Chris Benoit

Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Ring name(s) Chris Benoit[1]
Pegasus Kid[1]
Wild Pegasus[1]
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)[1]
Weight 220 lb (100 kg)[1]
Born May 21, 1967(1967-05-21)[1]
Montreal, Quebec, Canada[1]
Died June 24, 2007(2007-06-24) (aged 40)
Fayetteville, Georgia, United States[2]
Billed from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Atlanta, Georgia
Trained by Stu Hart[1]
New Japan Dojo
Frank "Chic" Cullen[1]
Debut November 22, 1985[1]

Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit (French pronunciation: [bəˈnwɑ]) (May 21, 1967 – June 24, 2007) was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide. During his professional wrestling career, Benoit worked for such major promotions as Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL), Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), and the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment (WWF/WWE).

Among other accolades, Benoit is a two-time world champion: a one-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, one-time World Heavyweight Champion (tied for third longest reign in history).Both of his world title reigns were represented by the Big Gold Belt: Benoit is one of three men to have held the Big Gold Belt in both WCW and WWE, alongside Bill Goldberg and Booker T.[3][4] He is also a record-tying five-time WCW/WWE United States Champion, having held the championship twice in WCW, and three times in WWE.[5] The twelfth WWE Triple Crown Champion and seventh WCW Triple Crown Champion, he is the second of four men in history to achieve both the WWF and WCW Triple Crown Championships.

In addition to championships, Benoit won the 2004 Royal Rumble match, joining Shawn Michaels as one of two men to win the match as the number one entrant.[6] Described by WWE as "a favorite among WWE fans for his unbelievable athleticism and wrestling ability", Benoit was widely regarded as one of the most popular, respected, and gifted technical wrestlers in history.[7][8][9][10][11][12][13]

Chris Benoit murdered his wife and son on June 22, 2007 and subsequently hanged himself on June 24, 2007.[14][15] Since Benoit's suicide, numerous explanations for his actions have been proposed, including concussions,[16] steroid abuse,[17] and a failing marriage.[18] Benoit last performed for WWE on their ECW brand. Paul Heyman, head of the original ECW promotion, intended to book Benoit to win the ECW World Heavyweight Championship in 1995 but did not renew his United States Work Visa in time;[19] twelve years later, Benoit was booked by WWE to win the title in one of three world championship matches at pay-per-view event Vengeance: Night of Champions, which again did not come to fruition due to his death that night.[20]

Contents

Professional wrestling career

Stampede Wrestling (1985–1989)

During his childhood and early adolescence in Edmonton, Benoit idolized Bret Hart[21] and the Dynamite Kid (Tom Billington, later one-half of WWF tag team champions the British Bulldogs). After viewing countless pirated tapes of Dynamite's legendary matches from Japan against Tiger Mask, Benoit soon decided to join his idol in the wrestling profession. When Benoit was fifteen he met Dynamite for the first time, flexed his biceps, and proclaimed he wanted to be just like him.[22] Michael Benoit, Chris's father, though not a wrestling fan, nonetheless encouraged his son by buying him a set of weights for strength training and muscle development and, later, by allowing him to drive to Calgary, some three hours away, to train in the Hart family "Dungeon". After years of strenuous training under Bruce Hart, and later under Stu Hart himself, Benoit began his career in 1985, the year Hart promised to make him wait, as it was the year he finished high school, in Stu Hart's Stampede Wrestling promotion. It was during this time that Benoit would grow close to Bret Hart, referring to him as a "role model".[21]

From the beginning, the similarities between Benoit and Billington were uncanny, as Benoit adopted many of his moves such as the diving headbutt and the snap suplex; the homage was complete with his initial billing as "Dynamite" Chris Benoit. According to Benoit, in his first match, he attempted the diving headbutt before learning how to land correctly, and had the wind knocked out of him; he said he would never do the move again at that point. His debut match was a tag team match on November 22, 1985 in Calgary, Alberta, where he teamed with "The Remarkable" Rick Patterson against Butch Moffat and Mike Hammer, which Benoit's team won the match after Benoit pinned Moffat with a sunset flip. The first title Benoit ever won was the Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship in 1986 against Gama Singh. During his tenure in Stampede, he won four International Tag Team and three more British Commonwealth titles,[23] and had a lengthy feud with Johnny Smith that lasted for over a year, which both men traded back-and-forth the British Commonwealth title. In 1989, Stampede closed its doors later that year, and with a recommendation from Bad News Allen, Benoit departed for New Japan Pro Wrestling.

