9 June 2022
Daniel Severn, nicknamed “The Beast,” is a retired mixed martial arts fighter, with a background in both amateur and professional wrestling also. He is most well-known for his success in the Ultimate Fighting Championship where he became the only person to ever become a Triple Crown champion.
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Competition Beyond Retirement
Although Severn retired back in 2013, over recent years we were set to match up against MMA fighter Ken Shamrock. The fight didn’t end up progressing as Shamrock claimed to become injured from a previous fight, and failed a blood test for the banned use of illegal substances shortly after. Tank Abbot was to replace Shamrock. However, after he failed a physical, the fight was abandoned completely. “The Beast” later placed doubts on Shamrock’s injury claims and still has hopes of one day returning to fight in a fight at some point down the line.
Although Severn retired from MMA in 2013, he continued wrestling for a few more years. He stood to wrestle against Hannibal in the Great North Wrestling Canadian Championship in 2015. Severn lost his match as it was played on Great North Wrestling (GNW).
A promotional contract with AIW
The next year, he signed a promotional contract with AIW. He was asked to fight in the JT Lightning Invitational Tournament 2016, where he progressed after winning against Colin Delaney. However, he was beaten and put out of the tournament at the semi-final stage in a four-way match-up against Raymond Rowe, Tracey Williams, and Tim Donst. Rowe came out on top.
Added to the Wrestling Hall of Fame
“The Beast” was added to the War Wrestling Hall of Fame on 4 February 2017 in Lima Ohio. In May that year, Severn took part in the Gladiators Championship Wrestling and finished off Brent Myers with his Beast Choker hold. The next month, on June the 3rd, Severn made a comeback to the Price of Glory Wrestling where he had beaten Franc Isaac Anderson. He had previously trained Anderson in helping him make his way into his professional wrestling career.
Taking part in the Game Changer Wrestling Bloodsport event
On Twitter, Josh Barnett posted to say that Severn would be taking part in the Game Changer Wrestling Bloodsport event. Severn was set to match up against Frank Mir, the UFC Heavyweight Champion in Mir’s professional debut match. Mir was 39 at the time, while Severn was 60 years old. Mir had some success in the few years before the fight, winning by knockout against Antonio Silva and Todd Duffee. However, Severn outweighed Mir times over in experience. The match took place on 4 April 2019.
The next month, on 5 April 2019, Severn arrived at the Major League Wrestling competition at the second Battle Riot they had held. He was beaten by Minoru Tanaka in the titular match where he too place as number two. This is the last wrestling match that Severn has had.
Acting Career
Even before he retired from fighting, Severn had acted in plenty of movies and TV shows throughout the years. After his retirement, he went on to act in the comedy and horror picture College Friday Night, where he played the role of a policeman.
In 2016, he acted as a referee in the movie Beyond the Game. This action picture’s storyline was about competitors of a TV show who have to fight for their lives. Later in the same year, Severn played Rich Chandler in the sport, action, and romance movie The Fight Within. The movie was based on the life of another MMA fighter, Logan Chandler, and was directed by the famous Michael William Gordon.
Personal Life
Today, Severn owns a mixed martial arts camp, which is based in Michigan where he’s from. He has four brothers who all used to be wrestlers too, fighting back in their high school and college days. Severn son, called David, is currently a professional wrestler and is a champion, having a one-two state championship in their homeland of Michigan. Altogether, Severn has five sons in total.
“The Beast” has brought out an autobiography that was titled The Realest Guy in the Room: The Life and Times of Dan Severn. It was published a few years back in 2016 and was co-written with Ian Douglass. His ex-manager during his time in the WFF wrestling scene, Jim Cornette, had written the foreword for the book.