Ring of Hell: The Story of Chris Benoit & The Fall of the Pro Wrestling Industry

by Matthew Randazzo V

In the notoriously crooked and exploitative world of professional wrestling, WWE legend Chris Benoit was supposed to be the exception. Chris was universally recognized as the best pro wrestling had to a decent, humble, and devoted family man loved and admired by all who knew him. Nobody could have predicted the horrific events of June 22-24, 2007 when Chris strangled his wife and seven-year old son before committing suicide. RING OF HELL is the true story of Benoit's journey through the destructive, dysfunctional, and bizarre pro wrestling industry and the catastrophic physical and mental breakdown that led to his grisly end.

One of the best books ever written about professional wrestling certainly the best ever written by a non-wrestler. (Shelton Hull, Columnist for Folio Weekly)

Were it not for fact that pro wrestling is the redheaded stepchild of American society, Randazzo would likely be up for a Pulitzer Prize for the journalism contained in this book.... This book sets a new standard for exposing the truth about pro wrestling, one that may never be topped and certainly won't be anytime soon. (Rick Morris, Sports Talk Network radio host and McGraw-Hill business journalist.)

While dissecting what made Chris Benoit tick, Matthew Randazzo takes a scathing look at the sleazy manner in which the pro-wrestling business operates. Randazzo adroitly exposes the elements that contributed to Benoit's demise. So much sordid behavior is described from Benoit's time in WWE and the now-defunct World Championship Wrestling that hard-partying rock stars seem like choirboys in comparison. (Alex Marvez, columnist for Fox Sports and Scripps-Howard News Service.)

I know [Matthew Randazzo V], and he is legit. For an outsider to the industry, if that's the correct term, he seemed to have more access to inside info than all but a few people. No matter what the book says about this period [in wrestling], it's a viewpoint that should be looked at and thought about. (Dave Meltzer, Yahoo! Sports and Editor of The Wrestling Observer.)

It's an amazing story well-told and an honest look inside a brutal and backwards business. (Jon Snowden, author of Total MMA and editor of the Total MMA Newsletter)

Randazzo takes a scalpel to the dark underbelly of the wrestling business and slices away with a butcher's intensity and surgeon's skill and carves out a tale of desperation, frustration, misplaced loyalties and heartbreak. (Dan Madigan, former World Wrestling Entertainment writer, and author of Mondo Lucha a Go-Go and the 2006 feature film See No Evil.)

Matthew Randazzo has written a great pro wrestling book that requires no knowledge of the business. But if you are a fan, there's a deeper experience to be gained. Ring of Hell challenges your perception of these heels and high-flyers and confronts you with the flesh-and-blood price paid for your precious childhood memories. (Chad Damiani, former World Championship Wrestling announcer.)

Ring Of Hell is an unfiltered, unbiased look into the world of professional wrestling and sheds light upon the shortcomings of an industry that has shrouded itself in paranoid secrecy for years. A must-read book for anyone. (Domenic Cotter, former World Wrestling Entertainment producer.)

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports, Biography, True Crime, Crime, Biography Memoir

352 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2008

About the author

Born and raised in New Orleans, MRV is the author of four books, including 2010's Godfather Knows Best with Johnny Fratto, the first book signed to Igniter, the HarperCollins imprint of superstar authors Neil Strauss and Anthony Bozza. His latest release Breakshot: A Life in the 21st Century American Mafia is the incredible true story of Kenny Kenji Gallo, the Japanese-American criminal mastermind who became the most controversial gangster in the history of the modern American Mafia."

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Ring of Hell" was supposed to be telling of the story of professional wrestler Chris Benoit. Some of you that watch the news might remember his name. He's the wrestler that went nuts, killed his wife and child and then himself. No one really knows why he did these horrible things but it does seem that steroids and drug abuse and the physical abuse his body took during his career has something to do with his madness.
It was sort of an interesting read if you still have interest in professional wrestling. It was reasonably well written. It's hard to read a book that's supposedly journalistic in nature when the author obviously has a bias. I'd have preferred that Randazzo would've just told the stories he was told rather than characterize the players in them as dupes or devils or whatever other things he called them. I'm sure some of the things in the book were true but far too many of the quotes were from anonymous sources and stories told by people that weren't actually present when they happened.
Randazzo quite obviously thinks wrestling promoters are evil, wrestlers themselves are idiots and wrestling fans are ignorant schmucks. It's not a great selling point when you look down your nose at the very people you want to buy your book. I'm glad I read it but I'm also glad I didn't buy it.