New Japan Pro Wrestling and independent circuit (1986–1994)

Upon arriving in New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), Benoit spent about a year training in their "New Japan Dojo" with the younger wrestlers to improve his abilities. While in the dojo, he spent months doing strenuous activities like push ups and floor sweeping before stepping into the ring. He made his Japanese debut in 1986 under his real name. In 1989, he started wearing a mask and assuming the name The Pegasus Kid. Benoit said numerous times that he originally hated the mask, but it eventually became a part of him. While with NJPW, he came into his own as a performer in critically acclaimed matches with luminaries like Jushin Liger, Shinjiro Otani, Black Tiger, and El Samurai in their junior heavyweight division.

In August 1990, he won his first major championship, the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, from Jushin Liger. He eventually lost the title in November 1990 (and in July 1991 in Japan and in November 1991 in Mexico, his mask) back to Liger,[23] forcing him to reinvent himself as Wild Pegasus. Benoit spent the next couple years in Japan, winning the Best of the Super Juniors tournament twice (1993 and 1995). He went on to win the Super J Cup Tournament in 1994, defeating Black Tiger, Gedo, and Great Sasuke in the finals.

Benoit also wrestled outside of New Japan occasionally to compete in Mexico and Europe, where he won a few regional championships, including the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship. He held that title for over a year, having many forty-plus minute matches with Villaño III.

World Championship Wrestling (1992–1993)

Benoit first came to World Championship Wrestling in June 1992, teaming up with fellow Canadian wrestler Biff Wellington for the NWA World Tag Team Championship tournament; they were defeated by Brian Pillman and Jushin Liger in the first round at Clash of the Champions XIX.

He did not return to WCW until January 1993 at Clash of the Champions XXII, defeating Brad Armstrong. A month later, at Superbrawl III, he lost to 2 Cold Scorpio, getting pinned with only three seconds left in the 20-minute time limit. At the same time, he formed a tag team with Bobby Eaton. After he and Eaton lost to Scorpio and Marcus Bagwell at Slamboree, Benoit headed back to Japan.

Extreme Championship Wrestling (1994–1995)

In 1994, Benoit began working with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) in between tours of Japan. He was booked as a dominant wrestler there, gaining notoriety as the "Crippler" after he put Rocco Rock out of action, and proceeded to behave in a cold, calculating, uncaring way towards his opponents. At November 2 Remember, Benoit accidentally broke Sabu's neck within the opening seconds of the match. The injury came when Benoit threw Sabu with the intention that he take a face-first "pancake" bump, but Sabu attempted to turn mid-air and take a backdrop bump instead. He did not achieve full rotation and landed almost directly on his neck. After this match Benoit returned to the locker room and broke down over the notion he might have paralyzed someone, demanding that he go to see Sabu to make sure he was alright; Paul Heyman, the head booker of ECW at the time, came up with the idea of continuing the "Crippler" moniker for Benoit.[24] From that point until his departure from ECW, he was known as the "Crippler" Chris Benoit. However, when he returned to WCW in October 1995, WCW modified his ring name to the "Canadian Crippler" Chris Benoit. In The Rise and Fall of ECW book, Heyman commented that he planned on using Benoit as a dominant heel for quite some time, before putting the company's main title, the ECW World Heavyweight Championship, on him to be the long-term champion of the company.[19]

Benoit and Dean Malenko won the ECW World Tag Team Championship from Sabu and The Tazmaniac in February 1995, Benoit's first American title.[23] After winning, they were initiated into the Triple Threat stable, led by ECW World Heavyweight Champion, Shane Douglas, as Douglas's attempt to recreate the Four Horsemen, as the three-man contingency held all three of the ECW championships at the time (Malenko also held the ECW World Television Championship at the time). The team lost the titles to The Public Enemy that April at ECW's Three Way Dance. Benoit spent some time in ECW feuding with The Steiner Brothers and rekindling the feud with 2 Cold Scorpio. He was forced to leave ECW after his work visa expired; Heyman was supposed to renew it, but he failed to make it on time, so Benoit left as a matter of job security and the ability to enter the United States. He toured Japan until WCW called.[23]

