Professional Wrestling Needs to Crack Down Hard on Wrestlers Using Steroids: Age of Big Men Should End

All wrestling promotions need to crack down hard on wrestlers using anabolic steroids.

The Benoit double murder/suicide press conference held earlier this afternoon by investigators down in Georgia was damning.

The toxicology reports will be out in a couple of weeks, but it's clear that Chris Benoit murdered his wife and son before killing himself. Many reports are saying that it was steroid rage. Anabolic steroids were found in Benoit's house by the police. They made it clear that he had prescriptions for the steroids, but not how many prescriptions there were. They alluded to the fact that there were a lot of them.

In a previous post, I asked why these guys die so young. It's because they abuse drugs, like steroids, which causes them to develop heart conditions, or O.D. on drugs, or get into violent situations. Here is a list of wrestlers who have died of anything but natural causes:

• David Von Erich--drugs/heart condition--1984
• Eddie Graham--suicide--1985
• Rick McGraw--suicide--1985
• Gino Hernandez--cocaine overdose--1986
  
• Mike Von Erich--suicide--1987
• Bruiser Brody--stabbed to death in Puerto Rico by another wrestler in locker room--1988
• Mark Tendler--murdered--1990
  
• Chris Von Erich--suicide--1991
• "Mad Dog" Buzz Sawyer--drug overdose--1992
• "Texas Tornado" Kerry Von Erich--suicide--1993
• Dino Bravo--murdered Gangland style/smuggling--1993
• Art Barr--complications from drug abuse--1994
• Louis Spicolli--drug-related complications--1998
• Brian Hauser--shot by police--1998
  
• Rick "Renegade" Williams--suicide--1999
• Bobby Duncun, Jr.--drug overdose--2000
• Rhonda Singh--drug overdose--2001
• "Gentleman" Chris Adams--died from gunshot wounds--2001
• "Mr. Perfect" Curt Henning--acute cocaine intoxication--2003
• Miss Elizabeth--drug and alcohol poisoning--2003
• Crash Holly--drug overdose--2003
• Anthony Durante--drug overdose--2003
• Mike Awesome--suicide--2007
  
• Scott "Bam Bam" Bigelow--drugs--2007
• Nancy "Woman" Sullivan Benoit--murdered?--2007
• Chris Benoit--suicide?--2007

In addition, Eddie Geurrero, Road Warrior Hawk, Rick Rude, "Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert, Brian Pillman, Davey Boy Smith and others used drugs during their wrestling careers; each of these men suffered heart attacks from their history of using illegal drugs, even though they weren't using at the time they died.

Every promotion needs to discourage their wrestlers from using steroids, and get them some help.

I don't think it's necessary for wrestlers to look like this:

to do a good job and entertain people. Look at Mick Foley in comparison:

It's time for professional wrestling to get control of their major drug and steroid problems and save the lives of some of their own. And the sooner, the better.