ROH, Final Battle, and Unprotected chairshots

[Andrew is Good]

Dec 24, 2011 16:47:08 GMT -5 @slasher911 said:

It's not the end of the world. Is it stupid? Sure, and so is slipping off the top rope and breaking your neck.

Not every chairshot is gonna lead to the next Chris Benoit. Hell, take a few dozen unprotected shots and you might be a New York Times bestseller some day.

Yeah, but even Mick is stating he's having a lot of mental issues due to all the trauma he suffered.

Again, like, if done in the right place or the right time, it's fine. This was also in front of the 33 year old commentator who is suffering from the side effects of head trauma.

[chefboyardee2010]

i love the chair shots,iv been steel chaired to the head and it dont hurt that bad.in the words of jay briscoe if it wasnt for bullies there would be nuthin but pussies in the world to everyone griping about chairshots.............MAN UP

[Mr. Socko's Brother]

So just to clarify: you're saying we're all pussies here?

[Deleted]

Dec 26, 2011 9:47:54 GMT -5 Mr. Socko's Brother said:

So just to clarify: you're saying we're all pussies here?

He's obviously a real man since he's taken chair shots to the head. Though that does explain his post.

[chefboyardee2010]

Dec 26, 2011 7:28:15 GMT -5 chefboyardee2010 said:

i love the chair shots,iv been steel chaired to the head and it dont hurt that bad.in the words of jay briscoe if it wasnt for bullies there would be nuthin but pussies in the world to everyone griping about chairshots.............MAN UP

im just sayin let these guys smash each other all they want with chairs.I LOVE VIOLENCE

[________ has left the building]

You're a real life Youtube comment come to life.

[Phil Parent]

Dec 24, 2011 16:47:08 GMT -5 @slasher911 said:

It's not the end of the world. Is it stupid? Sure, and so is slipping off the top rope and breaking your neck.

Not every chairshot is gonna lead to the next Chris Benoit. Hell, take a few dozen unprotected shots and you might be a New York Times bestseller some day.

Yeah but Foley has been pretty open about the fact that he had issues because of all the head shots he took. It's actually terrifying to hear him talk about it, because he says stuff like "Sometimes I'm not quite me" or "Something is off" or "I'm not all there".

Makes me kinda nervous that Jolly Ol' Mick's gonna snap someday, you know?

[jadison]

Dec 24, 2011 13:06:34 GMT -5 @akeem said:

Somewhat off topic, but when did ridiculous chairshots became the norm? When I was a kid they'd occasionally use chair shots but they mostly looked pretty weak, other than that they would use their gimmicks for the knockout weaponry(i.e. Honky's guitar, or a chain or brass knucks, etc.).

At what point did guys just decide to see who was man enough to take these full blast chairshots? It just started happening one day, and that day was stupid.

I think ECW really raised the bar in that regard in the US. The Attitude Era was full of ridiculous chair shots like that from Taker, Rock, and guys like Mick Foley were taking them. The worst chair shot I've ever seen was Brock Lesnar hitting Zack Gowen. He swung downwards and hit him in the side of the head, really really hard. This was in the middle of the worst, most over the top beating I've ever seen in wrestling, which makes it even more ridiculous in that it wasn't needed at all. Thank God that we finally come out of denial on head injuries.

[Larryhausen]

According t Corino, the chairs were gimmicked. He won't tell how though.

[lildude8218]

Dec 27, 2011 21:24:35 GMT -5 Larryhausen said:

According t Corino, the chairs were gimmicked. He won't tell how though.

It's a pillow. It's a chair. It's a pillow chair!

[sryans]

Dec 27, 2011 21:28:27 GMT -5 @lightningfalconry said:

Nobody in wrestling is going to just let someone hit them in he head with no warning. I'm sure if the Briscoes or anybody else for that matter didn't want to take any shots to the head, there wouldn't have been any in the first place.

And no football player is going to play a down by force, yet rules state that they need to pass concussion test, get doctor's clearance, stuff like that in order to go in.

The point is not that wrestlers are getting hit without their knowledge, it is that with all of the recent discoveries about head injuries, wrestling promotions need to tone down their product a bit and not let their performers take stupid, unnecessary risks and destroy their bodies.

[Andrew is Good]

www.worldofcorino.blogspot.com/

The blog is down the page, but it's there. I read it, and I believe him, and I'm glad someone came out about it anyway. I also respect him not wanting to go into how it was magic, kinda like how Penn & Teller aren't gonna tell people how the bullet catch is worked. My hope is more people will work towards making stuff like unprotected chair shots worked, or at least work them properly, as guys tend to want to look at tough as possible by taking full blown chair shots.

[Magic knows Black Lives Matter]

Well, that changes quite a bit. Nice to see that they really aren't dumb enough to take unprotected chair shots.

[Djm Doesn't Find You Funny]

This may be selfish on my part as a fan, but this part

To the fans that were upset and are upset, thank you. Thank you for caring enough to express your concern. As a guy that has always felt unappreciated, it is nice to know people care. There are times when wrestlers feel like the fans could give two craps about their health.

really meant a lot to me, personally. As a fan, it always seems that wrestlers look at us with disdain and disgust that isn't always deserved. So, it's nice to know that people in the business recognize that a lot of fans legitimately do care about their health and aren't just all about the bloodlust.

[mcmahonfan85]

My name is Steve Corino and I am a magician.

Not in your normal David Copperfield-way, but in the pro-wrestling way.

