6 great matches featuring pro wrestling stars who passed on in 2018

Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart, with partner Bret Hitman Hart.

#6 Big Van Vader

Real Name: Leon Allen White

Country of Origin: California, USA

Trained by: Brad Rheingans

Vader's power, quickness, and agility earned him a reputation in high school football, so much so that over forty different universities tried to recruit him!

He would eventually go pro, joining the NFL and playing for the Los Angeles Rams as a center until an unfortunate patella injury ended his career. Undaunted, White would continue to train for a return to football when he was scouted by a pro wrestling promoter.

White joined Verne Gagne's AWA, where he was a babyface called Baby Bull, then later Bull Power. He quickly rose through the ranks to the point he was given the honor of a title shot against Stan Hansen, a man whose name became synonymous with Vader's because of an incident years later in Japan.

According to Vader, Hansen went off script and struck him with a cowbell before the match started. Vader decided to 'work snug,' meaning many of his punches and blows were real. Hansen, no stranger to working snug, responded in kind, and the result was Vader's eyeball being gouged out.

Instead of stopping the match, Vader popped his eyeball back in and continued the bout. The match, and Vader, became legendary. He was also famous for being the reason pro wrestling was banned from the legendary Sumo Hall after he squashed fan favorite Antonio Inoki, resulting in a riot.

Vader was best known for his strong style, ring shaking powerbombs, and surprising agility for a man who weighed well over four hundred pounds. We remember Vader with his pier six brawl he had against Stan Hansen, the infamous 'eyeball' match.

Vader can be seen explaining the damage done to his eye socket in the video below: