I’m a WWE legend involved in brutal matches with The Undertaker & Brock Lesnar – but now I’ve got a normal job

A WWE legend who was involved in some of the most brutal matches in history now works a normal job.

Spike Dudley, 52, was famous for the extreme punishment he would take in the ring – often from his storyline brothers Bubba Ray and D-Von.

WWESpike Dudley was a member of the Dudley Boyz tag team with Bubba Ray and D-Von[/caption]

GettySpike was a popular character in the WWE known for his crazy stunts[/caption]

Real name Matt Hyson, the 5ft 8in, 187lb grappler was a popular staple of wrestling in the late 90s and the 00s – brawling in ECW and WWE.

He won the WWE Tag Team Championship, the WWE European Championship, and the WWE Cruiserweight Championship and was a seven-time holder of the WWE Hardcore Championship.

Often a fan favourite, his small size would see him being brutalised by all manner of opponents as he was thrown out of the ring, smashed through tables, and repeatedly slammed.

He had high-profile encounters with Brock Lesnar, The Undertaker, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and Kane.

And he was involved in legendary matches with his “brothers” The Dudley Boyz against The Hardy Boyz and Edge & Christian.

YouTube is awash with compilations of his “most hardcore moments” featuring him getting battered and thrown to the ground.

But while Spike is fondly remembered by wrestling fans the world over – he hung up his boots for the last time in 2015.

The wrestling star now works a day-to-day job as a financial adviser and focuses on being a dad to his two kids with his wife Vikki.

“I work with a financial investment company, and my role is when people die – their assets and their accounts have to get transitioned” he told Chris Van Vilet in 2020.

“So my job is getting the assets to where they have to go. It fits my personality, I find it very fulfilling.”

Hyson explained he trained in finance after retiring from wrestling – starting out with a life insurance firm and getting his license.

Famous moments from his career often saw him on the receiving end of violence – such as when The Undertaker beat him bloody with a bin lid.

And then there was when Brock Lesnar repeatedly power bombed him until he was limp.

Other moments included when WWE legend Lita cracked him over the end with a chair at WrestleMania 17, and when La Resistance slammed him out of the ring to the floor.

Spike made his last appearance in WWE in 2005 at the notorious ECW One Night Stand event, helping the Dudleys beat The Sandman and Tommy Dreamer.

He then spent around 10 years on the independent circuit and grappling for smaller companies before finally retiring and wrestling his last match in December 2015.

Spike was originally a teaching assistant before going into wrestling in 1993.

He made his debut in ECW as “Little” Spike Dudley – joining the wider stable of The Dudley Family in 1996.

His in-ring person was the “runt” of the family – often being on the receiving end of vicious beatings and whacks with weapons.

He followed his “brothers” to WWE in 2001 and enjoyed the most successful period of his career – picking up numerous titles.

And in 2004 he was ranked 51 in the top 500 wrestlers in the world by Pro Wrestling Illustrated.

Despite trading being hit in the head with a steel chair for the world of finances, Hyson still thinks he uses some of what he learned in the wrestling world.

“Every job has a lot of similarities, whether it’s corporate working in a suit, working a McDonald’s, or whether you are a wrestler,” he said.

“There is a hierarchy, there is a food chain, you have to learn how to play the game.”

Hyson explained he feels like he had a “great career” – but admits “you can’t do it forever and there is more to life”.

He said towards the end of his career he felt like he was going down a “rabbit hole” – and credits his wife with convincing him to retire.

Matt Hyson has now been retired from wrestling for nearly 10 years