Thread: Rest In Peace, Chris Benoit (merged)

Originally Posted by PWInsider.com

We are still awaiting further details, but PWInsider.com is extremely saddened to report that former WWE and WCW World champion Chris Benoit and his wife, former WCW and ECW personality Nancy "Woman" Benoit were both found dead today in Atlanta, Georgia. Obviously this will be a huge developing story in the days to come but at this point, we'd like to express our deepest condolences to the Benoits' family, friends, and fans at this time.

A meeting is currently ongoing at WWE TV and it is expected that tonight's three hour Raw will now be dedicated to Benoit's memory.

6:09 Update: WWE.com issued the following statement this afternoon:

"WWE is sad to report that Chris Benoit and his family have been found dead in their home. Police are currently investigating the circumstances surrounding the deaths. Tonight's Raw will be a tribute to Chris and his family."

In the 90's Chris Benoit, hall of fame bound professional wrestler, helped paved the way for the smaller, faster, ground-based professional wrestlers you see now. His idol as a child was the legendary Dynamite Kid. He has held ECW, WWF(E), and WCW gold. He was scheduled to compete this weekend at WWE's Vengeance PPV, but left before the show due to a "family emergency". This is huge breaking news for anyone who has followed wrestling at any point since the 90's. Chris was left dismaid after the passing of his best friend, Eddie Guerrerro. I meet this news with utter shock, sorrow and hurt, as I've personally been a fan of Chris' for a long time. He was an extremely caring individual and one who has sacrificed his entire life to professional wrestling.
He was one of the good guys in the world of sports entertainment. To say that he'll be missed is sore, sore understatement.

Wow. He was a no show at yesterday's pay-per-view due to "personal reasons."

Originally Posted by Dave Scherer of PWInsider.com looks at the passing of Chris Benoit

It's no secret to anyone who reads this site that by the time that the early 1990s had come around, I wasn't the biggest fan in the world of the product that the WWF and WCW were producing and I turned to the Japanese tape trading market to get my fix of hot wrestling action. I still vividly remember, just like it was yesterday, seeing this amazing young Junior Heavyweight in a mask named The Pegasus Kid and telling myself I needed to see more this amazing young wrestler.

Of course, we later got to know him as Chris Benoit.

Seeing him wrestle just once I immediately knew that I had to get my hands on any tape that had any matches featuring this amazing, flying technician on it.

Hhe came to ECW, his first real exposure in the US as a big time star. He had worked for WCW before, but in ECW he was presented as what he had become, one of the best wrestlers in the world. I still remember the night of the first ECW fan convention in 1995 at The Flagstaff in Jim Thorpe, PA where, with a wink, he made reference to the ring to a bunch of "Internet F***heads", only to be mildly surprised when calling the group that actually got a pop. It was a changing time in the US wrestling business and Benoit was a central figure in it.

He left ECW and went to WCW on one of the first big money deals that guys his size would have never gotten before. He later left WCW, with his Radicals brethren, for the WWF when the group decided that they would rather walk away from big money deals in Atlanta where they may be booked poorly to try their hand up in Stamford. They literally put their money where their mouth was. Once there, he did something most people in and around the business never thought would happen, he tasted championship gold. Through it all, Chris Benoit was, in addition to being an amazing worker, truly a revolutionary force in the business.

Today, far before his time, this fine man and incredible professional wrestler, as well as his family, are dead.

Honestly, I don't know what to say. I am truly numb right now. I have all the same questions that all of you do. What happened? How could it have happened? Jesus, how the hell could this happen? In the coming hours and days, we will find all of that out. But right now, I am numb. And sad. And just absolutely shocked at the news.

A husband, father and son is dead, as is his family. We can wonder how it happened and try to make sense of it, but in the end it's fruitless. Four people have died well before their time and it just shouldn't have happened. Whatever the reason is, it's a senseless tragedy.

Tonight on Raw, a stunned group of people in WWE will pay tribute to the man and his legacy. We will all respect that and show our appreciation for the man. I still can't believe that we have to though. This has truly left me numb. I am sorry if this came across as rambling but I just don't know what else to say. Rest in peace Chris and family. If you can hear us, know you will be missed because you most certainly will be.

Great read. I agree with his sentiments.

Incredible. Will be interesting to see what happened.

Benoit is one of the all time greats.

Chris Benoit, family found dead
Written: June 25, 2007World Wrestling Entertainment is deeply saddened to report that today Chris Benoit and his family were found dead in their home. There are no further details at this time, other than the Benoit family residence is currently being investigated by local authorities.

Tonight’s Raw on USA Network will serve as a tribute to Chris Benoit and his family. WWE extends its sincerest thoughts and prayers to the Benoit family’s relatives and loved ones in this time of tragedy.

Oh man, I hoped it was a hoax but it looks legitimate.

Originally Posted by Brodeur

Oh man, I hoped it was a hoax but it looks legitimate.

WWE wouldn't involve the family in this, would they? Benoit's wife is ex-manager "Woman". Does he have any kids?

A co-worker brought this to my attention today (we work on the WWE license together), and I took about 10 minutes to check all the news sites for any info. I didn't find any, except on WWE.com. A current plot line, from two weeks ago, is that Vince McMahon died when his limo blew up - is this also part of the plot line?

Slowly some legitimate news sources are coming out with the news, although details are still quite hazy since the body was found ~4 hours ago.

http://www.ajc.com/news/content/metr...625benoit.html

A professional wrestler and his family were found dead inside their house in Fayette County Monday afternoon.

Authorities confirmed that Chris Benoit, his wife, Nancy and their 7-year-old son were found dead at the home on Quarters and Redwine roads in Fayetteville about 4 p.m.

Officials would not say how the family died, other than to say they weren't shot to death.

Benoit, 30, was a Canadian wrestler who most recently fought as part of the World Wrestling Entertainment.

The organization said on its Web site said that Monday night's broadcast of "Raw" on the USA Network will "serve as a tribute to Chris Benoit and his family."

Are they for real this time or what ?