If you are reading this on WorldOfCORINO.com, there is a 99.9999999% chance you know that professional wrestling is simulated violence. A fighting illusion. A live action play filled with drama, comedy, characters, danger, and athleticism.

In April of 2012, I will celebrate my 18th year in this industry that I have loved since I first started watching in 1981. In 18 years I have had 7 documented concussions and probably at least 7 more undocumented concussions.

I am NOT proud of any of them.

I have scars on my face, arms, and chest that will remain there forever. Battle scars. I've suffered a broken jaw, three broken teeth, my hearing in my left ear taking away, compressed vertebrate in my neck, separated shoulder, separated AC joint in the other shoulder, a fractured elbow, fractured vertebrate in my lower back, and I think my right hip is degenerating.

Damn, I wish this wrestling was 100% fake.

Unprotected chairshots have become taboo in the wacky world of pro-wrestling. And for good reason. The advances in concussion education has shown what combat sports, including pro-wrestling, can do to the brain. Its scary.

But chair shots can't take all the blame. There are kicks, bumps, clotheslines, etc that can jolt the skull.

The Balls Mahoney chair shots that I took in ECW were stupid. I was a kid trying to make a name for myself. I tried to be tough. It was so dumb and naive. I urge you to listen to this weeks Extreme Odd Couple Podcast
and I go into this subject more in depth.


Fast forward to last Friday. Ring Of Honor's Final Battle 2011. I'm in the fight of my career vs. Kevin Steen. Each of us took a shot each to the head with a chair. But neither of us got a concussion. Why? How? Magic?


Kind of.


As much as I, along with Steen and I'm sure the Briscoes, wanted to put on a great match and show our toughness, there was no way we were going to put ourselves in danger. Without exposing the whole process, adjustments were made to make things safer.


Could things have gone wrong? Of course. But they would have been accidents, not irresponsibility that myself and others displayed in ECW (and other companies).


My match was brutal. There were chairs, tables, trash cans, and a rail. Looked dangerous. It could have been. But we are professionals. I think what we did more then anything was build drama. The story was so good going in. The suspension of disbelief was higher Friday then I have felt since the Chicago Street Fight in 2010.


The most painful thing that I took at Final Battle was when I hit the post with my shoulder in the first minute of the match. It was a miscalculation on my part. I thought I had one step left and I ended up eating the post. My fault.


Pro-Wrestling and Sports Entertainment can be dangerous. It is dangerous. People get hurt everyday. But you also need to know that most of us, with what we know now about head injuries, can modify the dangerous elements.

Pro-Wrestling is Magic and when done right you should believe what you are seeing is real.


In NO way am I going to justify unprotected chair shots. If you are a wrestler and are not taking precautions before that shot, then you need to. Anything that causes damage to your brain needs to be modified. You owe to yourself, your family, and your fans.


LOOK dangerous. Don't BE dangerous. Be a magician.


To the fans that were upset and are upset, thank you. Thank you for caring enough to express your concern. As a guy that has always felt unappreciated, it is nice to know people care. There are times when wrestlers feel like the fans could give two craps about their health.


I don't want to see any more premature deaths in this industry and I also think the fans are sick of it.


Most of us hate to admit it but Pro-Wrestling IS Sports Entertainment. We are athletes, actors, stunt men, travel secretaries, and more. Being a Pro-Wrestler is a hard, but freaking awesome job. Its time we take care of ourselves.


If you see me do anything like I did at Final Battle, know that I know what I am doing and took every precaution to help the risk of injury minimize.


I am the proud father of a 15 year old son that I love with all my heart. He doesn't want to grow up without a dad or with a dad that is "bump drunk". No one does and I won't allow it.


Magic.

www.worldofcorino.blogspot.com/

[Andrew is Good]

To bring this up, my hope now is that because of the information about unprotected chair shots, every time there is discussion about them being part of a match, it's gone over extensively and every precaution is put in place, and my hope is that will change the business, and even go through with more things around the business and keep everyone professional, instead of going out and being reckless to be reckless.

[grunt]

I have a feeling that this tweet is related to Corino's blog...



Hmmm...

[FUNK_US/BRODUS]

Steve Corino sounds like someone that wrestling needs more of. Great blog.

[Square]

Dec 28, 2011 18:50:58 GMT -5 FUNK_US/BRODUS said:

Steve Corino sounds like someone that wrestling needs more of. Great blog.

I think wrestling have those men, but they are in the background doing the work whilst the few damaging people are in the forefront taking all the spotlight. We need to as fans shun the scum and praise the right people.

[Sparvid]

Dec 24, 2011 13:32:09 GMT -5 ________ has left the building said:

Dec 24, 2011 13:06:34 GMT -5 @akeem said:

Somewhat off topic, but when did ridiculous chairshots became the norm? When I was a kid they'd occasionally use chair shots but they mostly looked pretty weak, other than that they would use their gimmicks for the knockout weaponry(i.e. Honky's guitar, or a chain or brass knucks, etc.).

At what point did guys just decide to see who was man enough to take these full blast chairshots? It just started happening one day, and that day was stupid.

It started in Japanese deathmatches and got popular here because of ECW. I remember watching people get hit with a plastic chair and it got sold like a shotgun blast.

Tatanka's winning streak ended when Ludwig Borga hit him once in the back with a chair, which knocked him out to such degree that Borga spent a full minute before bothering to actually get the pin.