As the early hours of the afternoon progressed and the show got closer to starting, WWE senior officials were increasingly concerned that they hadn't heard from Chris Benoit in over 24 hours. Over a three-day period between June 22 and 24, 2007, Chris Benoit, a 40-year-old Canadian professional wrestler employed by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and living in Fayetteville, Georgia, killed his wife Nancy Benoit and their 7-year-old son, Daniel, before hanging himself. The Great American Bash pay-per-view on July 20, 2008 was the last WWE pay-per-view with a TV-14 rating; WWE immediately thereafter adopted their current TV-PG, which resulted in a noticeable toning down of edgy content in shows. The article originally read: "Chris Benoit was replaced by Johnny Nitro for the ECW World Championship match at Vengeance, as Benoit was not there due to personal issues, stemming from the death of his wife Nancy." Holly and Benoit traveled together on the road during their time together in WWE, and Holly did not believe steroids played a factor and that Benoit had tended to drink more than he normally would when issues with Nancy arose. This evening marks the first step of the healing process. On its corporate website, the company released the following statement: "World Wrestling Entertainment was informed today by authorities in Fayette County, Ga., that WWE Superstar Chris Benoit, his wife, Nancy, and his son were found dead in their home. Guerrero, who was "concerned about Benoit's tone and demeanor," called him back 12 minutes later. I don’t think it was him.”, Chris killed his second wife, Nancy, and 7-year-old son, Daniel, before hanging himself on June 24, 2007, in Georgia. He also teased that the WWE was interested in bringing him to the promotion. Thanks for contacting us. The deaths were first reported to fans of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) on their WWE Mobile Alerts Service[citation needed] and posted to its official website soon after. The doctor said he had CTE. “I didn’t believe it for days, bro,” David said. With Andrew Martin as the second case, the WWE and the sport in general have to ask themselves, 'Is this a trend?' Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. It seems Jericho was looking out for David’s wellbeing due to the close relationship he had with Chris. Do Not Sell My Personal Information. [13] It was also suggested that needle marks on Daniel's arms were the result of growth hormones given to him because Benoit and his family considered him undersized due to Fragile X. He was last seen backstage at a WWE event in March wearing an AEW jacket and has publicly praised the promotion on a number of occasions. Therefore, other than my comments, there will be no mention of Mr. Benoit's name tonight. This page was last edited on 8 September 2020, at 10:38. Elevated levels of the synthetic anabolic steroid testosterone cypionate were found in his urine; investigators believed that the level found suggested it had been taken recently. That man was his best friend.”. Privacy Notice By the account of the authorities, there were substantial periods of time between the death of the wife and the death of the son, again suggesting deliberate thought, not rage. Autopsy results showed that Benoit's wife was murdered first as she was bound at the feet and wrists and died of asphyxiation on the night of June 22. It definitely wasn’t,” David Benoit told Chris Van Vliet in a sit-down, on-camera interview. After discovering the bodies, the police notified WWE around 4:15 p.m. (CDT), informing them that they had discovered three bodies at the Benoit home and the house was now ruled as a "major crime scene". [14] Benoit's coworker and best friend, wrestler Chris Jericho, stated that from his own research on the condition, the symptoms "fit Daniel to a tee, all across the board". [103][unreliable source] Chris Jericho also stated that Benoit should never be in the Hall of Fame. “I would like the WWE to remember him, at least for the good times. [20], Chris Benoit, according to District Attorney Ballard and the city sheriff, committed suicide by hanging. [citation needed], Daniel was suffocated and killed in his bedroom, and a copy of the Bible was left by his body. "[70], In December 2009, nearly 30 months after Benoit's death, Dr. Omalu confirmed to ESPN's Outside the Lines that the death of a second WWE wrestler, Andrew Martin, known in WWE by his ring name Test, was attributed to CTE. [1][2] Since Benoit's suicide, numerous explanations for his actions have been proposed, including severe chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE),[3] steroid and alcohol abuse,[4] leading to a failing marriage and other personal problems. He was interviewed for a recent episode of the “Pro and Bro Wrestling Podcast with Fred Rosser” where he revealed that he’s been training and may follow in the footsteps of his father very soon.