In 1991, Albrecht relocated to the United States, where he signed a contract with Joe Weider, the co-founder of the IFBB. Albrecht competed on the bodybuilding circuit and authored articles on nutrition and body training for the magazines Flex and Muscle & Fitness.[3]
He competed in the 1991 Mr. Olympia contest (placing ninth) and in the 1992 Arnold Classic contest (placing fourth).[6] In mid-1992, Albrecht sustained a tornbiceps while performing a barbellpreacher curl that prevented him from competing in the 1992 Mr. Olympia contest.[7] Upon recovering from the injury, Albrecht competed in the 1993 and 1994 Arnold Classic contests (placing tenth and eighth), the 1994 Mr. Olympia contest (placing seventeenth) and the 1996 IFBB Night of Champions contest (placing tenth).[6]
In 2009, Albrecht was placed eighth in a historical ranking of the bodybuilders with the best quadriceps femoris muscles by Flex.[8]
My name is Brakkus and I come from Germany. I weigh 300 pounds. And when I come to America, to the World Wrestling Federation, I will get Vader in the ring and destroy him![10]
Instead he worked in house shows until November 1997.
In late-1997, Albrecht was sent by the WWF to the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based independent promotion Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) as part of a working relationship between the two promotions. The secondment to ECW was intended to season Albrecht's abilities before he debuted on WWF television.[14][15]
In ECW, Albrecht was part of the Wright Connection, a stable led by Lance Wright along with Doug Furnas, Phil Lafon and Droz. The stable were billed as having been sent to ECW by the WWF Chairman, Vince McMahon, with Albrecht acting as the bodyguard of Wright. As part of the angle, Albrecht wore a T-shirt reading "Property of the WWF", was billed from Stamford, Connecticut (the location of the WWF headquarters) and would drape a WWF banner over defeated opponents.[16][17][18] At November to Remember 1997, Albrecht, Furnas and Lafon interfered in a "WWF versus ECW" flag match between Rob Van Dam and Tommy Dreamer.[19]
Albrecht was recalled to the WWF in March 1998, making his WWF television debut on 17 March 1998, episode of WWF Shotgun Saturday Night, losing to The Artist Formerly Known as Goldust. Albrecht then travelled to Europe with the WWF, losing to Jeff Jarrett at WWF Mayhem in Manchester on 4 April 1998. He went on to wrestle Jarrett at live events in Oberhausen, Berlin and Bayreuth during the DX in Germany tour.[9] During this period, Albrecht routinely wore a chainmail vest to the ring.[10]
In the summer of 1998, Albrecht was entered in the WWF Brawl for All, a shootfighting tournament. Albrecht faced Savio Vega in a first round match on 6 July 1998, episode of Monday Night Raw. Albrecht was eliminated from the tournament after Vega won the match on points, with Albrecht sustaining a bloodied nose. Vega later claimed that Albrecht was originally not aware that the Brawl for All was a shootfighting tournament and had initially believed it would be worked.[21][22][23]
