Wounded Iraq vet uses pro wrestling to regain his life after losing leg

Wounded Iraq vet uses pro wrestling to regain his life
Pro wrestling has become the avenue for an Iraq war amputee trying to live out a dream
Apr. 7, 2012
Written by Peter Smith
The Courier-Journal

Hundreds in the crowd chanted his name, pounding the risers with their feet. The stocky, 209-pound Michael Hayes stood in the ring, his trunks and prosthetic left leg sporting a matched set of green and brown camouflage.

Hayes’ rival, Mohamad Ali Vaez, with the chiseled physique of a personal trainer and a dramatic cascade of wavy hair, got the best of Hayes in the early going of their March 3 bout at the Davis Arena in Newburg — a warehouse-turned-staging area for Ohio Valley Wrestling, Louisville’s main venue for professional wrestling, with all its bombast and theatrics.

Vaez launched a rapid set of jabs, trapped Hayes against the ropes, staggered him to the mat with a deafening clang and put him in a headlock. read more here