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Over the years, WWE has evolved to be the apex of sports entertainment. In their attempt to garner audiences from different sports, WWE has often involved eminent personalities in the weekly programmings or pay-per-views.
Actors, singers, mixed martial artists, boxers and several other notable performers have appeared in WWE since its inception. Be it the current President of the United States, Donald Trump, or reputed rapper, Machine Gun Kelly, or Pitbull, or someone like Arnold Schwarzenegger, many prominent figures have been associated with the promotion some way or the other.
While some of them have just appeared for one or two skits in WWE, others got into a physical confrontation with the Superstars involved which have resulted in heavy box-office matchups as well.
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In this regard, we look back at some of the renowned boxers who have made their presence felt in the squared circle throughout the years.
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Honorable mention: James Douglas
As we promised to mention the top 5 boxers only, James "Buster" Douglas couldn't take up a spot in the list. However, his involvement with WWE deserves a mention.
In February 1990, Hulk Hogan was slated to collide against Randy Savage for the WWE World Championship with Mike Tyson serving as the special guest referee. Tyson lost the Heavyweight Boxing Championship to James Douglas and as a result, canceled several scheduled appearances. WWE then contacted Douglas to be the new match official, to which he readily agreed.
At The Main Event III, Hogan successfully retained over Randy Savage and post-match, it was Buster Douglas who knocked out the Macho Man for getting into his face. That was the only occasion James Douglas would appear for WWE.
Interestingly enough, Buster would go on to lose the Heavyweight Boxing Championship to the first pick in this list, Evander Holyfield.
#5 Evander Holyfield
Evander Holyfield's career as a professional boxer spanned over two decades, during which he became the only fighter in history to win the undisputed championship in cruiserweight as well as in the heavyweight division. Holyfield also has an Olympic bronze medal to his list of accomplishments. However, his most notable matches have to be the two fights against the Iron Mike Tyson, who he defeated on both occasions.
In 2007, Holyfield showed up at an edition of WWE Saturday Night's Main Event and took on the former ECW World Champion Matt Hardy in a boxing match. Before his fight with Hardy, The Real Deal knocked out MVP to showcase the WWE Universe what he was capable of doing inside the ring.
Evander Holyfield would later appear backstage on SmackDown last year where he talked about his love for pro-wrestling and WWE. You can check the interview here:
#4 Butterbean
Eric Esch, professionally known as Butterbean, was a prominent figure in the combat sports circle in the 90s. He had multiple appearances in WWE during that time and performed at the grandest stage of sports entertainment, WrestleMania, as well.
The heavyweight boxer was first seen in WWE at the D-Generation X: In Your House event, where he had a boxing encounter with Marc Mero. His fight with the former Golden Gloves champion was scripted but the next time he appeared, he worked a proper boxing match inside the WWE ring.
At WrestleMania XV, Butterbean fought the WWE Brawl for All Champion Bart Gunn in a legit shoot fight and knocked him out within 34 seconds. Although Esch hasn't worked with WWE since then, he has appeared in numerous independent wrestling shows over the years.
#3 Tyson Fury
One of the best active heavyweight boxers of this era, Tyson Fury, recently made it to the headlines for his association with WWE. During the Friday Night SmackDown premiere on FOX, former RAW Tag Team Champion Braun Strowman got into an altercation with the multi-time heavyweight boxing champion. Although it had appeared to be a friendly taunt at first, the scenario changed when Strowman threw Dolph Ziggler on Tyson Fury, who was seated ringside.
This week on RAW, Fury demanded an apology from the Monster Among Men for his actions but things took an ugly turn and the two indulged into a brawl. The situation was so tense that the WWE locker room had to intervene. We will have to wait to figure out what happens next in this saga featuring the Monster and the Gypsy King.
And in case you are wondering how dangerous Tyson Fury can be, just let this be known that he has been in 30 boxing matches in his career and yet to be defeated.
#2 Mike Tyson
Whoever followed WWE during the days of Attitude Era, need not be reminded of the effect Mike Tyson had in the contemporary storylines. Known as The Baddest Man on the Planet, Mike Tyson was one of those few boxers who regained the heavyweight championship after losing it and at the peak of his career, he got directly involved in the WWE World Championship picture.
It was around the corner of WrestleMania XIV, that Mike Tyson started appearing on WWE as a follower of D-Generation X. This led to him being the special outside enforcer for Shawn Michaels' WWE World Championship defense against Stone Cold at the mega event. Towards the end of the match, Tyson shocked the WWE Universe by turning on HBK and aiding Steve Austin to win the World Title, thereby ushering in the Attitude Era.
Post-match, Mike Tyson knocked out Shawn Michaels and it resulted in one of the loudest pops in WrestleMania history.
#1 Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Perhaps the most notable boxer of all time, Floyd Mayweather Jr. also had a brief tenure in WWE. Just like Butterbean, the Money also had a match at WWE's biggest stage, WrestleMania. Mayweather made his first WWE appearance at No Way Out in 2008 by confronting the Big Show. Since then, the two crossed paths on several occasions and it eventually resulted in a match at WrestleMania XXIV.
Floyd Mayweather Jr. fought Big Show in a No Disqualification match at the grandest stage of sports entertainment and emerged victorious within 12 minutes. Reportedly, Mayweather made $20 million for this one match at WWE. His animosity with the giant stretched till 2009 as the Pretty Boy aided MVP and Mark Henry to win a match against Big Show and Chris Jericho.
A decade has passed since his WWE stint, but Mayweather is still undefeated as a professional boxer, with 50 wins shining in his accolade.
