Wow!

[ckg68]

Apparently,it takes a wrestler dying for WWE to get serious about their "wellness policy".

They suspended 10 wrestlers today for violations of the policy. ESPN has the story on their website.

No names made public,yet. But you can probably guess who got suspended if you're going to house shows.

Additionally,PWTorch.com's Sean Radican reports that letters were sent out to all wrestlers stating that as of November 1st if you're suspended,your name is being made public.

[dogginbox]

any speculations on who was suspended? i dont follow wrestling as closely as i used to.

[ckg68]

Here's a list of those who got meds from a pharmacy in Orlando,as noted by the N.Y.Daily News. (It's unknown if THESE are the 10 suspended ones,so please take this list as preliminary.)

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/2007/08/30/2007-08-30_top_wwe_names_emerge_in_doping_scandal.html

[ckg68]

Note,too,that at least 2 of the names on that list don't work for WWE anymore.

[slowpokemcgee]

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/2007/08/30/2007-08-30_top_wwe_names_emerge_in_doping_scandal.html

Here are some names...

[Sabres244]

I' am absolutely shocked

[smashingt2312]

Wow thats crazy.

I laughed when i saw william reagles name though.

[BF_in_Indiana]

Sort of sad that the WWE even tries to save face at this point. Play dumb until you are forced to admit the reality of your business.........

[voicekiller]

Too funny

[Wing Eater]

Sort of sad that the WWE even tries to save face at this point. Play dumb until you are forced to admit the reality of your business.........

At least they are taking steps to correct the issue, unlike TNA which has done absolutely nothing. Anyone think Scott Steiner isn't roiding up?

[TRIPLE P]

Michael Bucci, aka Simon Dean, is one of our clients. Rob Conway too.

[daschuck77]

This is analysis from Dave Scherer on pwinsider.com

Sorry if it's long, I'd put the link but once you get there unless you are a subscriber you are PUMMELED with pop ups!

WWE got hit with as direct of a shot to the integrity of their company and their Wellness Policy as they could have possibly feared today as allegations of rampant usage of growth enhancing drugs came to light in the press, including a damning article by Sports Illustrated. In the wake of the Benoit family tragedy, the company has been publicly leaning on their testing policy with such vigor that it really needed to be completely bulletproof and able to stand up to the fiercest scrutiny in order for the company to maintain its credibility. Tonight, that policy is not holding up very well.

In light of the press coverage today, as well as the fact that Congress has called for a hearing on the use of growth enhancing drugs in wrestling next month on Capitol Hill, WWE's announcement of publicly naming those who fail Wellness tests starting in November comes across as trying to put out a fire after it's burned down the whole street. As I mentioned on the No Name Show today, if they wanted to show that their policy had some serious teeth, as well as some consequences for those that violate it, they would have been publicly announcing suspensions already. That that they haven't done so before now has always been something that critics have questioned. Now, the company will be forced to play catch up in the eyes of their critics and at least some of their fans.

With the number of active wrestlers who have been alleged to have received drugs from the Florida warehouse pharmacy, it places the effectiveness of WWE's testing policy in a really bad light. It's hard to come to any conclusion other that it was either very ineffective or WWE didn't monitor the results all that closely. Either way, WWE looks really bad here. In looking at the time frames that the talents are alleged to have received packages, it's hard to believe they could fly under the testing radar and not get caught in the random tests that WWE implements.

While we don't know definitively that the 10 suspended workers are the ten active names on this list, now that this has been made public, how can't these guys be suspended? If any one of them appears on TV in the next month, WWE will have a very hard time when they send their contingent to DC next month. So, whether the talents actually have been suspended or not, they all have a scarlet letter hanging around their neck and with some of the names on the list WWE will face some serious problems going forward.

At this point, it makes perfect sense to look at those who have been alleged to receive drugs from the pharmacy and what it will mean to the company. In italics, I will quote the Sports Illustrated article. Under that, I will give my thoughts on each worker, assuming that the SI report is 100% true.

