(Eddie Guerrero. Picture credit: aminoapps)
*Please be aware in this post that I will be sharing some upsetting details. I will also be talking about substance abuse and alcoholism. As always, I will try to be as sensitive with the details as I can be without taking away from any of the facts*
I couldn't talk about some of the sad, dark and tragic moments in wrestling history without including the heartbreaking story of the legendary and very much missed, Eddie Guerrero. The sudden loss of Eddie in 2005 sent shockwaves through the whole of the wrestling world and beyond and still to this day his death is very difficult to talk about for many people.
Revisiting some of the articles and interviews that were published and aired at that time still leaves you with that gut wrenching feeling. I found myself shedding tears again whenever I watched anyone talking about Eddie and how his death had a profound effect on them. I don't think there was anyone in the wrestling business or old school wrestling fans who were not deeply saddened by his death, even people who were not a huge fan of Eddie still respected him and knew what a great, hardworking guy he was outside of the ring as well as being a fantastic wrestler in the ring.
Eddie was someone who had worked his way up in the wrestling world from the late 1980s up until his death and like some of the other greats that I have included in this series, he had garnered a vast amount of experience and popularity all over the world. Eddie had faced a lot of tough times in his career and had weathered the storms on many occasions, he became like a big brother to other wrestlers and one of the things you will often hear about Eddie was that he was the guy you would go to if you had a problem, he'd help you look at things differently.
As well as the tough challenges that one often faces with a career in wrestling, he battled substance abuse and alcoholism as well as a dependency on steroids. One of the things that bonded him with Chris Benoit (who I wrote about in the second instalment in this series. You can find the post here) was the pressure that they both felt in the wrestling industry and the difficulties they faced due to their size, he knew all about the temptations of steroids and the constant clashes with promoters.
I know that some people will be uncomfortable with the fact that I have talked about Eddie's friendship with Chris Benoit but the horrific situation with Chris didn't occur until after Eddie's death. I have previously mentioned (and I still believe) that Eddie's death was the beginning of what tipped Chris over the edge. I say that not to make excuses for Chris (who was medically proven to have been very ill with severe brain damage) but the sudden and unexpected loss of Eddie, who pretty much was a rock for Chris as well as a brother figure, really devastated him completely.
After Eddie's death was announced and there was various interviews about the sad news back then (and in previous years), you see a regular occurrence of grown men, huge wrestlers sobbing their hearts out when they recall the details, this is how much Eddie meant to the wrestling world and the fans. Not to take away anyone's heartbreak and grief about Eddie but a lot of people agree that Chris Benoit was completely destroyed at the loss of his 'soulmate'. They'd been through so much together and when the WWE tribute was aired, there was not a dry eye in the house and Chris could barely hold it together, it was heartbreaking to see. It wasn't that long ago that they both stood in the ring celebrating how far both of them had come after years of hard work and sacrifice. It seemed so cruel that just as Eddie had reached the top, his life was cut short.
(Chris Benoit & Eddie Guerrero. Picture credit: whatculture)
Eddie's struggles in his past with his addictions were not a secret, he was very open about it and helped give advice to others not to go down a similar path. Just before he passed away he had been celebrating being sober for four years and he and his wife Vickie, together with their three daughters were looking forward to a bright future together. In the weeks leading up to that sad Sunday morning of November 13th 2005, Eddie had been exhausted and struggling with energy. Both Eddie and his wife Vickie put it down to his hectic lifestyle and the fact that he always trained so very hard, like Chris Benoit and a lot of the old school wrestlers, they would train like beasts and a lot of the time they would wrestle despite having painful injuries.
He was a devoted family man who worked hard to give his family the best life that he could. The night before he died he had travelled from Phoenix, Arizona to Minneapolis with his nephew Chavo and Chris Benoit for a show. Whilst on the plane Chavo had noticed that Eddie had a difficult time trying to keep track of conversations because he kept falling asleep. Again this was put down to being tired with all the training and travelling they were doing which is understandable. When they arrived at the hotel, the trio made plans to meet up the next morning around seven and went to their separate rooms.
