The wrestler who portrayed Muhammad Hassan for WWE stepped back into a wrestling ring for the first time in eight years recently, and he made the most of the moment by pummeling independent wrestling star Krule.
Hassan (real name Marc Copani) will always be most remembered for his central role in one of WWE’s most controversial angles. In July 2005, Hassan was receiving a massive push and placed in a feud with The Undertaker. During an episode of SmackDown, masked men joined Hassan in attacking Taker.
WWE was hit with backlash when the taped segment aired as it followed bombings in London carried out by Islamic terrorists. In addition to the bombers, 52 people were killed and almost 800 people were injured in the coordinated attacks.
By September 2005, Copani was released from WWE, and he announced his retirement. However, he made a comeback to the independent circuit 13 years later in 2018.
In 2019, Copani took a position as a principal at a junior high school in central New York. During an interview with Syracuse.com, Copani said he was done with wrestling for good so he could fully concentrate on his new career.
He also spoke about how hard his release from WWE hit him.
“I was heartbroken,” Copani told Syrcacuse.com. “I put everything I had into the WWE and had it all taken away from me. I just withdrew from wrestling all together.”
The 2005 Muhammad Hassan controversy was recently put back into public consciousness when Dark Side of the Ring dedicated an episode to the angle last year, but whatever the reason, it seems as though Copani has gotten the wrestling bug again…at least a little bit.
Footage circulating on social media shows Copani, 44, entering a ring at an indie event to confront former MLW World Heavyweight Champion Krule (who you may recall from his “stabbing” at a Chicago-area indie earlier this year).
Copani, wearing a Shad Gaspard t-shirt, fends off Krule after the masked strongman puts him in a chokehold. The former Hassan then lands a few punches on Krule before taking him out with a Flatliner as the crowd cheers.
As the X (Twitter) account FadeAwayMedia wrote of Copani/Hassan: “HE DID NOT MISS A STEP.”
What do you think, Cagesiders? Would you like to see Copani mount a full-time return to wrestling? Let us know in the comments.
