Never has a well-meaning gesture in wrestling backfired as horrifically as the WWE's decision to air a tribute episode to Chris Benoit upon hearing word of his death, before further details confirmed him to be the murderer of both his wife and son. Watching any part of the show back makes for incredibly uncomfortable viewing, with Benoit's fellow wrestlers offering sincere, emotional tributes they assume to be the victim - rather than the cause - of a shocking tragedy. William Regal's reserved, cautious tribute is particularly chilling, as he appears to suspect all is not necessarily how it seems. To the WWE's credit, their handling of the Benoit incident has since been incredibly professional, refraining from mentioning him in any way without warping their own history. The tribute episode remains one of the most shocking, unfortunate incidents in the history of televised wrestling, but shows that mistakes will always be made. The most important thing is the way in which the consequences of such mistakes are handled, and the WWE must be commended for the manner in which they did so.
