Re:Chris Benoit- Rest in Peace
The tragic events of last weekend in Georgia have really shaken my faith in wrestling. Other than possibly a high octane Wexford championship match or a European night at Celtic Park I cant think of any other sporting occasion that gives me the same rush as a Wrestlemania, Royal Rumble of Survivor Series.
The thing is I grew up with wrestling and unlike many kids of that era I was never a fan of the Hulkster. Instead I idolised the more technical mat wrestlers who combined their grappling skills with the brash excesses of WWF (as it was then) guys who talked the talk but who most certainly could walk the walk too.
Bret The Hitman Hart was the man as far as I was concerned closely followed by Shawn Michaels The Heartbreak Kid. Then Chris Benoit arrived on the scene just as my interest in wrestling was beginning to wane but immediately I recognised he was chiselled out of the same type of granite as these two. Indeed he was trained by Stu Hart, Brets father, back in his native Canada and his skills were terrific (as Tony Davis might say in a high pitched voice). Benoit, The Rabid Wolverine, had it all.
I didnt watch wrestling for years mainly due to not having Sky TV but then last Autumn I got it installed for the Ashes series. With the cricket proving to be incredibly one-sided and an easy procession for Australia I found myself switching over one night and watching the late night wrestling live from the US instead. And out came Benoit. I couldnt believe he was still involved but not just that he was also the United States Champion.
He was superb and just as I remembered him. Hed always win the technical jousts on the mat and was as ever a master of the snap mare, arm bar, shoulder block, toe hold, head lock you name it and he could do it and do it better than anyone else too. And hed also developed the type of finishing moves that are demanded of WWE performers the flying head butt from the top ropes, the triple German suplex, the sharp shooter (as pioneered by Bret Hart but developed by Stu and passed down to Benoit) and his submission move the Cross Face.
I also found out he was recently back after having reconstructive surgery for a broken neck and I thought what a legend. The commentators consistently referred to him as a future Hall of Famer and it was easy to understand why. In the back of my mind I wondered how he could possibly be competing after sustaining a broken neck and I had doubts as to whether there were painkillers and steroids keeping the likes of him going day after day, city after city, event after event for nearly 300 performances per year.
But equally I was encouraged by the anti-doping programme the WWE was said to be stringently enforcing. Id read of the new measures and seen cases of wrestlers being suspended but were these merely token gestures? In the cold light of day I now look at the statistics which show a litany of cases where wrestlers have died through organ failure brought about by steroid abuse. Then theres those wrestlers whose mental state has become so distorted through years of drug dependency that theyve killed themselves or others wrestlers like Chris Benoit.
I was very upset when I found out the news on Monday night and my heart goes out to the Benoit family. Its such an awful and tragically horrific case and I wasnt sure if I could justify getting enjoyment out of wrestling any more having seen whats happened in this case. Are the likes of me driving the industry by being so engrossed by it? Can it be cleaned up or is this a watershed?
I wasnt sure if I even wanted to watch the All American Bash next month and was feeling pretty low. But in the dressing room last night after thefreekick.coms superb 6-0 victory in the astro league I found myself singing Benoits theme music. The healing process has begun.