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AEW Wrestler Jon Huber aka Brodie Lee (Luke Harper) Has Passed Away at Age 41

It is with great sadness that I share the news that many of you may have already heard by now: professional wrestler Jon Huber has passed away at the age of 41. You may know him as Brodie Lee in AEW/indies or Luke Harper in WWE. Huber was married with two young sons (Brodie and Nolan) and is being remembered by his family, friends and loved ones for being a devoted family man.

The news of his death was shared by All Elite Wrestling, which is where Jon worked as Brodie Lee, the leader of the Dark Order that was a former TNT Champion.

Jon’s wife Manda wrote about her husband on Instagram tonight.

As you can see from Manda’s words, he died of a non-Covid related lung issue. Jon was off television for several months and it wasn’t known what was wrong with him. It is understandable that the family kept it a private matter. It’s just heartbreaking to know he passed away from whatever he was dealing with.

When I read Manda’s words the first time I cried. I didn’t know Jon, but I’ve been a fan of his a pro wrestler for over a decade and I know how much he cared for his family and wanted to provide for them as best he could

When Jon turned 41 years old last week, she shared photos of him where you can see how much he loved his family.

TJR Thoughts: I have some thoughts of my own that I wanted to share. He just turned 41 years old on December 16. I didn’t know he was sick. There were whispers about something being wrong with him, but when it comes to wrestlers we usually just assume it’s an injury, not a health issue. I didn’t know him. I think we interacted a few times on Twitter because he’s a big Toronto Maple Leafs fan (that’s NHL for those that don’t know hockey) even though he grew up in Rochester, which was near Buffalo. He would tweet about the Leafs sometimes, so I think we exchanged pleasantries about that over the last decade or so, but I didn’t know him. I do know other wrestlers that when I texted them about him, they all said that he was one of the best guys they knew and they all mentioned how much he would talk about his family. His wife and two sons were his life. He did everything for them.

When I think of him as a wrestler, the word “underrated” comes to mind, but I think “underutilized” is better in this case. I think he had the potential to be so much more in WWE even though he did have a lot of success as a multiple-time Tag Team Champion and a quick run with the Intercontinental Championship as well. I just wish he got more of a singles run in WWE because I think he could have been a main event talent. When he got to AEW, I was so excited for him and even though I didn’t love the Vince McMahon parody skits at first, I loved the way he was booked. Brodie Lee was a big-time star in AEW that challenged for the AEW World Title, won that TNT TItle in dominant fashion and then put over Cody clean in the return match. Most importantly, it looked like Jon/Brodie was enjoying himself. That’s what mattered the most. And now he’s gone far too early. It breaks my heart thinking about it.

That’s all from me for now. I can probably write more another day and maybe I will. I’m still shocked by the whole thing. I can’t imagine what his family feels. Wishing all the best to Manda and her two sons. God bless the Huber family. I hope they can find the strength to get through this.

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There have been a lot of tributes on social media from Jon’s friends in the wrestling business. I’ll update this post with many of those posts as well.

https://twitter.com/FrankieKazarian/status/1343037496670633984

I’ll wrap it up there. Rest easy, Jon Huber. You will be missed.