10 Alternative Views On Wrestling's Biggest Scandals

3. Chris Benoit Tragedy Changed View On Concussions

The last days of Chris Benoit's life still make wrestling fans shudder. There are many different stories and reports regarding exactly what happened, but the fact is that Benoit took the life of his wife and young son before committing suicide. The Benoit tragedy is without a doubt one of wrestlings biggest ever scandals. WWE had initially paid tribute to Benoit, before retracting their positive statements when reports of murder surfaced. Postmortem, theories were posted citing head and brain injuries as a possible reason for Benoit's mental state at the time of the murders. The Canadian grappler had suffered many, many concussions, and it was reasoned that he sank into a deep depression because of this. Following the Benoit tragedy, WWE placed a lot more emphasis on protecting talent from the effects of concussions. Slowly but surely, the in-ring product has morphed to be more sensitive to head and neck injuries. Due to this, several moves - including Piledrivers and Brainbusters - are seldom seen on television and talent have to pass several tests before they are allowed back in the ring after suffering a concussion. The Benoit situation was horrific, but it spurred a change which needed to be made. WWE are now more conscious about talent safety.