[Julia Harper · Rating 3 out of 5]

This past December I started reading about CTE. The majority of what I’ve read is centered around the NFL, for obvious and well-deserved reasons. Though common in other sports, the only non-football case consistently mentioned in everything I read and watched was Chris Benoit. I knew who that was and what he did as I watched wrestling as a child (though I only ever cared about the Undertaker). When his brain was examined post-mortem, it was discovered his CTE was so extreme that they were amazed he even made it to 40. I began watching a show entitled, “The Dark Side of the Ring.” In the 2-part episode about Benoit, one of the experts they had was Matthew Randazzo V, the author of this book. He had good insights and knew the info down pat, so I decided to look into his book. The book was very entertaining and held my interest the entire time. Randazzo definitely did his research, the background he gives on pro wrestling is extensive. This mixed with the chosen writing style make it easily enjoyable, even for those who know absolutely nothing about the industry. The Benoit story also features a lot of other pro wrestlers, and whenever mentioned, Randazzo gives detailed synopses about these figures.

All that being said, I’m only giving 3 stars because the overall tone of the book was extremely biased. I personally believe some sort of bias is almost impossible to avoid when writing nonfiction. I also immensely dislike the WWE and pro wrestling. I find it to be, for lack of a better word, stupid. I think sacrificing your body, mind, and life for a sport is absurd, especially when it’s all staged like professional wrestling is. I also understand his extreme criticism of Benoit, his actions, and the people/industry that made him into the monster he became. What Benoit did was inexcusable and horrid.

Remember this when I say Randazzo could be too biased and it overshadowed the facts of the book.

A lot of people involved in the WWE/this book are assholes, but he was unnecessarily mean about people who did nothing wrong. A good amount of the harsh things he said had nothing to do with what Benoit did. There were many times while reading that I found myself thinking, “that was too much.” This book is great as far as detailed history reporting goes. The research Randazzo did was fantastic. Even still, his negative statements on those who didn’t deserve it/things unrelated to Benoit’s actions became excessively mean. He was definitely not unbiased and seems to revel in that. His bias was so prevalent that it overshadowed the amazing research he did. This book definitely has an agenda, leading to me giving the book only 3 stars. I was looking more for a book based in objective fact.

What happened to Nancy and Daniel Benoit was awful. Within true crime we must ultimately remember the victims. What’s most important about this book and discussion is that they are remembered and honored.

Nancy and Daniel Benoit, may you rest peacefully.

[Matt Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not an easy book to read, but it exposes some of the harsh realities of professional wrestling/sports-entertainment that fans and those working in the business refuse to accept. It was biased at times, but well-researched and well-written.

[rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

CONTENT WARNING: This book is about a man who killed his wife and small son and I'll be discussing that a little bit in this review.

I became a wrestling fan in 2018 so I didn't live through what happened with Chris Benoit. I heard about it at the time of course but I have no idea what it would've been like if I was a fan at the time, or if Chris Benoit had been a wrestler I really liked. I read about it on Wikipedia and heard about it sometimes (but not often) from other fans online but it's not something people really want to talk about.

I watched the Dark Side of the Ring episodes on Benoit, deciding I had to know more than I already did if I was going to fully understand the current state of pro wrestling. This book was mentioned in the documentary, so I bought it.

For the most part this is an incredibly informative biography that taught me more than I ever hoped to learn from it about the history of the wrestling industry and how that related to Chris Benoit and his downfall. It has some flaws however: for one thing it includes sensationalized details that I simply do not believe (such as the bruising on Daniel Benoit's face indicating Chris killed his son with his signature wrestling move and that he injected Daniel with human growth hormone) and honestly, I don't think the writer believed them either. It just made things seem more horrific, which was completely unnecessary.

The author also has serious issues with how he talks about women, fat people, and the mentally ill. For long stretches the book would be very readable and clean and then he'd make some obscene remark like referring to female sex workers as "ogresses".

