10 Wrestlers Who Won Awards Outside Of Wrestling

Beyond the usual championships, pro wrestling has lots of awards within its sport that celebrate the achievements of performers. This includes those given annually by establishments like the Cauliflower Alley Club, Pro Wrestling Observer, Tokyo Sports, and Pro Wrestling Illustrated as well as those that don’t matter like the Slammys.

But some wrestlers’ influence and achievements have gone beyond the world of pro wrestling, garnering accolades in areas outside of the sport. Without further ado, let’s take a look at 10 sports entertainers who have actually won things in the separate realms of sports and entertainment.

10 Xavier Woods

The Rock isn’t the only wrestler to be a holder of a Guinness World Record. Outside of wrestling, Xavier Woods hosts a popular YouTube channel dedicated to video games called Up Up Down Down. In 2018, Up Up Down Down was awarded a World Record for Most Subscribed Celebrity Video Games Channel. It’s very specific, but it’s still an award. At the time of the award, the number of subscribers was 1,633,509, but these days it’s over 2.5 million.

9 Mickie James

Mickie James’ “Hardcore Country” period in TNA wasn’t just a gimmick -- she actually, embarked on a career in country music in 2010 and to date has released two albums and nine singles. James being of Native American descent has meant getting special recognition in the annual Native American Music Awards, where she won Song of the Year for her song “Shooting Blanks” AND was put in their Hall of Fame that same year. The following year, she won another Nammy as her song “Left Right Left” won the award for Best Single Recording.

8 Brock Lesnar

The youngest WWE Champion in history -- and a five-timer at that -- Brock Lesnar is one of those stars WWE pushes as a physical phenomenon and often bets on him as a huge draw. But he’s also been a successful athlete outside of wrestling. In his collegiate wrestling days, he was NCAA All American in 1999 and 2000, as well as NCAA Heavyweight Champion in 2000. After leaving WWE, Lesnar debuted in MMA in 2007, and eventually became UFC Heavyweight Champion. In 2008, Sports Illustrated named him the Top Newcomer of the Year in MMA.

7 The Undertaker

For most of his career, The Undertaker has pretty much only been a wrestler, and his appearances acting outside the view of WWE cameras is sporadic. However, his years of service to spooky pro wrestling earned him an Eyegore Award, which is awarded at Universal Studios during Halloween Horror Nights to people who have contributed to the horror genre in one way or another.

Many Eyegore Award winners coincidentally also have related attractions at Halloween Horror Nights, and The Undertaker’s was a haunted maze called "The Undertaker: No Mercy." Hilariously, by the time of the event, Undertaker had already entered his “American Badass” phase.

6 Hulk Hogan

Given that Hulk Hogan was a pop culture icon and the face of professional wrestling throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, one would think that he’s got a closet full of pop culture awards like The Rock and John Cena after him. Strangely, however, Hogan’s only award in that realm was a 1988 Kids’ Choice Award for Favorite Male Athlete. Otherwise, in 2018, he entered the Boys and Girls Club Alumni Hall of Fame. The Hulkster was also made the King of a Mardi Gras parade in 2008.

5 Shayna Baszler

Known for her real-life friendship with Ronda Rousey, former NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler was also a successful MMA fighter. Before stepping away from MMA in 2015, Baszler racked up a 15-11 record, a couple of matches in UFC, and FCF Women's Bantamweight Grand Prix Championship.

But she also studied catch-wrestling under Josh Barnett and took part in the Catch Wrestling Association’s 2016 Frank Gotch World Catch Tournament, where she took home a Gold Medal. She’s also won numerous medals in amateur wrestling.

4 John Cena

The face of WWE in the late 2000s and early 2010s, John Cena is currently in the midst of taking over Hollywood via turns in blockbusters like Bumblebee, The Suicide Squad, and the ninth Fast & Furious film.

So far, Cena hasn’t managed to win many awards outside of wrestling but has been nominated for Teen, People, and Kids’ Choice Awards for his various onscreen gigs. He did, however, win a CinemaCon Award for Action Star of the Year in 2017.

3 Ronda Rousey

Ask anyone what Ronda Rousey is known for outside of wrestling, and they’ll tell you she was a highly successful MMA fighter, having captured the UFC and Strikeforce Women’s Bantamweight Championships as well as being a UFC Hall of Famer.

But before she entered mixed martial arts, Rousey was ridiculously accomplished in judo, having won loads of medals competing throughout the 2000s. In 2004 and 2008, she competed in the Summer Olympics, the latter of which earned her a Bronze Medal.

2 The Rock

More than any other wrestler -- even Hulk Hogan and John Cena -- The Rock is probably the most successful wrestler outside of the sport. One of his earliest accolades happened pre-wrestling, he and the Miami Hurricanes won the NCAA National Championship in 1991. But as Dwayne Johnson started the transition into movies, he captured an MTV Generation Award, several Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards, an NAACP Image Award, AND was People’s Sexiest Man Alive in 2016.

On top of all that, Rocky also has three Guinness World Records, including Most Selfies Taken in Three Minutes (105), Most Cereal Boxes Toppled in a Domino Fashion (3006), and the World's Largest Seven-Layer Dip (540 pounds).

1 David Arquette

The years 1996-2002 really were the David Arquette renaissance. Riding the high of starring in the first three Scream films, Arquette was in a bunch of movies like Eight Legged Freaks, Never Been Kissed, and, of course, Ready To Rumble, which led to his winning the WCW World Title in 2000. But the actor-turned-wrestler also won several awards during these years, including three Blockbuster Entertainment Awards and a Teen Choice Award for his onscreen chemistry with Courtney Cox in Scream 3. On top of that, he ALSO won an Eyegore Award.

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