10 Wrestling Geniuses you probably didn't know about
I’m sure by now that you’ve heard of the stereotype of the professional wrestler: that of a dumb, muscle-brained ignoramus that only knows how to use their physical power and little-to-nothing about actual intellect. This stereotype tends to go hand-in-hand with that of the prototypical wrestling fan: an uneducated man-child that cannot distinguish between reality and illusion.
What may surprise many of those critics out there is that wrestling fans can actually be as intelligent as everyone else in society who might not be a fan of sports entertainment. But what might surprise those same people even more is that there are some people within the actual wrestling industry itself that are geniuses in one respect or another.
That’s what this list will chronicle: ten intelligent men in the wrestling business that managed to make so much out of so little. These men used their understanding of various disciplines (sports, theatre, creativity, marketing, psychology, natural instincts, etc.) and managed to achieve considerable success in doing so.
Each one of these individuals is proof that wrestlers are a lot smarter than what the negative stereotypes that still circulate about would have you believe.
#10 Raven
Raven is one of the most iconic names in the world of hardcore wrestling. His grunge-inspired look and started cutting unusual promos when in ECW. Instead of cutting racy, straightforward promos talking about how he was going to beat up his opponents, Raven would cut philosophical and esoteric promos.
These promos made him more of a captivating character, and left many people wondering where these promo subjects came from. It turns out that these things came from Raven’s own mind, as he is much smarter than the average wrestler.
If IQ tests are to be taken seriously, then Raven is one of the smartest wrestlers in the world, boasting an IQ of 143. Raven is also a member of Mensa International, which is a society open to people that score in the 98th percentile on the standardized IQ tests.
One must be extremely intelligent to be a member of such an elite cadre of high-intelligence persons. Sadly, this natural intelligence of Raven’s didn’t necessarily translate into much success while he wrestled for WWE.