However, the author and I reached similar conclusions about the state of the wrestling industry in the mid-2000s and the effect it had on Chris Benoit. Benoit himself is ultimately responsible for what happened, but there's no denying that Vince McMahon and every other promoter who encouraged Benoit to continue diving headfirst into the mat every night has blood on their hands too.

The concluding paragraph sums it up best:

"The devil doesn't make anyone sell his soul. He simply makes such a compelling offer that the desperate, the dumb, and the dysfunctional agree to do so of their own volition. To my knowledge Vince McMahon has never killed anyone, but he has unapologetically tempted hundreds who don't know any better to pursue their own destruction and death for his financial profit."

[ElphaReads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Generally I thought this was a pretty comprehensive overview of not only the Nancy and Daniel Benoit murders, but also of Chris Benoit's life and timeline leading up to the crimes and the general pro-wrestling industry. I think that it raises some really good points about how unethical, brutal, violent, and corrupt the pro wrestling industry (especially Vince McMahon and WWE) can be, and I have no problems with Randazzo calling the McMahon family out on their selfish and sociopathic actions, or calling out Benoit in general even before he murdered his family. But I did find that a lot of the time a lot of mud was slung at lots of people in or peripheral to the industry just for the sake of slinging mud at pro wrestlers and those who associate with them, and painting most of them as psychopaths or idiots. Overall I thought it was worth the read, but some parts of it didn't sit SUPER well with me. That said I did cackle when he basically flat out said that the world would have been a better place if McMahon died years ago, because DAMN DUDE, tell us how you REALLY feel!

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an adult pro wrestling fan, you eventually have to come to grips with just how damaging the lifestyle is for the participants and how horrible some aspects of the business are for those trying to succeed.

This book is excellent in its research and exploration of how wrestling can be fraught with sadistic individuals that are only too willing to prey upon those hoping to "live their dreams." What happened with Chris Benoit, his wife and young son was tragic in every sense of the word, but, as the book details, how can you not expect such an insane demise for individuals participating within such an insane world? As each part of Chris Benoit's career is detailed - starting in Stu Hart's "Dungeon," idolizing "The Dynamite Kid" (a woefully tragic individual in his own right), working within the Stampede Wrestling Promotion, moving on to Japan and then ultimately becoming a star in the ECW, WCW and WWE promotions - you see how a naive individual participates in ritualized abuse and then succumbs when steroid and medication abuse compounds the damage received over multiple years.

So, as a wrestling fan, you cannot help but read this book and feel at fault for helping to perpetuate an industry where far too many individuals never make it to 50 years of age (and those that do are usually fractured and barely able to function).

So it was for that detailed examination I greatly enjoyed the book (especially the sections regarding Japanese wresting and its ties to organized crime as it was both informative and quite chilling). My main misgiving with the book was the complete and utter disdain for the subject matter. I am by no means trying to champion a murderer, far from it, but given all of the detailed information about the suffering endured each and every step of the way towards Pro Wrestling success, is it really that surprising that Chris Benoit, like so many before him, became another victim (before horrifically making his wife and son victims too)? Throughout the book, the anger towards Benoit and all wrestlers tended to cheapen the valuable information shared and I think that the book would have been all the stronger if the harsh criticism had been reduced.

So I heartily recommend this book for revealing multiple blemishes of the Pro Wrestling industry, I just wish that the extremely dismissive tone had been reduced in order to allow the reader to review the facts ultimately reach the intended conclusion on their own.

[Justin Hullinger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much more focused on Benoit's life rather than on its end. It makes it clear what it feels led to his horrendous actions, which is a cold and solitary personality as well as building problems from numerous and un-healed concussions.

I'm glad the book took the the approach it did, as the sections covering The Dynamite Kid, Stampede Wrestling, and New Japan were fascinating and shocking (without feeling like some sort of lurid tell-all). There were questionable sections, though, like when it briefly hinted at the annoying and disgusting rumor of an incestuous relationship between WWE CEO Vince McMahon and his daughter Stephanie.

All in all, one of the better wrestling books I've read, and a pretty easy read.

[Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

The single best book about a sport I've ever read. It is chilling. I actually makes you understand how completely f'd up the lives of professional wrestlers are and how the industry uses and exploits them.

