At Ring of Honor’s Death Before Dishonor XV event on Friday, Jay Briscoe turned on teammate Bully Ray during their six-man tag team title shot against The Hung Bucks (The Young Bucks and Adam “Hangman” Page). When Ray called for the tables, as he’s done so many times in his career before, Briscoe threw it at him – and the edge caught him square in the forehead.
What is going through @jaybriscoe84 mind?!?! #ROHDBDpic.twitter.com/wVlc4WTLiS
— ROH Wrestling (@ringofhonor) September 23, 2017
While the spot certainly looked bad, it wasn’t until a day later that we learned, courtesy of Tommy Dreamer, that Ray had suffered a serious concussion and spent the night in the ER.
Spent the night in ER @bullyray5150
He got his bell rung again
Concerned for him— Tommy Dreamer (@THETOMMYDREAMER) September 23, 2017
Thanks for the well wishes. Much appreciated. Was a long night and a rough day so far. Wish I could say I was doing better.
— Bubba Ray Dudley (@bullyray5150) September 23, 2017
Bubba Ray opened up further about the injury on Sirius XM’s Busted Open Radio Tuesday – and the prognosis isn’t good:
Confirming he spent Friday night in the emergency room, he said doctors have advised him to avoid getting over-excited and being around loud noises. He was also asked if he has concerns about wrestling again after this incident and responded “so much so that I’m not even sure if my career should continue.”
This is sad news for a seasoned veteran like Ray, but of course, he should put his health first. It’s no secret that concussions are a huge problem in pro wrestling; a long history of concussions famously forced Daniel Bryan to retire from in-ring competition in 2016. Also in 2016, 51 retired wrestlers sued WWE over CTE injuries they reportedly incurred from wrestling.
WWE banned shots to the head a long time ago, but they’re still permitted in ROH. Unless they want to risk retiring another star, perhaps they should consider banning headshots, as well.
Do you think Ring of Honor should ban headshots in the wake of Bully Ray’s concussion? Share your thoughts and comments below!