As noted earlier, via Wrestling Observer Radio, there were people affected by the WrestleMania 36 spot where Randy Orton used a weight cable to hang WWE Hall of Famer Edge during their Last Man Standing match. The talk was that the spot was similar to how Chris Benoit killed himself with a weight cable, which was recently covered by Vice’s “Dark Side of the Ring” series.
It was reported by Fightful Select that they heard of no concerns raised backstage in regards to eliminating aspects of the Orton vs. Edge match for concerns over spots being compared to the Benoit tragedy. It should be noted that there were significantly less people around to see what the match consisted of because of the way the show was taped, and the people that were in attendance were tight-lipped about everything.
It was also reported by WOR that the match was sent to higher-ups in the company and they approved it for the final product, including the weight cable spot. While the spot may have offended some people, even some in WWE after it aired, no one that saw the match ahead of time felt like it was similar to the Benoit tragedy. It’s been noted by some that the higher-ups and the performers didn’t associate the spot with the tragedy.
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