[Sign Guy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was pretty well researched, but it was written by a man who, obviously, did not enjoy or truly understand the wrestling buisness.

[Brett buckner · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author's hatred of wrestling and his childish, opinionated rants greatly diminish what could have been a very good book about a tragic figure's willingness to accomplish his dreams at any cost.

[Vern Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

All those "Benoit for the Hall of Fame" type of fans will probably not like this book, nor will those who have a hard time separating the art from the artist, However I am a wrestling fan for WWE and AEW! Before I read this book, I’ve read a few Chris Benoit books but they hardly detail him and his wife before the weekend of June 21, 2007. So I kept returning them and trying to figure out how Benoit committed the acts. Then in March 2020, I saw Matthew Randazzo V on Autopsy: The Last Hours of Chris Benoit, and Dark Side of the Ring documentary involving Chris Benoit. In part 2 of the documentary, He described in graphic detail how Chris committed the acts before taking his life. I’ve only read three chapters of this book and I am still proceeding to Chris Benoit’s years and last hours in June 2007. I learned a few things: Chris took steroids by the time he was a teenager (the most detrimental thing a teenager can do), he idolized the Dynamite Kid (which lead to Chris’ physical and mental deterioration by the time he hit 40), the industry never cares about the physical, mental and emotional problems the wrestlers are experiencing, and wrestlers hardly see or help their families while traveling on the road wrestling 300+ days a year. If you go further in the book, it details Chris Benoit and the horrible, senseless, violent, and brutal acts that occurred during the last weekend of his life. I would like to thank Matthew Randazzo V for doing great work on the book! This book is the key to saving your child, friend, and loved one who might pursue wrestling! Please read the book and don’t stop til you reach the last chapter!

[Pedro Benoliel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Poorly written gossip from a heap of 'anonymous sources', with zero journalistic integrity (the author does not hesitate to reveal names he clearly states were asked to remain anonymous, for the sake of twisting a knife into somebody he does not like) written by someone who comes across as being a few personal choices away from helming a lifestyle column. The type of book one hides the cover of in polite company, to avoid questions, and feels dirty reading even on their own - but from which, like a car crash in progress, one cannot look away.
Less gung-ho wrestling fans will likely finish this book ashamed of ever having liked the 'sport', after learning what absolute manchildren the athletes are, and how tyrannical and slave-driving the bosses, and frequent readers might also be mildly annoyed at the frequent typos and descent into smart-aleck, early-200o's-blog writing: in the end, however, the content is simply too horrifyingly riveting to withdraw from. So THIS is why people like true-crime documentaries!

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must-read book for any fans of indie and/or pro wrestling. Although the book focuses on the career and death of Chris Benoit, the majority of the book is an expose and tell-all about the pro wrestling business. I learned so much about the wrestlers I love (and hate) and the industry as a whole. Although the subject matter at times is very heavy, Randazzo is a hilarious writer, and made this easy and fun to read. An example of his writing is:

"The wisecracking, comparatively lazy duo of Jericho and Malenko traveled together, and the grimly determined wrestling nuts Benoit and Guerrero form a feedback loop of obsession, frustration, and resentment. Today, one pair is financially secure and in good health; the other pair suffered from enormous amounts of drugs and periods of suicidal depression, eventually finding the hell out of Jesus and dying by the age of forty" (p. 227).

There focus of the book is less about the actual crime Benoit perpetrated, and more about the industry and his personal psychology that led up to that point. Highly recommended.

[Pablo Ramos Figueroa · Rating 5 out of 5]

El autor es un tanto insensible a veces con algunos personajes secundarios, pero aún así esto es un 10/10 para mí.

Mola bastante como hace malabares con "la culpa es de Chris Benoit", "la culpa es de Vince McMahon" y "la culpa es de la industria de la lucha libre". Todo esto sin llegar nunca a justificar lo que hizo Benoit.

Un libro muyuuuuyyyuuyyuyuyuy entretenido sobre una historia muyuuuyuyyyuyuuuyy macabra. Y real. Es que recuerdo tener 10 años y verlo en el periódico de putísima casualidad. Es muy fuerte.

