame Class Of 2018, Henry stands head and shoulders above the rest as the most deserving inductee of this year’s crop. His career, attitude and history should give hope to people of all stripes. The Hall Of Pain never felt so good.
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