Chavo was awoken the next morning at 5:30 am by the hotel staff informing him that his uncle Eddie had made a request call the night before but was not answering his phone or the door. Chavo went to Eddie's room with the staff and they tried to get in, realising that the latch was still on the door panic set in because the realisation that Eddie must have been in there and something was very wrong. Chavo managed to get into the room where he found Eddie lying face down the bathroom, it looked like he had been trying to get ready for bed as he was holding his toothbrush in his hand.
An ambulance was called and Chavo cradled Eddie in his arms trying to wake his uncle up. Eddie was not responding but was still breathing and gargling like he was trying to hang on, trying to fight to hang on. Before anyone knew what was happening, Eddie suddenly passed away in his nephew's arms, he was just 38 years old. Everything all happened so fast, it was both heartbreaking and traumatic.
It was devastating and whilst all this sad chain of events was going on, Chris Benoit was preparing to meet Chavo and Eddie like they had arranged the night before, oblivious to the heartbreaking events that were going on in Eddie's hotel room. When Chavo broke the news to Chris he recalled how Chris whaled out loud, completely inconsolable. Chavo had never heard or seen of Chris in such a state before.
Nobody could believe it, one minute Eddie was there with his cheeky smile living his life, working hard and at the height of his career and then the next he was gone.
Rumours flew around all over the place about it being a possible suicide, accidental drug overdose, foul play but it was simply his poor heart couldn't take it any more, it gave out. Being so dedicated to wrestling all of his life and putting his health at risk in the past trying to meet the demands with all the pressure he had placed on him and the pressure he placed on himself. The addictions and the steroids in the past had left a terrible mark on his body and caused some of his internal organs to become enlarged and his heart was twice it's size. The technical name for it is 'Arteriosclerosis' and it causes severe narrowing of your arteries which can lead to stroke and heart attack. The exhaustion that Eddie was feeling in the weeks up to his death was because his heart was having to pump blood faster through these narrowed arteries. Unbeknown to himself and his family it was just a matter of time.
(Eddie Guerrero. Picture credit: metro)
A similar event happened to a friend of mine years ago and he didn't take steroids or have a substance addiction but he did take various medications in the past and this caused him to have Arteriosclerosis. From my understanding it isn't that easy to diagnose straight away as the symptoms that are shown look very much like general fatigue, shortness of breath, aches and pains after strenuous exercise and these could all be put down to adrenal fatigue or being overworked. Eddie was so busy all of the time that for him to be showing these symptoms it would have seemed almost normal due to the fast paced lifestyle.
It was a devastating loss which nobody could have predicted, Eddie was four years sober but as we sadly know with these types of situations just because someone has overcome their addictions (which is an incredible achievement because it is extremely difficult) depending on the length of time they had been an addict and every individual is different, the damage is already done and even though that person may be clean, years later a sudden death can sadly occur.
It's still so hard to believe that he was only 38, it's just so unfair for such a wonderful person who gave everything he had to wrestling as well as being a devoted family man and loyal friend. Eddie was such a rock to so many people, he was always so busy taking care of other people that he never got the time to take care of himself. One wonders what could have been if he had gotten the time to see a Doctor for a full body examination and maybe something could have been done. I have researched this disease and it can be managed with surgery and lifestyle changes, it may have meant that Eddie would have had to have surgery and retire from wrestling but what we would all give just to have him back.
At just 38 he left behind an incredible legacy and so many people heartbroken even to this day that he is no longer with us. His glorious moments in wrestling remain and are enjoyed over and over again. His book Cheating Death, Stealing Life which he co-wrote with Michael Krugman, was completed shortly before his death.
The loss of Eddie will be forever felt and his incredible legacy lives on. RIP Eddie x
Eddie was buried in Green Acres Memorial Park in Scottsdale, Arizona. His online memorial is here if you would like to leave a note and some flowers in tribute to him.
(Eddie Guerrero's grave. Picture credit: findagrave)
Further Reading & Sources:
As always, if you have made it this far in this post, I appreciate it, thank you. I hope you have found this series interesting and informative. I will be concluding this series with my final post next time which will be my ninth post. I will then be moving on to another series which I hope you will also enjoy reading. Thank you as always for your messages, emails, comments and tweets about this series, I love hearing your memories as well as your opinions on my posts.
I hope you will join me for the final post next time, stay safe and in the meantime, I hope to see you on my Socials x