Me encantaría una biopic de esto al estilo de Foxcatcher, es una historia increíble.

[Danny H · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a page turner. I was hooked. It went into very deep detail about Chris’s whole career. Some of the stories were so outrageous that you’re thinking “that cannot be true”. But for the most part he has good, well-cited sources. The end was anti-climactic because he actually didn’t talk very much about the murder-suicide. Also of note, you’ll learn a lot about other wrestling personalities like Vince McMahon and Dynamite Kid.

[Daniel Scarpati · Rating 4 out of 5]

Deeeep dive into the world of wrestling. Surprisingly focuses much more on the history and lore of Stampede, New Japan Pro and the older territories. The Benoit fanily tragedy serves as the backdrop all the while. But like wrestling itself, I'm not sure how much is real or can be taken seriously.... So many, many "he said, she said" moments, etc. Lots of anonymous voices. Still entertaining.

[Troy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I remember being so excited to read this back in 2008, but right away it was obvious that this book was a cash grab from the get-go in a race to publish something about Benoit's heinous act. Hardly any depth in this one.

[Gabriel Ramos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great eye opening book

[Janet Conaci · Rating 3 out of 5]

It has a lot of good information and insight, but the author definitely seems to detest wrestling and has a clear bias.

[Tara]

Borrowed from Illinois library.

[Nicole Jasinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a hard read some of it would trail off and not really follow what you think the book is about but it’s sad and wrestling is a horrible business back then

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

With this book apparently being adapted into a film, perhaps it's time to read it. I think I avoided it at the time of its release because, as a diehard wrestling fan, I felt really worn-out by all the Benoit coverage at the time and thought of this as a tawdry cash-in (you know, like all the OJ Simpson books or other books taking advantage of some sensationalized media story). But if it's been optioned for a movie, there might be something to do it, who knows. Will report back later.


AFTER READING:

It's better than I thought, but not without issues. The author clearly has an ax to grind and a heavy anti-wrestling bias, yet also seems to know quite a bit about the industry and can distinguish between a "good" and "bad" match and appreciate what wrestlers do in the ring (he uses words like "excellent" and "classic" to describe a few of Benoit's matches).

As a fan for 25-plus years, there wasn't much here that shocked or surprised me (even the scummier bits), but certainly I can imagine casual fans or non-fans reading this and thinking "whoa - what a shitty business." Which, in some ways is true - it's hard to disagree with one of the central ideas in this book, that wrestlers sacrifice their bodies on behalf of heartless promoters who care not for their lack of insurance, time off, etc.

The book for the most part follows Benoit's story closely, yet can't help going off into sleazy tangents, which, while true and somewhat supportive of its main point, seems exploitative and excessive at times. I also take some issue with his reliance on anonymous sources, though I can understand how that happens.

Anyway, it's not quite a tawdry cash-in, but there are better serious books about wrestling out there - "Sex Lies and Headlocks" being the main one. I'd read that first, then this.

[Tripp · Rating 3 out of 5]

When people think of exploitative industries, the first that comes to mind is generally porn. According to Matthew Randazzo V in his Ring of Hell: The Story of Chris Benoit; the Fall of the Pro Wrestling Industry, one should think of pro wrestling in the same light. He portrays a world in which sadism, substance and steroid abuse and self-inflicted torture are not just tolerated but celebrated. Ranging from Canada's Hart House, with its Dungeon, to the yakuza managed New Japan Pro Wrestling league to the mania of the American wrestling scene, the book is a story of degradation where some, like Hulk Hogan, manage to make millions, while others die in their thirties from the physical and drug wear.

The relatively small Chris Benoit, who Randazzo portrays as both a cruel sadist and maniacally driven was about as small as someone could be and still work in pro wrestling. Of course he became an avid steroid user, and as was well publicized, he killed his wife and young son, using the skills he learned in the ring. The book though isn't a true crime book. The focus of the book is not Benoit's crime, which gets only a few pages, but the crimes of the industry as a whole.

Wrestling fans will likely either eat up the large amounts of industry gossip or be repulsed at the depiction of their favorite form of entertainment as a cesspool. Non-wrestling fans will find more reasons not to watch or attend matches. Befitting the topic, the language in the book is more than a little rough, so be warned.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chris Benoit in June of 2007 killed his wife and son before killing himself. The thesis of RIng of Hell by Matthew Randazzo V is that the stresses of being a pro-wrestler contributed to Benoit's breakdown.

