Darryl Peterson Darryl Peterson ( October 3 , 1961 ) is an American musician , actor and professional wrestler who wrestled in World Championship Wrestling as Maxx Payne and in the World Wrestling Federation as Man Mountain Rock . Career . Peterson became involved in wrestling in grade school when he transferred from football to amateur wrestling as result of a personality clash with the football coach . His amateur career was halted by a motorcycle accident in his junior year of high school . After playing a high school wrestler in the 1979 Buena Vista Pictures release " Take Down " with Lorenzo Lamas , Peterson married and had a child . He began working in the construction industry , but decided after two years to return to amateur wrestling . Peterson earned wrestling scholarships to junior college and then to Iowa State University , competing in the National Collegiate Athletic Association . In 1985 he was an All American and placed fifth in the NCAA competition . The same year he also won the Gorriarian award for having the most amount of falls in the least amount of time at the tournament . Every match he won that year at the NCAA ' s , he won by fall . After graduating , he relocated to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career . While working as a security guard , Peterson was introduced to professional wrestler Red Bastien by his wrestling fan boss , and decided to train with him . Early career . Peterson worked for the World Wrestling Federation in March 1986 , and put together the steel cage used in the main event of WrestleMania 2 . With his training complete , Peterson debuted in June 1987 and soon after travelled to Japan to work for New Japan Pro Wrestling , where he trained in the New Japan Dojo alongside fellow gaijin Chris Benoit for five months . In 1988 Peterson developed the character " Max Pain " ( short for " Maximum Pain " ) , a sinister , grungy , Jimi Hendrix - loving heavy metal guitarist . His original idea was " Lucifer Payne " , but he felt that this was too foreboding . Peterson used the name " Max Payne " , hailing from Hell ' s Kitchen , New York nationally in the USA as well as in Europe and Japan . The character had a neo - noir look and feel , as far the live theater of professional wrestling would allow . The name Max came from the 1980s Coca - Cola spokesman Max Headroom , and Peterson later added an extra " X " at the suggestion of a friend . As of 2006 , the darker " Rock and Roll " theme Peterson used is now quite popular compared to the flamboyant colorful styles used by other wrestlers earlier in Peterson ' s career . Following a short stint with the Universal Wrestling Federation , Peterson debuted in the Tennessee - based " Continental Wrestling Association " . He quickly began pursuing the CWA Heavyweight Championship , and on February 8 , 1988 in Memphis he defeated Jerry Lawler to take the title . Peterson then went after Lawler ' s AWA World Heavyweight Championship , but was unable to take the more prestigious title from Lawler . He forfeited the title to Brickhouse Brown on May 23 , but won the title once more on June 27 . His second reign ended on July 10 when he was defeated by Phil Hickerson . Peterson left the CWA after a year before returning to Utah , where he opened his own promotion , featuring wrestlers such as Louie Spicolli . Peterson also made an appearance under his real name as a jobber in a February 1989 episode of WWF Prime Time Wrestling , losing to Bret Hart . After his employees began to leave the territory , Peterson applied for a job with WordPerfect . Soon after , he received a phone call from Benoit , who invited him to join an upcoming tour of Germany . Peterson received his plane ticket to Germany half an hour before he received a job offer from WordPerfect , so decided to join the tour . He spent six months in the German " Catch Wrestling Association " as Heavy Metal Buffalo , and won the vacant CWA Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship on December 19 , 1992 , defeating The Warlord in Bremen . He vacated the title the following year when he returned to America . World Championship Wrestling ( 1993 - 1994 ) . WCW booker Bill Watts was impressed by Peterson ' s amateur credentials , and hired him in 1993 , with Peterson relocating to Marietta , Georgia ( WCW was based in nearby Atlanta ) . Peterson ' s first pay - per - view match was the February 21 SuperBrawl , where ( as " Maxx Payne " ) he played the National Anthem on his guitar before challenging Dustin Rhodes for the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship , substituting for the injured Ron Simmons . After Rhodes locked him in an abdominal stretch from which he was unable to escape , Peterson pushed the referee over rather than submit and was subsequently disqualified . At the June 17 Clash of the Champions , Peterson shot Johnny