World Championship Wrestling (1995–2000)

New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling (WCW) had a working relationship, and because of their "talent exchange" program, Benoit signed with WCW in late 1995 along with a number of talent working in New Japan to be a part of the angle. Like the majority of those who came to WCW in the exchange, he started out in as a member of the cruiserweight division, having lengthy matches against many of his former rivals in Japan on almost every single broadcast. At the end of 1995, Benoit went back to Japan as a part of the "talent exchange" to wrestle as a representative for New Japan in the Super J Cup: Second Stage, defeating Lionheart in the quarterfinals (he received a bye to the quarterfinals for his work in 1995, similar to the way he advanced in the 1994 edition) and losing to Gedo in the semifinals.

Benoit with a fan during his time in WCW.

After impressing higher-ups with his work, he was approached by Ric Flair and the WCW booking staff to become a member of the reformed Four Horsemen in 1995, alongside Flair, Arn Anderson, and Brian Pillman; he was introduced by Pillman as a gruff, no-nonsense heel similar to his ECW persona, The Crippler. He was brought in to add a new dynamic for Anderson and Flair's tormenting of Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage in their "Alliance to End Hulkamania", which saw the Horsemen team up with the Dungeon of Doom, but that alliance ended with Dungeon leader and WCW booker, Kevin Sullivan feuding with Pillman. When Pillman abruptly left the company for the WWF, Benoit was placed into his ongoing feud with Sullivan. This would come to fruition through a dissension between the two in a tag team match with the two reluctantly teaming with each other against The Public Enemy, and Benoit being attacked by Sullivan at Slamboree. This would lead to the two having violent confrontations at pay-per-views, which led to Sullivan booking a feud in which Benoit was having an affair with Sullivan's real life wife and onscreen valet, Nancy (also known as Woman). Benoit and Nancy were forced to spend time together to make the affair look real, (hold hands in public, share hotel rooms, etc.).[25] This on-screen relationship developed into a real-life affair off-screen. As a result, Sullivan and Benoit had a contentious backstage relationship at best. Benoit did, however, admit having a certain amount of respect for Sullivan, saying on the DVD Hard Knocks: The Chris Benoit Story that Sullivan never took undue liberties in the ring during their feud, even though he blamed Benoit for breaking up his marriage. This would continue for over the course of a year with Sullivan having his enforcers apprehend Benoit in a multitude of matches. This would all culminate in a retirement match at the Bash at the Beach, where Benoit defeated Sullivan; this was used to explain Sullivan going to a behind-the-scenes role, where he could focus on his initial job of booking.

In 1998, Benoit had a long feud with Booker T. They fought over the WCW World Television Championship until Booker lost the title to Fit Finlay.[23] Booker won a "Best-of-Seven" series which was held between the two to determine a number one contender. Benoit went up 3 to 1 before Booker caught up, forcing the 7th and final match on Monday Nitro. During the match, Bret Hart interjected himself, interfering on behalf of Benoit in an attempt to get him to join the New World Order. Benoit refused to win that way and told the referee what happened, getting himself disqualified. Booker refused that victory, instead opting for an eighth match at the Great American Bash to see who would fight Finlay later that night. Booker won the final match and went on to beat Finlay for the title.[23] This feud significantly elevated both men's careers as singles competitors, and both remained at the top of the midcard afterward.

