Mason Ryan is living his best life in Cirque du Soleil a decade after leaving WWE and undergoing an incredible transformation. The 42-year-old wrestler, whose real name is Barri Griffiths, grew up in North Wales and caught the eye of the sports entertainment giant 2009 before appearing on TV two years later and working with the likes of John Cena and current SmackDown star Randy Orton . In 2014, he left the company and returned to the independent scene, but WWE still changed his life even after letting him go.
Speaking exclusively to Metro.co.uk , the musclebound star explained how WWE put him forward when Cirque Du Soleil got in touch looking for a wrestler to play a ‘big, tall, imposing figure’ in Las Vegas.
After auditioning against fellow wrestlers Chris Masters and Lance Hoyt, Griffiths got the part and moved to Sin City to play the chief archer in KÀ by Cirque du Soleil. He’s still in phenomenal shape, but he has dropped just over two stone from his ‘average’ weight in wrestling to meet the different demands of the daily shows. ‘I’m still 6’6′′, about 260, whereas when I was with WWE – I was still 6’6′′, I’ve got a little bit older, hopefully, I haven’t lost much height,’ he quipped.
‘I was about 290, on average, when I was with the WWE.’ He was eating ‘nine meals a day, every day’ with ‘intense’ workouts to maintain that figure, whereas Cirque has a different focus as he’s now down to ‘five or six meals’ with around.