B . Badd in the face with a confetti gun ( Badd ' s " Badd Blaster " ) , scarring him so badly that he had to wear a mask and forcing him to forfeit their scheduled match . This led to a match at the July 18 Beach Blast , which Peterson lost . They faced one another again at the August 18 Clash in a mask versus guitar match , with Peterson putting his beloved guitar on the line in order to unmask and therefore humiliate the mutilated Badd . Badd won once more and took Peterson ' s guitar . Peterson took part in the WCW Jesse " The Body " Ventura Strongest Arm Tournament in late 1993 , but was eliminated in the first round by Sid Vicious . On November 20 Peterson was entered in the Battlebowl , a tournament which saw randomly - assigned tag team partners work together in order to progress to the Battlebowl battle royal ( the winner of which received a ring ) . Peterson was partnered with 2 Cold Scorpio , with whom he lost in the first round to the formidable team of Stunning Steve Austin and Ric Flair . Turning face , Peterson formed a tag team with Cactus Jack towards the end of the year . At Starrcade 1993 they defeated Tex Slazenger and Shanghai Pierce , and at the January 27 , 1994 Clash they defeated The Nasty Boys . They faced the Nasty Boys once more , this time for the WCW World Tag Team Championship s , in a Chicago Street Fight on Spring Stampede 1994 , but were defeated in a brutal brawl . During his and Jack ' s feud with The Nasty Boys , Peterson had become increasingly unhappy with their stiffness and insistence on controlling the match . During their brawl at Spring Stampede , ( Nasty Boy ) Brian Knobbs and Peterson did not cooperate on a fall , and Knobs broke his shoulder as a result . After the match , WCW President Eric Bischoff shouted at Peterson for hurting Knobs , and Peterson responded in kind . As a result , Peterson was subsequently buried . He was fired from WCW soon after , although he did help Jack and his new partner , Kevin Sullivan , decisively defeat The Nasty Boys with a well - placed guitar shot . World Wrestling Federation ( 1995 ) . The morning after he was released by WCW , Peterson was contacted by wrestler Rick Rude , who convinced WWF owner Vince McMahon to hire him . Peterson was renamed " Man Mountain Rock " by the WWF , making his debut in February 1995 . The Rock character was considerably more upbeat and less gritty than the popular Maxx Payne character , and did not achieve the same success . Debuting on an episode of " WWF Superstars of Wrestling " , Man Mountain Rock played a large electric guitar shaped like the WWF logo . Rock would come to the ring during a commercial , with the arena going pitch black and ring announcer Manny Garcia saying " Ladies and Gentleman , Man Mountain Rock ! " Rock would then play his " ax " ( electric guitar ) while pyro burst off . Rock would frequently state , " If it ' s too loud , then you ' re too old ! " Vince McMahon , then a commentator , would often comment that Rock " rocked the house " . In the latter part of his WWF tenure , Rock ' s music incurred the wrath of the veteran Bob Backlund , then playing the part of a cantankerous heel crusading against the younger generation , who objected to the music Man Mountain Rock was playing . Peterson had suffered several injuries during his amateur career , and had hoped to secure a backstage position with WCW . When he moved to the WWF , he asked to be made an announcer , but his request was denied . His career in the WWF met with several disruptions , including a serious hernia , an addiction to pain pills and downers and a marijuana habit , which ultimately led to his release in October 1995 . While working for the WWF , Peterson filmed several hours of behind - the - scenes footage with a video camera which he often carried . Peterson often claimed that he would release a documentary called " " The Thing that Should Not Be " " or " " The Real Maxx Payne " " based on the footage , but never did . The footage reportedly contained scenes showing substance abuse and solicitation . Max Payne lawsuit . In July 2003 Peterson filed a $ 10 million USD lawsuit in the United States district court for Utah against Rockstar Games , 3D Realms , Gathering of Developers , and Remedy Entertainment . Peterson accused them of stealing his ring name " Maxx Payne " and his neo - noir theme for the protagonist of the video game " Max Payne " . The case was settled out of court . Retirement . Peterson worked briefly for " NWA Mississippi " in 2000 , and on October 7 he defeated Bob Serio for the NWA Mississippi Taped Fist Championship . He later vacated the title . On April 17 , 2004 , Peterson addressed an audience in the Schubert Theater at the Western States College for the Performing Arts in Gooding , Idaho , talking about professional wrestling . Peterson continues to be involved in film projects .