In 1999, Benoit teamed with Dean Malenko once again and defeated Curt Hennig and Barry Windham to win the WCW World Tag Team Championship.[23] This led to a reformation of the Four Horsemen with the tag team champions, Anderson, and Steve "Mongo" McMichael. The two hunted after the tag team championship for several months, feuding with teams like Raven and Perry Saturn or Billy Kidman and Rey Mysterio, Jr. After a falling out with Anderson and McMichael, Benoit and Malenko left the Horsemen; he won the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship[23] before bringing together Malenko, Perry Saturn, and Shane Douglas to form "The Revolution". The Revolution was a heel stable of younger wrestlers who felt slighted (both kayfabe and legitimate) by WCW management, believing they never gave them the chance to be stars, pushing older, more established wrestlers instead, despite their then-current questionable worthiness of their pushes. This led to the Revolution seceding from WCW, and forming their own nation, complete with a flag. This led to some friction being created between Benoit and leader, Douglas, who called into question Benoit's heart in the group, causing Benoit to quit the group, thus turning face, and having his own crusade against the top stars, winning the Television title one more time and the United States title from Jeff Jarrett in a ladder match. On May 1999 on Nitro in Kansas City, Missouri, Benoit wrestled Bret Hart as a tribute to Owen Hart, who had recently died due to an equipment malfunction. Hart defeated Benoit by submission, and the two received a standing ovation, and an embrace from guest ring announcer, Harley Race.

Despite having many good moments on the undercard of WCW, Benoit had enough of the company's political atmosphere backstage, where he could not thrive at the top of the company.[26] One last attempt in January 2000 was made to try and keep him with WCW, by putting the vacant WCW World Heavyweight Championship on him by defeating Sid Vicious at Souled Out.[23] However, due to disagreements with management and to protest the promotion of Kevin Sullivan to head booker,[27] Benoit left the company the next day alongside his friends Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, and Perry Saturn, forfeiting his title in the process. He spent the next few weeks in Japan before heading to the WWF.

World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment (2000–2007)

The Radicalz (2000–2001)

Main article: The Radicalz
Benoit was disqualified from the 2000 King of the Ring for using a chair against Rikishi.

Along with Guerrero, Saturn, and Malenko, Benoit debuted in the WWF as a stable that became known as The Radicalz. After losing their "tryout matches" upon entry, The Radicalz aligned themselves with WWF Champion Triple H and became a heel faction. Benoit quickly won his first title in the WWF just over a month later at WrestleMania 2000, pinning Chris Jericho in a triple threat match to win Kurt Angle's Intercontinental Championship. It was also in this time period that Benoit wrestled in his first WWF pay-per-view main events, challenging The Rock for the title at Fully Loaded in July and as part of a fatal four way title match in at Unforgiven in September. Both times, Benoit appeared to have won the WWF Championship, only to have the decision reversed by then-WWF commissioner Mick Foley due to cheating on Benoit's part.

Benoit simultaneously entered into a long-running feud with Jericho for the Intercontinental title, having the two meet on PPV four times in nine months, exchanging the title back and forth and culminating in Jericho defeating Benoit in a ladder match at the Royal Rumble. Benoit won the Intercontinental Title three times between April 2000 and January 2001.

Teaming with Chris Jericho (2001)

In early 2001, Benoit broke away from The Radicalz (who had recently reformed three months earlier) and turned babyface, feuding first with his former stablemates and then with Kurt Angle, whom he wrestled at WrestleMania X-Seven. The feud continued after Benoit stole Angle's cherished Olympic Gold Medal. This culminated in a match at Judgment Day where Angle won a two out of three falls match with the help of Edge and Christian. In response, Benoit teamed up with his former rival Jericho to defeat Edge and Christian in that night's Tag Team Turmoil match.

The next night on Raw in San Jose, California, Jericho and Benoit challenged WWF Tag Team Champions Stone Cold Steve Austin and Triple H for their title. On May 21, 2001, Jericho and Benoit ended their reign and as a result of the win, Benoit aided Jericho in becoming the fourth Grand Slam Champion when he captured the WWE title later in December.

The pair used the win as a springboard to challenge Austin for his world title. Benoit got two title matches the following week, first losing in a manner similar to the Montreal Screwjob in Calgary and then just barely losing to Austin in Benoit's hometown of Edmonton. Unfortunately, Benoit suffered a neck injury in a four-way TLC match that required surgery with Dr. Lloyd Youngblood. Despite this, he continued to wrestle until the King of the Ring, where he was pinned in a triple threat match versus Austin and Jericho. Benoit missed the next year due to his neck injury, missing the entire Invasion storyline.

