The life of a professional wrestler is not an easy one. They have to deal with bumps, bangs and more contusions than any of us will have to deal with in our entire lives. Wrestlers find themselves taking drugs in order to numb the pain so that they can wrestle. Common painkillers used by wrestlers are Soma and Fentanyl.
“Painkillers are a common cause of premature death in pro wrestling circles”
Here are a few wrestlers who died, in one way or another, from painkillers.
David Von Erich - In 1984, the official doctor’s report says that David died of an acute enteritis. Later hardcore legend Mick Foley, and Ric Flair (in his autobiography To Be the Man ), said that his death was caused by an overdose of painkillers. According to the legends, fellow wrestler Bruiser Brody found David and flushed the narcotics before police arrived.
Brody later said he overreacted when he found David and flushed his pain killers down the toilet. The cause of death changed to a heart attacked caused by ruptured intestines, which was the result of acute enteritis. He was 25.
Mike Lockwood - Lockwood was known to the professional wrestling world as Crash Holly. Holly was found dead at fellow wrestler Stevie Richard’s house. A first glimpse it appeared that he died due to suicide, but toxicology tests revealed that the 32-year-old Lockwood died from an overdose of painkillers. He was 32.
Bobby Duncum Jr. - Duncum died as a result of a combination of alcohol and painkillers. He was 34.
Louie Spicolli - Spicolli died as a result of a combination of Soma and lots of alcohol. He was 27.
Eddie Guererro - At the time of his death he had used narcotic painkillers and various enhancement drugs. This was not known until almost two years after his death. The drugs caused heart failure, which led to his death. He was 38.
Miss Elizabeth - Miss Elizabeth died in the home of Lex Lugar, from a combination of hydrocodone, Alprazolam (Xanax), and anabolic steroids (testosterone and sazien), all mixed with vodka. She was 42.
Anthony Durante - Durante and his girlfriend died in 2003 after ingesting homemade oxycotin. He was 36.
Curt Henning - Henning was found dead in his hotel room in Florida. The coroner’s report said that it was due to an overdose of cocaine, while his father says that his addiction to painkillers and steroids contributed to the death and the cocaine use. He was 44.
Ravishing Rick Rude - Rude died in 1999 from heart failure. The autopsy report stated that he died from an overdose of “mixed medications”. He was 40.
Buzz Sawyer - Sawyer died from a heart attack from long-term drug abuse. He was 32.
Eddie Gilbert - Gilbert wrestled for a number of different companies, including ECW and WWF and died from a heart attack due to painkillers and other drugs. He was 34.
Bam Bam Bigelow - Bigelow was found dead in January, 2007. The autopsy showed multiple drugs in his system, which caused his death. He was 45.
Road Warrior Hawk, one of the Road Warriors, was found dead, by his wife, from a heart attack. He battled drugs and alcohol throughout his career. He was 45.
Sherri Martel - Sensational Sherri was found dead in her mother’s home. Recent tox reports found that she died of a drug overdose. There were multiple drugs in her system, including oxycodone. She was 49.
This is a fairly short list, but I’m sure there are dozens more than died of an overdose from painkillers.
Is the WWE Wellness Policy out to save the wrestlers of tomorrow, or to fix the mistakes from the past?
WWE, Painkillers, Soma, Fentanyl
