pro wrestlers

[jimbonelson]

how many more have to die before something is done.

[JasonEvans]

how many more have to die before something is done.

How many have to kill before something is done?

[dukemomLA]

Is this considered a SPORT??? Bulls----. It's theatre. And bad theatre at that. PLEASE tell me why anyone cares?! Let's do drug testing on these fools. That would surely end this spectacle quickly.

If one wants REAL wrestling, let's support HS and NCAA wrestling at its finest. (....this posted by a former stat keeper. R-2, TD-2, -- in my day)

[hc5duke]

Is this considered a SPORT??? Bulls----. It's theatre. And bad theatre at that. PLEASE tell me why anyone cares?! Let's do drug testing on these fools. That would surely end this spectacle quickly.

If one wants REAL wrestling, let's support HS and NCAA wrestling at its finest. (....this posted by a former stat keeper. R-2, TD-2, -- in my day)

I thought the OP was a joke... or sarcastic post. :confused:

[hurleyfor3]

how many more have to die before something is done.

What do you suggest we do?

[Highlander]

Professional Wrestling is not a sport, which is why it's never tested for drugs. If any legitimate sport had this high a death rate, there'd be a congressional investigation. Since Wrestling is deemed 'fake' and isn't taken seriously, nobody in mainstream society cares. Which is sad, because I think this business is as physically demanding as any professional sport, if not moreso. Getting hit in the head with a steel chair is dangerous and hurts, whether you know its coming or rigged or not.

For people unfamiliar with the business, Wrestlers are on the road roughly 300 days a year, work 2-3 events a week, and spend any free time in the gym working out or in transit. The top guys make on average a couple hundred thousand a year, but pay all of their traveling expenses out of pocket. And there's no offseason. If they take a day/event off for an injury, they don't get paid, so they start taking painkillers to keep performing. The painkillers make them lethargic, so they start taking drugs in order to get "up" for their matches. When you throw steriods, painkillers, and drugs together into an overworked and oversized individual, it's only a matter of time before the heart gives up, or the drug coctail causes an overdose. It's sad and it's tragic, but there's a whole line of people living the lifestyle waiting for their shot at the big time.

My personal opinion is that the promoters have victimized these guys for years in their greed to make more $, have never had to create a reasonable working environment, and that someone should step in and regulate the industry a little more effectively.

That being said, it looks like the guy here (Chris Benoit) literally lost his marbles and went psycho. From reports today, he told his coworkers that his family had food poisoning and went home. In actuality he had tied his wife up before he suffocated her, then suffocated his 7 year old son, laid bibles by their side, stayed home with the dead bodies for at least a day, and then committed suicide. That strikes me as a guy who was mentally ill, and was cold and calculating, not someone who lost his cool and acted out of rage. The drugs and steroids could have certainly thrown this guy off balance, but the part I can't understand is how anyone could kill a 7 year old boy in cold blood like that. It's disturbing.

[feldspar]

My personal opinion is that the promoters have victimized these guys for years in their greed to make more $, have never had to create a reasonable working environment, and that someone should step in and regulate the industry a little more effectively.

Agreed, and well-put.

[Windsor]

Highlander is dead on. A few years ago I met most of the 'big name' wrestlers in conjunction wtih a legal case. Everyone of them had cronic injuries of some kind (mostly knees, shoulders and backs) any who had been involved for more than a few years were walking ads for pain killers. They ALL took HGH and assorted steroids, each (individually not as group) claimed that the HGH\steroids were the only thing that gave them consistent relief from their injuries - oddly not one of them mentioned bulking up/more muscle/more stengthsince I'm not an MD I have to take their testimony at face value (by the way they were all witnesses with immunity from prosecution). They all also had scripts for the little blue pill.
As Highlander said they are contractors...no work no pay...they cover all travel/medical and any other expenses. If you take time off when the promoters don't want you to you'll find yourself off the cards for an extended period. There are always young strong guys waiting in the wings for their shot at the big time.
I am not a fan of pro 'wrestling', never have been, but I did come away with an enormous respect for the guys who do it...it is much more demanding than I would have believed and it doesn't pay near what you think it would unless you're one of the top handful.
It is a business that desperately needs a clean sweep and some serious regulation.

[ivduke]

The story is now revealing that he had a son with mental retardation. It's not an easy job raising a spoecial needs child. Add in the conditions everyone else talked about, i.e. steroids, pain killers, constant travel etc. The plans were there for a ticking time bomb that unfortuantely no one else prevented from exploding. Roid rage is a player--as much as the wrestling world continues to deny it.

I was going to include a diatribe about how disgusting it was for the WWE to run a 3 hour tribute to Chris, but I see where they have now replied and indicated that had they known the facts surrounding the deaths, they would not have done so. In addition WWE has vowed to not include photographs, tape, or even mention of Chris Benoit going forward. A little late, but better than nothing.