Raw and SmackDown! (2002-2003)

During the first WWE Draft, he was the third superstar picked by Vince McMahon to be part of the new SmackDown! roster,[28] although still on the injured list. However, when he returned, he did so as a member of the Raw roster. On his first night back, he turned heel again and aligned himself with Eddie Guerrero, and he feuded with Steve Austin briefly.[29] He and Guerrero were then moved to SmackDown during a storyline "open season" on wrestler contracts,[30] with Benoit taking his newly won Intercontinental championship with him.[31] Rob Van Dam defeated Benoit at SummerSlam and returned the title to Raw.[32][33]

After returning to SmackDown! on October 20, 2002, he was crowned the first winner of the WWE Tag Team Championship, alongside foe and partner Kurt Angle.[32][34] In this, Benoit consecutively helped to crown the fifth Grand Slam Champion, as the tag title was the only remaining title Kurt needed. They became tweeners after betraying Los Guerreros.[35]

Angle won his third WWE Championship from The Big Show at Armageddon,[36] and Benoit faced him for the title at the 2003 Royal Rumble. Although Benoit lost the match, he received a standing ovation for his efforts.[37] Benoit returned to the tag team ranks, teaming with the returning Rhyno.[38] At WrestleMania XIX, the WWE Tag Team Champions, Team Angle (Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin), put their belts on the line against Benoit and his partner Rhyno and Los Guerreros in a triple threat tag team match. Team Angle retained when Benjamin pinned Chavo.[39]

Benoit then feuded with John Cena and the Full Blooded Italians,[40][41] teaming with Rhyno occasionally.[42] In June 2003, the WCW United States Championship was reactivated and renamed the WWE United States Championship, and Benoit participated in the tournament for the belt. He lost in the final match to Eddie Guerrero at Vengeance.[42] The two feuded over the title for the next month,[43] and Benoit went on to defeat the likes of A-Train,[44] Big Show, and Brock Lesnar by submission.[44] General Manager Paul Heyman had a vendetta against Benoit along with Lesnar, preventing him from gaining a shot at Lesnar's WWE Title.[45]

World Heavyweight Champion (2004–2005)

When Benoit won a qualifying match for the 2004 Royal Rumble against the Full Blooded Italians in a handicap match with John Cena, Heyman named him as the number one entry, but Benoit swore victory.[46] On January 25, 2004 Benoit won the Royal Rumble by last eliminating Big Show, and thus earned a world title shot at WrestleMania XX.[44] As a result of the long-standing Royal Rumble tradition that the winner receives a shot at the world champion at WrestleMania, and with Benoit being on the SmackDown! brand at the time it was assumed that he was going to compete for the WWE Championship. Benoit, however, exploited a "loophole" in the rules and appeared on Raw the following night to challenge World Heavyweight Champion Triple H.[47] This "loophole" clause has become standard storyline practice, with the Royal Rumble winner being free to choose the title for which he will challenge. Though the match was originally intended to be a one-on-one match, Shawn Michaels, whose Last Man Standing match against Triple H at the Royal Rumble for the World Heavyweight Championship ended in a draw,[44] thought that he deserved to be in the main event. When it was time for Benoit to sign the contract putting himself in the main event, Michaels superkicked him and signed his name on the contract,[44] which eventually resulted in a Triple Threat match between Michaels, Benoit, and the champion, Triple H.[48]

Benoit with close friend Eddie Guerrero, celebrating their respective World Championships at WrestleMania XX.

On March 14, 2004, at WrestleMania XX, Benoit won the World Heavyweight Championship by forcing Triple H to tap out to his signature submission move, the Crippler Crossface.,[49] marking the first time the main event of a WrestleMania ended in submission.[50][51] After the match, an emotional Benoit celebrated his win with the then-reigning WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero. The rematch was held at Backlash in Benoit's hometown of Edmonton. It was Michaels who ended up submitting to Benoit's Sharpshooter, allowing Benoit to retain his title.[49] The next night in Calgary, he and Edge won the World Tag Team title from Batista and Ric Flair, making Benoit a double champion.[52]

The three months following his victory at Backlash, Benoit and Edge engaged in a rivalry with La Résistance for the World Tag Team Championship, which saw a series of matches, while simultaneously having confrontations with Kane over the World title. Benoit wrestled in two matches at Bad Blood in his respective rivalries; he and Edge failed to regain their World Tag Team title while he successfully defended the World title against Kane. A month later at Vengeance, Benoit retained the title against Triple H.

