Why Not Benoit?

Here's a thought for ya...

Pick a young wrestler you know right now on the local scene. One that's talented and determined to improve their craft... always working toward the day they work around the world as a WWE superstar. A youngster whose respect is evident... for the business, the fans, his fellow workers, the old timers.

Pick a guy like that, one you KNOW is all the things I just described.

Maybe you even know this young wrestler outside the ring, the man behind the character and you find he's just as deserving of respect for all those same things and more in his real life.

You like this wrestler's work and you genuinely LIKE the real man who is the wrestler.

You got a guy that fits all the above? A talented young wrestler who has all the tools to make it in the business? A likable, decent human being you have real affection for?

If you've been around at all as either a supporter or worker on the indy scene you must have met at least one individual who fits the above criteria.

For the sake of avoiding having to use the generic "young wrestler" for the duration of this exercise I'm going to pick a name from the local Ontario indy wrestling scene since that's where I hang out. (But you can pick whoever YOU know that fits the bill.)

So, for this little project in thought I'm going to select Sebastian Suave as the young wrestler. (There are other young wrestlers in Ontario that fit the above criteria but Suave's the one I picked.)

Sebastian Suave is talented and respectful. "Sebastian" is his legit name and Seb, as many call him, is a decent, honest and likable young man.

So... Imagine for a moment....

Sebastian gets an opportunity to tour Japan and enjoys great success in the rings there.

When he returns to North America he's snapped up by ROH and his success there is as great as that of his Japanese run (and all the sweeter because it's happening here!)

Next thing you know Sebastian is on TV for TNA winning titles and working PPVs

Then the Holy Grail... the WWE.

Sebastian debuts for THE Fed. He's on Monday Night RAW every week... Main Eventing WRESTLEMANIA!!!

Imagine how great that would make YOU feel. The young guy you knew and liked going on to become one of the most famous and respected wrestling superstars in the world!

I'll tell ya how it feels... it feels GREAT!

Sebastian in the WWE! Winning the world championship at Wrestle-fucking-mania! Owning RAW! Wrestling in front of millions of people!

Every single time you saw him on TV, on video, in magazines, live from the 87th row... You would remember the talented, decent and likable young man he was when you knew him 'back then'... and you would think...

It couldn't happen to a nicer kid.

And while fans around the world embraced Sebastian as their own YOU would always hold close to your heart, your feelings of fondness for the remarkable young man you knew before his ascent to superstar status began.

It is VERY cool when someone you know, or have watched develop and shared their early struggles (if only by watching them on numerous shows in small indy venues) makes it to the big time. Imagine if Sebastian did.

It's a pretty awesome fantasy isn't it?

Now imagine one day, with no prior warning at all... you wake up to discover Sebastian and his family are dead.

As more details emerge it becomes clear that Sebastian murdered his wife and son before ending his own life.

Imagine how that would make you feel.

THINK about it. Pretty fucked up, eh?

A murderer? Suicide? Sebastian Suave?

When the wrestling world erases Sebastian from history how are YOU gonna feel? YOU knew him as a talented, decent and likable young man. Are YOU going to erase THAT memory because of his ultimate end?

Now OF COURSE I'm not saying Sebastian Suave will go on to murder his family and then kill himself. I simply don't believe he would do such a thing.

Of course, I didn't believe Chris Benoit would do such a thing either. I can honestly say, the thought NEVER crossed my mind.

But he did, didn't he?

How the FUCK am I supposed to reconcile that fact with the talented, decent and likable young wrestler I used to know?

I don't think I ever will.

I often ask Why Benoit? and the answer, if you think about it, is Why not Benoit?

It was him but... it could have been anyone.

Same holds true for next time.