WWE: Mark Henry Says He’s Retiring After Next Year’s WrestleMania
WWE Superstar Mark Henry has stated that his current contract with WWE comes to an end after next year’s WrestleMania in Texas. He is insisting that once his contract expires next year, he will indeed retire according to Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer.
According to Henry, he was very serious about retiring in 2013. By this time he had already been given arguably the biggest push of his career with the “Hall of Pain” gimmick and had a two month reign as World Heavyweight Champion. He even had a brief run against CM Punk, competing for the WWE Championship. However, when his contract was about to expire in 2013 the WWE talked him into signing one final three year extension, which Henry agreed to.
Since his contract extension in 2013, Henry partook in a few Elimination Chamber matches for titles such as the World Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championships. He also had a WWE Championship match against John Cena at the Money in the Bank PPV in 2013. However, he would lose in all these matches, since he reached a point in his career where he felt he should be putting guys over and making them look strong.
Along with The Undertaker, Triple H, and Kane, Mark Henry has had the longest consecutive tenure of any wrestler on the roster. He made his debut on the March 11th episode of Monday Night Raw in 1996 and by the time WrestleMania 32 rolls around, he will officially be with the company for 20 years. Henry is a former European Champion (1999), ECW Champion (2008) and World Heavyweight Champion (2011).
Mark’s reaction:
Good for Mark Henry. He’s put in many years of hard work with the WWE, years that have taken a major toll on his body. Henry turned 44 years of age this past summer, so for a man of his size that has been around for 20 years, now seems like the right time.
He hasn’t been involved in anything of much significance over the last two years so I don’t think his absence will be a dramatic loss for the company. In regards to the WWE Hall of Fame, I definitely think he’ll be inducted some day. If Koko B. Ware and Rikishi are WWE Hall of Famers, then so is Mark Henry. Koko and Rikishi are usually the litmus test on which I judge whether someone should get into WWE’s Hall of Fame or not.
My favorite Mark Henry run would definitely have to be the “Hall of Pain” push he was given in 2011. He’s someone who’s legitimately one of the toughest guys in the company. He was booked as such and it was believable. I’ll probably miss hearing his “Somebody Gonna Get Their Ass Kicked” theme song the most. Extremely catchy.
Were you a fan of Mark Henry and his work? Do you have a favorite Mark Henry moment or match? Do you think he’ll eventually be inducted into WWE’s Hall of Fame? Let us know your thoughts in comment section below.
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