On August 15, 2004, Benoit was defeated by Randy Orton for the World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam.[53] Benoit then feuded with Edge (who had turned into a crazed heel with severe anger management problems), leading to Taboo Tuesday where Benoit, Edge, and Shawn Michaels were all put into a poll to see who would face Triple H for the World Heavyweight title that night.[54] Michaels received the most votes and as a result, Edge and Benoit were forced to team up to face the then tag team champions, La Résistance, in the same night. However, Edge deserted Benoit during the match and Benoit was forced to take on both members of La Résistance by himself. He still managed to win the World Tag Team title.[53] At Survivor Series, Benoit sided with Randy Orton's team while Edge teamed with Triple H's team, and while Edge was able to pin Benoit after a Pedigree, Orton's team won.[55]

The Benoit-Edge feud ended at New Year's Revolution.[56] The feud stopped abruptly, as Edge feuded with Shawn Michaels, and Benoit entered the Royal Rumble.[57] The two then continued to have matches in the following weeks until the two of them, Chris Jericho, Shelton Benjamin, Kane, and Christian were placed in the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 21. Edge won the match by knocking Benoit off of and smashing his arm with the ladder.[57] The feud finally culminated in a Last Man Standing match at Backlash, which Edge won with a brick shot to the back of Benoit's head.[58]

SmackDown! and United States Champion (2005–2006)

On June 9, Benoit returned to SmackDown! after being the first man selected by the SmackDown! brand in the 2005 Draft Lottery and participated in an ECW-style revolution against the SmackDown! heels.[59][60] Benoit appeared at One Night Stand, defeating Eddie Guerrero. At the end of the night he delivered a flying headbutt to his former WCW boss and former Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff.[61]

Benoit in September 2005 as the United States Champion

On July 24 at The Great American Bash, Benoit failed to win the WWE United States Championship from Orlando Jordan,[62] but he faced him in a rematch at SummerSlam. Benoit defeated Jordan in 25 seconds with the Crippler Crossface to win the title.[62] On the next two editions of SmackDown!, Benoit defeated Jordan by submission in 23.4 seconds[63] and 22.5 seconds, respectively.[64] Two weeks later, Benoit defeated Jordan by submission in 49.8 seconds.[65] Benoit then started wrestling Booker T in some friendly competitions,[62] but it was all a ploy, as Booker and his wife, Sharmell, cheated Benoit out of the US title on an episode of SmackDown!.[66]

On November 13, 2005, Eddie Guerrero was found dead in his hotel room. The following night, Raw held a Guerrero tribute show hosted by both Raw and SmackDown! superstars. Benoit was devastated at the loss of his best friend and was very emotional during a series of video testimonials, eventually breaking down on camera.[67] The same week on SmackDown! (taped on the same night as Raw), Benoit defeated Triple H in a tribute match to his fallen friend. Following the contest, Benoit, Helmsley, and Dean Malenko all assembled in the ring and pointed to the sky in salute of Guerrero.[68]

After controversy surrounding a US title defense against Booker T, Theodore Long set up a "Best of Seven" series between the two. Booker T won three times in a row, due largely to his wife's interference, and Benoit faced elimination in the series.[69][70][71] Benoit won the fourth match to stay alive,[69] but after the match, Booker suffered a legitimate groin injury, and Randy Orton was chosen as a stand-in. Benoit defeated Orton twice by disqualification.[72][73] However, in the 7th and final match, Orton defeated Benoit with the help of Booker T, Sharmell, and Orlando Jordan, and Booker captured the US title.[74] Benoit feuded with Orton for a short time,[75] only to compete against Booker for the US title. Benoit was given one last chance at the US title at No Way Out and won it by making Booker submit to the Crippler Crossface, ending the feud.[69] Soon after, Benoit defeated Orton in a No Holds Barred match on SmackDown! via Crippler Crossface.

