
Episode #217
The Warlord - Power, Pain & The Life Behind the Muscle
WWE legend The Warlord joins The Edlow Podcast for an unforgettable conversation about professional wrestling, the Powers of Pain, missed opportunities, friendship, faith, family, injuries and the life behind one of wrestling’s most imposing physiques. The Warlord takes us back to the beginning — meeting Road Warrior Animal at a gym in Minnesota, learning how to train for professional wrestling and eventually getting the call from Dusty Rhodes to join Jim Crockett Promotions. After a difficult stint in Kansas City, where crowds were small and times were tough, an opportunity in Japan helped change everything. The Warlord talks about learning how to truly wrestle overseas before eventually returning to Charlotte and getting another opportunity with Jim Crockett Promotions. That opportunity led to his partnership with The Barbarian and the creation of the legendary Powers of Pain. e shares how the Road Warriors gave the team their blessing and helped them get over, the Powers of Pain signing with WWE, their rivalry with Demolition, and the lifelong friendships he developed with Bill Eadie and Barry Darsow. We also dive into the breakup of the Powers of Pain and The Warlord’s singles run — including his regrets about how that run unfolded, why he never understood why WWE didn’t push him further, and the program with Hulk Hogan that he wishes he had been given the opportunity to have. The Warlord talks candidly about life after WWE, wrestling on the independent scene, and the advice he gives young wrestlers today: learn how to wrestle. But this episode goes far beyond what happened inside the ring. We discuss the physical price of professional wrestling, his history of injuries and concussions, the surgeries he believes he still needs, and what decades in the business have done to his body. The Warlord also opens up about traveling to the Holy Land, visiting the Wailing Wall, his Catholic faith and spiritual outlook, his family and children, and why he has told his kids that professional wrestling may not be the right path for them when they would inevitably have to live in their father’s shadow. He reflects on what he considers his greatest success, the career outside wrestling he wishes he could have pursued as a police officer, and whether he has any regrets after a lifetime in the wrestling business. Finally, we talk about something much bigger than wrestling: When it’s all over, what does The Warlord hope people say about him at his eulogy? This is The Warlord: Power, Pain & the Life Behind the Muscle. Available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

