Big E has opened up on his decision to officially announce his retirement from pro wrestling.
In 2022, Big E’s in-ring career came to a sudden end during a match on SmackDown. The former WWE Champion was teaming up with Kofi Kingston in a tag match against Sheamus and Ridge Holland. The action spilled to the outside, and Holland delivered a Belly-to-Belly Suplex to Big E when disaster struck, and the New Day man landed awkwardly, breaking his neck.
The star was able to avoid surgery for the injury and continue to live his life pain-free, but in updates to fans, he played down the prospects of getting back into the ring. Then, on February 6th, Big E announced that his pro wrestling career was behind him in a post on social media.
In a new interview with The Takedown on SI, the star has given some insight into his decision to officially retire. He explained that, when the injury first happened four years ago, he thought it would only be eight weeks until he could get back in the mix.
“For me, especially when I first broke my neck, I really didn’t think a lot of it. I wasn’t in pain, I wasn’t concussed at all, I didn’t have any real nerve issues. I was like, ‘Okay, we’ll heal up.’ And they told me initially, I think it was eight weeks being in a neck brace, and you should be good to go.”
However, the break didn’t heal in a way that would allow him to compete again, and he says that one of his doctors even pleaded with him not to wrestle again even if her were to get cleared.
“My C1 was broken in two places, and oftentimes, when that happens, the C1 will heal like cartilage. So in those gaps, it’ll form cartilage instead of ossifying, instead of forming new bone.
“So after talking to [Dr. Juan Uribe] and a few other doctors, the doctor almost damn near begged me like, ‘Hey, please, even if you get your all go, you’re clear, you’re allowed to get back in the ring, please really reconsider it.'”
Much to the doctor’s relief, Big E let him know that he was already leaning towards finishing up with his pro wrestling career.
“And when I told him, ‘I think I’m definitely leaning towards being done,’ he almost quite literally breathed a sigh of relief. So for someone who’s been doing this for so long, who knows a lot more about spines and necks than I do, I definitely took heed.”
Big E also admitted that seeing some of the veterans dealing with their own past injuries helped him make the decision, saying it could be “sobering.”
“You see so many of the veterans, the legends, around WrestleMania, oftentimes that’s when you see a lot of the guys you don’t see year-round. And man, it’s sobering. So many of them, who aren’t even that old, are struggling with pain. Clearly not very ambulatory. They’re, they’re using walkers to get around.
“And man, I told myself, as much as I love my career, as much as I love being an athlete, I am really gambling with my health.”
While his pro wrestling career is over, Big E is still part of WWE and is regularly seen on TV as an analyst.
Big E Wants To Enter WWE Hall Of Fame With The New Day
Recently, Big E spoke about the prospect of entering the WWE Hall of Fame. While he has been successful as a singles star, Big E said his time with The New Day was the most rewarding part of his career. He explained that he and the group broke down barriers and surpassed records in their years together, and he feels that it changed the whole trajectory of his career.