The next week on SmackDown!, Benoit kayfabe broke John Bradshaw Layfield's (JBL) hand (JBL actually needed surgery to remove a cyst).[76] A match was set up for the two at WrestleMania 22 for Benoit's title, and for the next several weeks, they attacked each other. At WrestleMania, JBL won the match with an illegal cradle to win the title.[50] Benoit used his rematch clause two weeks later in a steel cage match on SmackDown!, but JBL again won with illegal tactics.[77] Benoit then entered the King of the Ring tournament, only to be defeated by Finlay in the opening round, after Finlay struck Benoit's neck with a chair and delivered a Celtic Cross.[78] At Judgment Day, Benoit gained some revenge by defeating Finlay with the Crippler Crossface in a grudge match.[79][80] On the following edition of SmackDown!, Mark Henry brutalized Benoit during their match, giving him (kayfabe) back and rib injuries and causing him to bleed from his mouth.[81] Benoit then took a sabbatical to heal nagging shoulder injuries.

On October 8, Benoit made his return at No Mercy, defeating William Regal in a surprise match.[82] Later that week, he won his fifth United States Championship from Mr. Kennedy.[83] Benoit then engaged in a feud with Chavo and Vickie Guerrero. He wanted answers from the Guerreros for their rash behavior towards Rey Mysterio, but was avoided by the two and was eventually assaulted. This would lead to the two embarking on a feud with title implications at the coming two pay per views.[82] The feud would culminate with one last title match as a No disqualification match, which was also won by Benoit.[84] Afterward, Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP), who claimed that he was the best man to hold the US title, challenged Benoit for the title at WrestleMania 23, where Benoit retained.[51] Their rivalry continued with similar results again at Backlash.[85] At Judgment Day, however, MVP gained the upper hand and won the title in a two out of three falls match.[86]

ECW (2007)

On the June 11 edition of Raw, Benoit was drafted from SmackDown! to ECW as part of the 2007 WWE Draft, after losing a match to Bobby Lashley.[87] Benoit won his ECW debut match teaming up with CM Punk and defeating Elijah Burke and Marcus Cor Von by disqualification.[88] On June 19, Benoit wrestled his last match, defeating Burke in a match to determine who would compete for the vacated ECW World Championship at Vengeance.[89] Benoit missed the weekend house shows, telling WWE officials that his wife and son were vomiting blood due to food poisoning. When he failed to show up for the pay-per-view, viewers were informed that he was unable to compete due to a "family emergency" and he was replaced in the title match by Johnny Nitro. Nitro won the match and became ECW World Champion.[90] Stephanie McMahon later indicated that Benoit would have defeated Punk for the championship had he been present for the event.[20]

Personal life

Benoit was born in Montreal, Quebec to Michael and Margaret Benoit, but grew up in Edmonton, Alberta from which he was billed in ring introductions throughout the bulk of his career. Benoit spoke both English and French fluently.[91] In an interview with Larry King on CNN, Michael Benoit mentioned in passing that Chris had a sister living near Edmonton.

Benoit became good friends with wrestler Eddie Guerrero following a match in Japan, when Benoit utilized an Enzuigiri kick and knocked him out cold. This started a friendship that lasted until Guerrero's death in late 2005. He was also close friends with Dean Malenko as the trio traveled from promotion to promotion together putting on matches, eventually being dubbed the "Three Amigos" by commentators.[92] According to Benoit, the Crippler Crossface was borrowed from Malenko and eventually caught on as Benoit's signature hold.[92][93]

Benoit's lost tooth, his top-right lateral incisor, was usually attributed to training or an accident early on in his wrestling career. It actually resulted from an accident involving his pet Rottweiler: one day while playing with the dog, the animal's skull struck Benoit's chin and his tooth "popped out".[94]

Benoit married twice, having two children by his first wife, Martina: David and Megan.[95][96] By 1997, that marriage had broken down and Benoit was living with Nancy Sullivan, the wife of WCW booker and frequent opponent Kevin Sullivan. On February 25, 2000, Chris and Nancy's son Daniel was born; on November 23, 2000, Chris married Nancy. It was Nancy's third marriage. In 2003, Nancy filed for divorce from Benoit, citing the marriage as "irrevocably broken" and alleging "cruel treatment"; she claimed that he would break and throw furniture around.[97][98] She later dropped the suit, as well as the restraining order filed against her husband.[97]

