Scientists Study Wrestler Chris Benoit’s Brain After Murder-Suicide

While anabolic steroids were the perceived culprit behind Canadian Pro Wrestler Chris Benoit’s tragic breakdown, a team of scientists who studied his brain says concussions from wrestling may have contributed to his mental problems.   

Benoit made ominous headlines when he killed his wife, his son and himself.

Doctors affiliated with the Sports Legacy Institute were given permission by Benoit’s father, Michael, to perform the tests.  Samples of his brain were provided by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.  The group found that repeated concussions could have contributed to the killings, although Dr. Robert Candu, chief of neurosurgery service at Emerson Hospital in Concord, Mass., said doubts still remain.

“Whether it is the sole factor I believe is speculation and I will not go there,” Cantu said, before adding that the level of brain damage Benoit had can cause depression and irrational behaviour. 

Michael Benoit said his son told him he suffered numerous concussions, but added he knows of no medical records or records kept by the wrestling league to support the claim.

Steroids have also been suspected as a contributing factor since the muscle-building drugs were found in Benoit’s home and tests showed he had roughly 10 times the normal level of testosterone in his system when he died.

But Benoit’s father seems to think wrestling itself played a role.

“I think it’s the extreme that is in the wrestling industry today,” he said. “The human skull is not built to get hit by a chair or something.”