WWE’s John Cena Has New Concussion – Or ‘Concussion’

[posted 3/18/11 to http://wrestlingbabylon.wordpress.com]


A story is making the rounds that World Wrestling Entertainment star John Cena suffered a concussion on Monday night’s Raw show. The Concussion Blog even picked it up.

But since the source of the report is Cena’s own Twitter feed, I advise all readers to raise three fingers in front of your eyes and count them, to make sure you’re not seeing double yourselves. When real injuries occur in pro wrestling, they are usually covered up. When injuries are publicized, they’re usually part of the story line – in this case, hype for Cena’s match at WrestleMania against The Miz.

Here’s what Cena tweeted: “Sorry I have been away. Concussion on mon night from either del rio kick or mic shots. Took and passed IMPACT exam, rtg for fri!” and “Folks must take, and pass, post concussion in order to go back 2 work. I’m good and headed to CT.”

James Caldwell of Pro Wrestling Torch had this analysis at http://pwtorch.com/artman2/publish/WWE_News_3/article_48549.shtml: “If the concussion is legit or part of a storyline, at least Cena is drawing attention to and creating awareness for WWE’s concussion testing, which still needs work and more transparency, but is a significant development for the wrestling industry.”

If Dr. Joseph Maroon, WWE’s medical director, is allowing his imPACT concussion diagnostic system to be exploited with no medical basis, I would not be shocked. Maroon is the guy who last year told the Hartford Courant that WWE had “no talent now on steroids.” And in the 1980s, WWE’s Pennsylvania ring doctor, George Zahorian – who later did federal prison time for illegal steroid prescriptions and distribution, mostly to wrestlers – used to participate directly in televised “angles.”

For the record, we’ve been around on this whole subject before on this blog. See “Did He Or Didn’t He? John Cena’s Soap Opera Concussion,” January 11, 2010, http://wrestlingbabylon.wordpress.com/2010/06/11/did-he-or-didnt-he-john-cenas-soap-opera-concussion/. You’d think these people could come up with some new material.


Irv Muchnick