• Chris Benoit, who died June 24, 2007, received nandrolone and anastrozole in February 2006. (Anastrozole is used by athletes to counter side effects of steroid use, such as water retention and breast enlargement.)

Is anyone shocked? Just looking at Benoit for many years now anyone could tell that he blew up from his natural size, which we all saw when he was younger. Even if he wasn't loaded up with testosterone at the time of his death, I think anyone with eyes would have assumed he was using. Since he has already been confirmed as a user, there is no more real harm he can add to what he has already done. But know this, from a business perspective he has already done considerable damage to WWE with his actions in June.

• Two weeks prior to Eddie Guerrero's death on Nov. 13, 2005, he was sent nandrolone, testosterone, and anastrozole. Guerrero died in a Minneapolis hotel room due to what a coroner later ruled as heart disease, complicated by an enlarged heart resulting from a history of anabolic steroid use.

This is really, really sad. Yes, it would have been worse if it were "street" drugs, but seeing that Eddie was using this stuff right before he died just makes his death all the more tragic. It's such a waste. It also makes me feel a little less sympathetic towards his tragic death. Here he was a man that was very well aware of the problems that came from drug use and yet he continued to receive packages? How couldn't he see what was right in front of him?

• Chavo Guerrero, who found his uncle Eddie dead in the Minneapolis hotel room, received, among other drugs, somatropin (HGH), nandrolone and anastrozole between April 2005 and May 2006.

This is just downright scary to me. Given what both Chavo and Benoit went through with the loss of Eddie, how either man couldn't have turned over a new leaf following Eddie's passing is something I will just never understand. I guess it is a situation where being in the business is worth shaving years off of their life to them. It's a very scary choice to make.

• Between November 2003 and February 2007, Shane Helms, a/k/a The Hurricane, received, among other drugs, testosterone, genotropin (HGH) and nandrolone. (As previously reported by SI, he allegedly received HGH from an Arizona doctor in 2005.)

I bet Helms is very happy to be on the disabled list right now. Seeing the first four names on this list it does show a pattern though, with naturally smaller guys trying to be bigger. It's a pattern that WWE is going to have make the company's top priority to break going forward.

• Starting in September 2004 through February 2007, Randy Orton received somatropin, nandrolone, stanozolol.

Orton, in many ways, has been a cat with nine lives during his WWE career. He may very well be on his last one. He could be in the position now where his next screw up will be his last. This also looks especially bad given that he just headlined one of the company's biggest PPVs of the year and was set to do so again next month. Then, he was set for a program with HHH. Now, he's in the middle of this and has to be taken out of the company's plans. This will definitely hurt the company's creative direction going forward.

• John Hennigan, a/k/a Johnny Nitro, a.k.a. Johnny Morrison, is the current WWE Extreme Championship Wrestling's heavyweight champion. Between June 2006 and February 2007 he was prescribed somatropin, anastrozole, testosterone, stanozolol and chorionic gonadotropin, a hormone produced naturally during pregnancy. (HCG is taken by anabolic steroid users to stimulate the production of testosterone, which is suppressed as a result of steroid use.)

ECW was already a brand lacking in top talent. Now, its biggest name (at least in the eyes of ECW creative head Dave Lagana) is under the microscope. How can't CM Punk finally get the win he has deserved for months now and get his hands on the ECW Title? The sad thing is if it does happen, it will be the right thing for all the wrong reasons.

• Ken Anderson, a/k/a Mr. Kennedy, lost to Eddie Guerrero in Guerrero's final match on Nov. 11, 2005. Kennedy received shipments of anastrozole, somatropin and testosterone between October 2006 and February 2007.

Ken Kennedy's name being listed is a double whammy of bad for WWE. For one thing, he was scheduled to be prominently featured in WWE storylines over the next month, reportedly being the person who would emerge as Vince McMahon's son in the paternity angle. Now, creative will be forced to go scrambling for a new son. What I find more offensive however is that he has been something of a company spokesman that stood up to the critics of WWE during the Benoit tragedy coverage. He even did interviews where he talked about how he used steroids as an indy worker and the Wellness Policy saved him. Now, he just comes across like every other athlete who has been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He's the Rafael Palmeiro of WWE.