Ring of Hell isn't about the murder as it is about the pro-wrestling. The book outlines the history of the "sport" and its mob ties and the ways in which the stars are encouraged to bulk up on steroids and to self medicate their injuries with alcohol and pain killers and illegal drugs.

From all accounts, Benoit didn't start out as one of those who was a partier or a user. He did however use steroids to bring his light weight frame up in bulk so he'd be able to wrestle. Years of nothing but travel under poor conditions, constantly taking a beating for a sport he loved and the stress of trying to prove himself and reinvent himself, he finally was broken by the lifestyle he loved and had sacrificed for his entire adult life.

I'm not a pro wrestling fan. I've never watched a match. I wasn't expecting to like the book. In the end I came away having learned a lot about pro wrestling (but I still don't want to watch it!) and found the book to be well written. It has a nice balance of background information for novices like me and specifics for fans who might read the book as well.

[Mickey · Rating 4 out of 5]

All adults know that pro wrestling is staged, but this book provides a good insight into the cold and callous nature of the business behind the scenes; the politics, the necessary drug use, both for physical size, endurance and pain management to the mental and physical deterioration that it leads to. It will give viewers who watch pro wrestling a better knowledge of the effort and toll that it takes to make it to super stardom. It's an industry that certainly needs to be thoroughly investigated and changed.

Surprisingly after reading this book, boxing and the UFC seem like they would make for safer career pursuits, and in the book there is a line where an ex bodyguard for rock bands who turned pro wrestler claims that even rock stars who are infamously known for partying hard are tame compared to pro wrestlers. I have a new found respect, but also sympathy for what these guys go through

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was a look at the professional wrestling world from author Matthew Randazzo. He did a ton of research and interviews with wrestlers, writers and other people involved currently or while Chris Benoit was wrestling telling the stories that go on out of the view of fans. If you enjoy wrestling and want to know the difference between Japanese, Mexico, Indies, and WWE/WCW you may find this book interesting. I do not this this would be a good book for someone who does not follow pro wrestling as a fan. It is a tell all to the degree that some people interviewed give their names and some others have interviewed with the promise of anonymity.

[Steven Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was recommended this book in order to read something about the wrestling industry as a whole. This is a great example of that and it is woven through the story of an underdog which ends in tragedy. From a bit of history that follows the growth of the sport to the personal tale of Benoit I was never bored reading this. It details the struggles of a man trying to make it in his dream but it also gives insight into the minds of the men who provide this high profile entertainment and the major players in the industry. How the pressure and expectations combined with the drive for excellence can damage a man. If you have any interest in wrestling at all this is a must read.

[Stoney · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think this book was terrible. It is full of opinions and very little fact. It degrades wrestlers and promoters and obviously is written to condemn anyone related to pro wrestling. Please don't misunderstand IF Benoit did murder his family it is horrible but degrading him and his career does nothing. There is a lot of people and evidence he did not none of which is explore dead in fact very little about the murders is explored other than posting the finger at mr benoit and steroids. I don't know if he did or did not but I was hoping to be able to uncover a story that gave facts here and explored this tragedy with an open mind and a open investigation. Unfortunately this is NOT that book.

[Arlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading a book about the death of a wrestler that you were a fan of is very hard.
Even harder is the fact that you learn things about him that you never wanted to know or knew.
Mr. Benoit's life is this book is nothing like the person you saw on TV each week up until late June 2007.

What the author does with this book is not make a case for Benoit, but he lays the facts of how he got started, his obsession with the Dynamite Kid that was never explained and how Benoit treated others.

Not only is it an eye opener to fans of the sport, but also fans of him as well.

[Lou · Rating 5 out of 5]

A disturbing look into the life of one of the most technically sound wrestlers of this generation. It explains what may have led to Chris Benoit's double murder suicide that shocked wrestling fans all over the world. Years of drug and steroid abuse combined with dozens of concussions for a business that is darker than could be imagined, made this man gradually snap. Disturbing and heart wrenching.