Former WWE Preliminary Wrestler Mike Bell Passes Away

RIP Mike ‘Mad Dog’ Bell

Mike Bell, on the left

“Mad Dog” Mike Bell, a Northeastern independent wrestler best known for his enhancement work in WWE and a regular performer during the latter end of ECW’s run, passed away Sunday afternoon. He was 37 years old.Bell was heavily featured in the recently released documentary film Bigger, Stronger, Faster. The film, produced by his brother Chris, was a study of anabolic steroids in both sports and the Bell family itself, where two of Chris’ brothers (Mike and Mark) use them to further their own careers in professional wrestling (Mike) and bodybuilding (Mark).

At the moment, there is no known cause of death, although in the documentary, he had previous health issues that were noted. When the film started getting reviewed, it was reported in the national media that Bell had previously attempted suicide.

Bell broke into the wrestling business in the early 1990s, and despite all the years he worked in wrestling, he’s probably best remembered by fans for an incident that took place in May 2001 before a Raw television taping. In a match in which he was scheduled to job to former WWE star Perry Saturn, Bell botched an arm drag, dropping Saturn on his head. Saturn appeared to become enraged and legitimately attacked Bell. Saturn threw Bell out of the ring with reckless abandon, then stiffly smacked his head into the metal steps outside the ring. Saturn ended up with a lot of heat over the incident at the time and it was rumored that Saturn’s gimmick involving a love affair with a mop was punishment for the attack.

WWE used Bell in his enhancement role as late as 2003, but was never signed to a contract by the company.

Here is the video of Mike Bell taking on Saturn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JP085eYK4Nw