• Shoichi Funaki received somatropin in March 2006.

Honestly, the only damage that this causes WWE is that it brings the number to 10. Some may ask why he was taking a growth hormone since he wasn't big. People also take them to fight the effects of aging and to look younger. That is the only possible reason I can see that he did it.

• Brian Adams, a/k/a Crush, who retired from the pro circuit in 2001, was found dead of unknown causes on Aug. 13. He received nandrolone, testosterone and Somatropin or HGH in December 2006.

This is not detrimental to WWE but obviously fuels the overall argument about wrestlers dying far too young.

• Charles Haas was prescribed anastrozole, somatropin, stanozolol, nandrolone and chorionic gonadotropin between August 2006 and January 2007.

Haas isn't a top guy but I was somewhat surprised by his inclusion. If my brother had died suddenly as his did from heart issues, I would be a lot more discerning about what I put in my body.

• Edward Fatu received somatropin between July and December 2006.

This is another one that really hurts WWE. First Jeff Hardy got suspended, hurting their program. Now, it appears it's Umaga's turn to take 30 days off. The top of the Raw roster is suddenly looking very barren with Orton, Kennedy and Umaga all mentioned.

• Between November 2004 and November 2006, Darren Matthews received stanozolol, somatropin, genotropin, and anastrozole.

How can this be? Granted, it's not street drugs but how can William Regal, after his health issues and battles with substance abuse, do this? All I can assume is that his desire to be in the business outweighed his common sense. His suspension won't kill WWE but it certainly should make people wonder how he could be on this list. I know it does for me.

• Adam Copeland, a/k/a Edge, received somatropin, genotropin (both HGH), and stanozolol between September 2004 and February 2007.

Edge, like Kennedy, looks really, really bad here. He went on the offensive when the first Sports Illustrated article first came out, saying he hadn't taken steroids in years. If this information is true, like Kennedy before him his credibility will take a major hit here. He's very lucky to be on the disabled list because by the time he comes back, this will probably be forgotten by most, but for those of use who remember, his character has taken a hit. In this case, it would have been better to keep his mouth shut than issue a denial that could be so easily refuted.

• Sylvain Grenier received somatropin, nandrolone, genotropin and stanozolol, starting in February 2005 through July 2006.

Since he was already released, all this probably means is another name. Well, that and the fact that he won't be back any time soon.

As mentioned above, this information coming to light is a major shot to both WWE's integrity as well as its credibility, and couldn't come at a worse time from the company's perspective. For the most part, the constant coverage of the ills of the business had quieted. They had a chance to go to Washington DC next month with very little buzz in the mainstream about the issue. Now, every media pundit who overzealously misquoted the facts in this story not only just received a clean slate but also now will seem believable again. WWE is quite truly at a crossroads in their business. The days of flying under the radar are gone. The genie is now out of the bottle and the company can't go back to business as usual if it wants to stay in business and/or avoid regulation from a government that will be skeptical of everything that they say going forward.

The one silver lining that can come out of this situation is that the days of the untalented, overdeveloped muscle man who can't work but looks good to the right people in power has to be over. The days when guys looking like neon signs also has to be over, no matter what strain this loss of talent will mean to the already hit and miss creative department . Hopefully, what it will mean is that as time goes by, the number of wrestlers who die well before their time will get lower and lower. If that can happen at least something positive can come out of this otherwise dark time in the business.

[thegame]

Save for Funaki and Helms and Regal no one on the list suprises me. Having Triple H and John Cena not on the list is perhaps WWE's biggest break here, but some lists have Batista, Morrisson, Edge, Kennedy and Orton among others. Thats 5 main event talents and 4 World Champs. To any of us who have followed wrestling for years if you take a step back here its easy to realize that its not much of a shock. Guys have been big, and nearly all stars who were in other companies and then came to WWE got bigger there. Think Triple H, Rey Mesterio, Eddie Gurrerro, Chris Benoit, King Booker. Look at these guys in other promotions, especially WCW. The interesting thing now will be to see if A: It transfers over into chants and signs and general awarness at live shows and B: How WWE reacts publicly to the released names. Will they corroborate? Deny? Say nothing? Vince McMahon, in my view, now faces a challange to his company as bad as his own steroid case and much worse than anything else he's overcome before or since.

