Former WWE Star Admits Chair Shots Damaged His Memory

A former WWE star has lifted the lid on their health struggles.

For years, in WWE and elsewhere, unprotected chair shots to the head were a regular occurrence. There was very little known about the damage they were doing to the brain, and as a result very few precautions if any were taken.

However, in more recent times, several veterans have opened up about the damage these shots have done, with Mick Foley in particular speaking candidly about his memory issues.

Speaking on his Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast, Hardy was asked whether he was worried about the damage unprotected chair shots might have done. The veteran is of course no stranger to hardcore-style matches and taking wild risks in the ring, especially in his younger days.

“I think about it all the time. I know my memory is nowhere near as good as it used to be. I am not as fast as I used to be. It’s crazy, but like these cold plunges I’ve been doing, I feel like they’ve helped my memory. They’ve been very good for my brain as well. I have thought about it a lot and how I’m going to be. I feel like one of the important things is that I am aware, so that allows me to still do things to protect myself. Like, I don’t take crazy bumps on my head.

These AEW fans, you know, if they’re looking for me to go out there and take this high angle bump on my head, I’m just not gonna do it. I wrestle a solid, clean match. That’s what I do, but I do protect myself. I mean, I have more than sacrificed so much of myself for the pro wrestling business. It’s my job to go out there, and I’m an entertainer more than an athlete in this day and age.

I can still go out there and do my thing, but I’m not going to take things that are risky, and something that I think could hurt me bad because I need to be around as long as I can possibly be for my kids.”

Matt Hardy Recalls Toxic WWE Culture

During the episode, Matt Hardy also discussed the Vince McMahon sex trafficking allegations and how wrestling has changed. The veteran admitted there was a “malicious” culture within WWE at certain points, commenting that he’d seen things that would see people arrested in 2024.

“You had to earn a seat, you had to earn a locker in the dressing room, there were some things that I saw done over the course of my first few years that people would be arrested for nowadays. So it was a different business.”

H/t to WrestlingNews.Co