PWTorch.com - WWE REPORT: Tyson Kidd's survival and a call for change

WWE News
WWE REPORT: Tyson Kidd's survival and a call for change

Jul 10, 2015 - 12:56:57 PM

PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO BOOKMARK US & VISIT US DAILY

By James Caldwell, PWTorch assistant editor

Tyson Kidd is fortunate to be alive. And WWE is fortunate that Kidd did not have a fatal injury in the ring at the June 1 Raw TV taping in San Antonio, Texas.

More information has come out this week about the severity of Kidd's injury, which was linked to Kidd taking a Musclebuster from Samoa Joe in a dark match at the TV taping.

"5% of people survive this injury. 16 staples, 4 screws, and a rod later and luckily I survived to tell my story," Kidd tweeted on Monday about his neck surgery.

Kidd survived because the injury was high enough that his muscular neck helped protect his body, reported the Wrestling Observer this week.

The injury also points back to WWE's handling of TV tapings. Most people know about Creative scrambling to get the TV product finalized on the day of TV tapings, but what goes unnoticed is how it affects wrestlers's ability to prepare for their matches.

In this case, Samoa Joe was brought to TV to wrestle a dark match and, according to Bret Hart, there was not enough time for Joe and Kidd to prepare.

“I only know that he’s hurt pretty bad and they’re crossing their fingers,” Hart told Sports Illustrated last month before Kidd had surgery. “I’m not sure if he’s going to need surgery, but it seems to me there was a lot of poor planning involved in that injury. I don’t know whose fault it is or why an injury like that happened, but someone is accountable. The WWE has done a lot in the last few years to improve conditions for wrestlers. They have doctors there and they give wrestlers adequate time to prepare, but in looking at what happened with Tyson Kidd, clearly there is still a lot of room for improvement.”

Hart added: "The move that Samoa Joe did was reckless, and the way they rushed that match beforehand in the back without giving Tyson time to prepare was mistake. Tyson is, pound for pound, one of the best wrestlers in the world. And that includes his mind. If you went behind the scenes at WWE, Tyson is an intricate piece of so many other matches. It’s a shame that a guy who is that talented and given so much to the company is hurt, but I just hope it’s not so serious that his career is over."

Caldwell's Analysis: Cleaning up the Creative process to improve the TV product is one matter on its own. But when it could be seen as flowing into wrestler health issues, steps definitely need be taken to improve the process. With constant changes to the Creative team, the departures of key writers, the bureaucratic nature of Creative, and WWE having weekly shows without breaks, WWE has not put itself in position for a needed overhaul. But, after Kidd's injury, even if it's viewed as a "freak accident," it's time for WWE to take a hard look at their procedures, especially on the day of TV.