[thegame]

Also I should have given props to daschuck77 for a great post above. Very true I think on all accounts.

One of the themes you talked about was the smaller guys getting bigger. Its been a pet peeve of mine forever. Even in the 90s when two of my favorites were HBK and Bret Hart there always seemed to be a push to get bigger and bigger if you were around 6 feet and 220 pounds. As I said above, look at Rey Mesterio, Benoit, Chavo and Eddie in WCW. They were great wrestlers but half the size. Booker T as well. Look, some of the guys on the list like Regal, Orton, Helms and Edge aren't as big right now as they have been, think Orton in Evolution, Edge after his return, Regal in 99-02 era, Helms has been consistent I think, but still it seems so senseless. And these guys are NOT staying healthy. WWE has had more big injuries recently than at any point during the Attitiude era or the NEW Generation era or the classic era. WCW never had this bad a rash of injuries either, and they worked a crazy schedule form 1995 to 2000. As I think more and more about this (I am a very big wrestling fan) it sickens me more and more.

[D-Rocafella]

If we find out very shortly that Orton, Morrison, Umanga, and Kennedy are all the positive testers and are all going to be suspended for a month I really don't know how Raw will go on. They would be left with Cena and HHH as the only main event talent and then Carlito as the next biggest name followed by Jeff Hardy and that would be it.

If it does indeed go down like this, the WWE would have to send either Batista or Kane to Raw to give them another main event player.

[daschuck77]

Your next World champion is going to be Paul London or something...

[thegame]

CM PUNK or Kevin Thorn on ECW and Jeff Hardy, Carlito or Shelton Benjamin for the IC Title.

[BF_in_Indiana]

Vince and his wrestlers should have taken the warning in the early 90's when the government came after them before. Instead they kept on with business as usual and I don't feel a bit sorry for them if they get nailed again.

Sure it's the nature of the business but when you know you are a target and still thumb your nose at the government you deserve what you get.

[JWatts]

This will be Orton's second offense, one more & he's gone for good. I think the champs will drop the titles at the next show (Raw, Smackdown, ECW) and I figure that Orton will get the holy hell beat out of him by Cena for last Monday night. Just a guess on my part about what will happen.

[daschuck77]

Seriously...Congress has to get involved with perfomance enhancing drugs in a bunch of acrobats?

There are way more things that are f'd up with this country that need to be addressed than this issue on the taxpayer dime.

[21]

It is about time the WWE cleans up it's act, though it has been pretty obvious these guys were on stuff for years. Hopefully they can move forward from this point with healthier and cleaner wrestlers. I haven't watched wrestling much in the last 7 years, and will probably continue to check in there and there, but it is a good move that needed to be made. Also, congress should really stick to issues that really need a looking at, not the WWE, MLB or any other entity that may have a steriod problem.

[Darksyde]

Hey i still watch wrestling.....and personally i could give 2 shits what the guys are on.

[Wing Eater]

Hey Undertaker is due back at Unforgiven, maybe it's time he unified all three titles to become the first ever Super Duper Undisputed Champion...lol

[daschuck77]

Since Morrison was involved and the findings...he dropped the title to CM Punk at a TV taping over the weekend.

And I GUARANTEE Umaga loses tomorrow night to Jeff Hardy on Raw as well since he was involved too...

[UBER PWNAGE]

Hey Undertaker is due back at Unforgiven, maybe it's time he unified all three titles to become the first ever Super Duper Undisputed Champion...lol

Yeah right....they still probably find a way to have ***** Cena retain the belt

[Wing Eater]

Rumor has it that one guy will not be suspended because he came clean to Vince before the article came out (rumored to be Orton) and that one guy will be suspended for 60 days for a second violation (rumored to be Masters).

For those not familiar one violation is a 30 day suspension, two violations is a 60 days suspension, and the third one means your fired.