5 WWE Superstars who have saved lives outside the ring

Over the past few years, some WWE Superstars have saved people's lives by actually putting their own on the line.

Several stars have adopted superhero personas in Vince McMahon's company. Others played the same in movies and TV series. Meanwhile, a few have been real-life superheroes, as they managed to save lives outside the ring.

Most of these wrestlers risked their lives to get others out of harm's way. While one stormed into a fire to save his mother's life, another jumped into the ocean to save a young boy from drowning.

Here are five WWE Superstars who have saved lives outside the ring.

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#5. Former WWE Superstar Chris Masters

Chris Masters joined WWE in 2003 and spent four years in the company before leaving in 2007. After competing for two years on the independent circuit, he returned to Vince McMahon's company in 2009. However, he left again in 2011.

Two years after his departure, The Masterpiece went through a frightening experience. On March 20, 2013, Masters had to rush to his mother's home after his uncle called him and told him that a neighbor had barricaded himself inside her house. The neighbor threatened to set the house on fire if anyone tried to enter.

Although the 39-year-old first tried to talk sense into the guy, he did not give up his plan. Hence, Masters called the police. As the cops arrived and broke the house's door, the neighbor set the apartment on fire.

In an interview with The Hannibal TV, the former WWE Superstar disclosed how he got his mother out of the burning house and saved her life.

"The fire starts catching real quick and smoke comes burrowing out the door so all the officers start backing up because they can't proceed,(...) then I come around to the other side and I remember she is in her bedroom which is right next to the front door where the smoke was coming out (...) the only problem is there was a big tree blocking her windows (...) what I did is I grabbed like kind of wristlocked the tree and like tackled it down to the ground which cleared the windows. There were two windows. They broke the first one, no sign of her. Then they break the second one, and then boom she pops up and I'm super like, you know what I mean, I just get right up I pull her out of the window and I carry her to safety and they eventually end up apprehending him," he said. [7:40-8:56]

Masters is currently an active competitor in the National Wrestling Alliance. He is now the NWA National Heavyweight Champion.

#4. Former WWE Superstar Davey Boy Smith Jr.

Davey Boy Smith Jr. (AKA Harry Smith) had two runs in WWE. His first run started in 2006 and lasted for five years, during which time he won the World Tag Team Championships and the WWE Tag Team Titles alongside Tyson Kidd. However, he left the company in 2011.

In 2017, wrestling helped the former superstar save a woman's life. Smith Jr. was driving up 16th Avenue past Bowness road in Calgary when he saw a woman hanging off a bridge. The 36-year-old then stopped, jumped the barricade and started talking her out of committing suicide.

"She was crying and an emotional mess and threatening to jump if I got closer. With people on the ground waving her not to jump I decided to grab a hold of her and not take any chances. She started to slide and want to go more as I grabbed a hold her. Luckily my years of grappling and self defense I knew how to grab her HARD and how to pull her up from hanging off and jumping (...) When I yanked her off the bridge finally, I established the mount position as you do in Grappling and did not let her budge," he wrote in a Facebook post.

Although the woman told the former WWE Superstar that she had a gun, he did not let her go until the police arrived. Later in his Facebook post, Smith Jr. stated that he was glad to save a life.

"I'm glad I was at service to help somebody today and my years of grappling came into play. I really believe if I wasn't there and been able to grab her she would have jumped. It would have taken a few people at least to pull her off," he added.

The British Bulldog's son returned to Vince McMahon's company in July 2021. Nevertheless, the company released him from his contract four months later.

#3. Former WWE Superstar Shad Gaspard

Shad Gaspard joined WWE after participating in the second season of Tough Enough. In October 2006, he made his main roster debut alongside JTG as Cryme Tyme. However, their run ended a year later as they left the company in 2007.

Gaspard and his Cryme Tyme partner returned to Vince McMahon's company in 2008. Two years later, WWE let Gaspard go again. After leaving the company, the former Tough Enough contestant competed on the independent circuit until 2020.

In May 2020, Gaspard and his 10-year-old son, Aryeh, got caught in a strong riptide at Venice Beach, Los Angeles. Although the guards succeeded in rescuing Aryeh, they could not save his father.

In an interview with NBC News, the Los Angeles Fire Department's lifeguard chief, Ken Haskett, revealed that Gaspard's last words to the lifeguard were, "Save my son."

He then pushed his son to the lifeguard before getting pushed back down under a wave. A few days later, the authorities confirmed Gaspard's death.

In an Instagram post, Gaspard's wife, Siliana Gaspard, dubbed him a "real-life hero."

"Shad was our whole world and we were his. There are not enough words to describe what he means to all of us. He was our heart, our soul, our protector, our warrior. He was a bright force of nature, who brought joy to many through his joyous and gracious nature (...) We’d like to once again thank the lifeguards, coast guard, divers, fire and police departments for their efforts. Shad was and will always be our real-life superhero," she wrote.

Gaspard is indeed a real-life hero. While his last heroic act rescued his son's life, he also saved the lives of others a few years earlier when he broke up an armed robbery and pinned the suspect to the floor until the cops arrived.

#2. Former WWE European Champion Al Snow

Al Snow kicked off his wrestling career in the early 1980s. Throughout the past 40 years, the 58-year-old competed in several promotions, including ECW, WWE, and IMPACT Wrestling. Inside the ring, many fans considered the former European Champion a hero.

Outside the squared circle, Al Snow is also a hero. Last September, the former WWE Superstar jumped into the ocean and rescued a boy from drowning at Santa Rosa Beach in Destin, Florida, after he got caught in a riptide.

In an interview with TMZ, the former Hardcore Champion revealed more details about the incident.

"I knew she [the lifeguard] wasn’t going to make it in time. I made it, thank God. And I caught him just by the arm just as a wave started to pull him even further out. If I hadn’t have grabbed him, I think he’d have probably went out to sea. That would have been it. I was able to stay up and hand him off to the lifeguard and I made my way back across to my friend and we went up on the beach and I felt like I was about to collapse. I was exhausted," he said.

Al Snow has not competed inside the ring since January 2020. The ECW legend currently operates Ohio Valley Wrestling and owns a wrestling academy.

#1. Former WWE Champion Randy Orton

Randy Orton is one of the most popular superstars on the WWE roster. He is also a hero to many young wrestling fans.

During WWE's UK Tour last November, The Viper saved the life of one of his young fans during a live event. A video went viral showing Orton walking to the ring in Birmingham, England, when fans crowded and pushed up to the barricade to greet him.

When the former RAW Tag Team Champion noticed a child pressed against the barrier, he quickly threw his title to the ground and rushed to the child's rescue. He instructed the fans to move back and wrapped his arms around the kid to save him from getting squashed.

After people backed off, The Apex Predator checked on the child and spoke to fans around him before carrying on to the ring. As the video circulated on social media, many fans praised Orton for saving the child's life.

Orton is currently active on Monday Night RAW. Last month, The Viper and his RK-Bro partner, Riddle, lost their RAW Tag Team Championships to The Alpha Academy. T

he Apex Predictor also participated in the 2022 Royal Rumble match. He entered at number 29 and lasted for nearly two and a half minutes before getting eliminated by Brock Lesnar.