I was WWE’s most controversial wrestler of all time facing Hulk Hogan & The Undertaker – but now I’ve got a normal job

A WWE wrestler with a glittering future ahead of him who was sacked in his prime now has a normal job.

Muhammad Hassan was one of if not the most controversial stars of all time to feature in the world’s biggest wrestling firm.

WWEMuhammad Hassan was one of the most controversial WWE stars of all time[/caption]

Hassan – real name Marc Copani – was destined to win the World Heavyweight Championship.

He shared the ring with legends such as Hulk Hogan, The Undertaker and John Cena.

But at his peak the outlandish world of wrestling collided with a horrific real world tragedy which cost him his big chance.

Copani vanished from WWE as quickly as he had appeared – and soon after quit the business all together.

He then took up a normal job, being a teacher, and looks back on his time in WWE with a bittersweet attitute.

“I put everything I had into the WWE, and had it all taken away from me,” he told  Syracuse.com in 2019.

“I just withdrew from wrestling all together,”

Marc was just 22-years-old when he started training to be a wrestler – and enjoyed a meteoric rise.

Originally wrestling under the name Mark Magnus when he made his debut shortly after, it wasn’t long before WWE came calling for him.

Marc was approached with the opportunity to wrestle as “Muhammad Hassan” – a Muslim grappler tired of the prejudices and stereotypes in America.

He jumped at the chance – and in late 2004 the WWE started to build his new character with promos on TV.

He made a splash quickly, defeating legendary wrestler Jerry “The King” Lawler in his debut match.

Hassan was portrayed as a villain who would often cheat and rely on his manager, Khosrow Daivari, to win matches.

Fans quickly started to hate him – and quickly moved up to become one of the WWE’s top bad guys.

He even had a showdown with Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania 21.

His rise continued throughout the spring and summer of 2005 – and WWE were reportedly so keen on him, they wanted him to win the world title at SummerSlam from Batista.

It would have been one of the fastest ever runs from debut to the top belt in the history of WWE.

But then on the July 4 edition of Smackdown! he was involved in a segment that would be his end.

Hassan was involved in a match in which he summoned masked men in camo trousers and black shirts to attack The Undertaker.

They used piano wire and clubs to take him out – and while not explicitly said the overtone was they were terrorists.

While the angle already could be seen as being in poor taste – the show occured three days before the 7/7 bombings in London – which killed 52 innocent people.

And with that Hassan was done.

TV network UPN demanded WWE taken him off the show, and the character was essentially killed off by The Undertaker at the Great American Bash.

Marc’s rise to the top of the WWE was over – and it wasn’t long after that he quit the business.

Reflecting on his character in 2020, Marc told Chris Van Vilet he said it was pushed to far.

“I think it was insensitive,” he said.

And when speaking in 2019, he revealed he had become uncomfortable with the Hassan gimmick and said it had crossed the line.

Marc said: “Hassan became too controversial for wrestling.”

He went on: “It was a blessing in disguise, because today I love being a principal.”

Marc is now 43-years-old and is still working in education – he doesn’t plan of ever returning wrestling despite two charity events in 2018.

Marc Copani has come along since his days as ‘Muhammad Hassan’Twitter