Death

Main article: Chris Benoit double murder and suicide

On June 25, 2007, police entered Benoit's home on a "welfare check" after several missed appointments, leading to concerns.[99] The officers discovered the bodies of Benoit, his wife Nancy, and their 7-year-old son Daniel at around 2:30 p.m. EDT.[100] Upon investigating, no additional suspects were sought by authorities.[101] It was determined that Benoit had committed the murders.[102]

Over a three day period, Benoit had killed his wife and son before he hanged himself.[14][15] His wife was bound before the killing. Benoit's son was drugged and likely unconscious before Benoit strangled him.[103] Benoit then committed suicide with a weight machine.[102]

WWE canceled the scheduled three hour long live Raw show on June 25, and replaced the broadcast version with a tribute to his life and career, featuring his past matches, segments from the Hard Knocks: The Chris Benoit Story DVD, and comments from wrestlers and announcers.[104] However, once the details of the murder–suicide became apparent, WWE quickly and quietly began distancing itself from the wrestler by removing merchandise and no longer mentioning him. The June 26 episode of ECW began with Vince McMahon addressing the television audience about the circumstances and announcing that there would be no mention of Benoit that night other than his comments. There was no mention of Benoit at all the following Friday on Smackdown.

Toxicology reports released on July 17, 2007 revealed that at their time of death, Nancy had three different drugs in her system: Xanax, hydrocodone, and hydromorphone, all of which were found at the therapeutic rather than toxic levels. Daniel was found to have Xanax in his system, which led the chief medical examiner to believe that he was sedated before he was murdered. Benoit was found to have Xanax, hydrocodone, and an elevated level of testosterone, caused by a synthetic form of the hormone, in his system. The chief medical examiner attributed the testosterone level to Benoit possibly being treated for a deficiency caused by previous steroid abuse or testicular insufficiency. There was no indication that anything in Benoit's body contributed to his violent behavior that led to the murder–suicide, concluding that there was no "roid-rage" involved.[105] Prior to the murder–suicide, Benoit had been given illegal steroids not in compliance with WWE's Talent Wellness Program in February 2006. Benoit received nandrolone and anastrozole. During the investigation into steroid abuse, it was revealed that other wrestlers had also been given steroids.[106][107]

After the double-murder suicide, former wrestler Christopher Nowinski contacted Michael Benoit, father of Chris Benoit, suggesting that years of trauma to his son's brain may have led to his actions. Tests were conducted on Benoit's brain by Julian Bailes, the head of neurosurgery at West Virginia University, and results showed that "Benoit's brain was so severely damaged it resembled the brain of an 85-year-old Alzheimer's patient."[108] He was reported to have had an advanced form of dementia, similar to the brains of four retired NFL players who had suffered multiple concussions, sank into depression, and harmed themselves or others. Bailes and his colleagues concluded that repeated concussions can lead to dementia, which can contribute to severe behavioral problems.[109] Benoit's father suggests that brain damage may have been the leading cause of the crime.[110] He also confirmed that his son was quietly cremated, but what was done with the ashes is not public knowledge.[111]

In wrestling

Benoit with the Crippler Crossface (Arm trap crossface) on MVP.
Chris Benoit performing a diving headbutt on MVP at WrestleMania 23.
Benoit performing a diving headbutt on Rikishi at King of the Ring 2000.

Championships and accomplishments

Benoit as United States Champion in 2007. His five reigns (two in WCW and three in WWE) are tied for the most in history.
Benoit in his reign as World Heavyweight Champion in 2004. He is also a one-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, with both reigns represented by the Big Gold Belt.

1Benoit's reign with the championship isn't officially recognized by World Wrestling Entertainment. No reign prior to December 1997 is recognized by the promotion.[141]
2Benoit underwent a special recall election in 2008 due to the double murder–suicide of his wife and son. The recall was supported by a majority of 53.6% of voters, but was below the 60% threshold necessary to remove him.

Notes

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References

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