Want more wrestling news, rumors, and results? Be sure to visit PWInsider.com and PWInsiderXtra.com.
In discussing SLI's research on the brain of Chris Benoit, Nowinski commented, "Chris had the most progressed case of CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative brain disease caused by head trauma) that we found, more than the NFL players. I have no doubt that if he didn't have brain damage he wouldn't be a murderer. He told me personally he had more concussions than he could count a year or two before the tragedy. In talking to guys who hung out with him the last three to six months of his life, they all have stories about him just being very strange and emotional. Someone told me Chris spent an hour in a hotel hallway in Italy crying about something that was completely pointless. He was unraveling. We knew if CTE cases like (former NFL player) Andre Waters weren't killing themselves, there's always the possibility they'll get violent toward someone else as well."
Nowinski noted that once he began his research into the Benoit situation, WWE failed to sign him to a new contract, commenting, "It was all fear of lawsuits. If we say Benoit had brain damage from being a pro wrestler, that makes WWE liable to an on-the-job-injury (claim). I think that's the only reason they want no part to this. It's just dollars."
WWE spokesperson Robert Zimmerman commented the company parted ways with Nowinski on amicable terms as, "it became clear that he was becoming more focused on his research, where his true interests were/are."
Nowinski noted that Al Snow and Spike Dudley, among others, have pledged to donate their brains for the SLI to research after their deaths.
For more information on the SLI and their work, visit www.sportslegacy.org.
If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here!
Bang On Casino
