According to the Boston Globe, Johnathan “Balls Mahoney” Rechner and Brian “Axl Rotten” Knighton suffered from CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy) when they were alive. CTE is the new name for dementia pugilistica, which is brain damage caused by concussions and shots to the head.
This is the first time since 2009 that wrestlers who passed away have been diagnosed with the condition. The details were found in a postmortem examination. The condition was in the “early stages” in Axl Rotten’s brain. In 2009, Andrew “Test” Martin was diagnosed with CTE as well. Additionally, the most famous case of CTE is Chris Benoit, who brutally murdered his wife and child, followed by killing himself. WWE has refused to acknowledge these results, due to a missing chain of custody records which would prove Benoit’s samples had actually come from his brain.
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Presbyterian neuropathologist, Dr. Julia K. Kofler, has discovered the condition in both of them prior to Dr. Bennet Omalu confirming the news to the Globe.
Here’s the full article from the Boston Globe HERE.
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