One of the mockeries that always gets levelled at the pro wrestler and the pro wrestling fan is “But it’s not real!”
It might not be “real” in a competitive sense, but the moves that are done in the ring are very real – and very risky.
It’s become a habit to have a sly giggle at the WWE’s ‘Don’t Try This!’ safety announcements, but they’re right to stress the potential dangers of professional wrestling.
We saw that three weeks ago, when Mark Haskins landed badly from a shooting star press and got a concussion and a cut nose for his trouble.
We saw it a fortnight ago, when R-Truth and Miz had a mix-up, resulting in Truth crashing on to his back outside the ring.
We saw it last week, when Jesse Sorensen broke his neck in his match against Zema Ion at the start of the Against All Odds pay-per-view.
And now we learn that Randy Orton will not be competing in Elimination Chamber due to yet another concussion, which is something Christopher Nowinski said would be the case a couple of weeks ago and nobody believed him.
Austin Aries and Shannon Moore have both been telling spectators that they need to have more respect for the talent because of the dangers inherent in the business, with Moore saying: “Please have respect for anyone good or bad that puts themselves into a ring risking it all every night to entertain. Thanks for your support.”
But should wrestlers be having more respect for themselves – and cutting down on these dangerous manoeuvres? Read the rest of this entry »