Christopher Michael Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler.
96 Facts About Chris Benoit
2.
Chris Benoit was a two-time world champion, having reigned as a one-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, and a one-time World Heavyweight Champion in WWE; he was booked to win a third world championship at a WWE event on the night of his death.
3.
Chris Benoit was the twelfth WWE Triple Crown Champion and the seventh WCW Triple Crown Champion, and the second of four men in history to achieve both the WWE and WCW Triple Crown Championships.
4.
Chris Benoit was the 2004 Royal Rumble winner, joining Shawn Michaels and preceding Edge as one of three men to win a Royal Rumble as the number one entrant.
5.
Chris Benoit headlined multiple pay-per-views for WWE, including a victory in the World Heavyweight Championship main event match of WrestleMania XX in March 2004.
6.
Subsequent research undertaken by the Sports Legacy Institute suggested that depression and chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a condition of brain damage, from numerous concussions that Chris Benoit had sustained during his professional wrestling career were both likely contributing factors of the crimes.
7.
Chris Benoit has been renowned by many for his exceptional technical wrestling ability.
8.
Chris Benoit was inducted into the Stampede Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1995 and the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 2003.
9.
Chris Benoit's WON induction was put to a referendum-style re-vote for WON readers in 2008 to determine if he should remain a member of the WON Hall of Fame.
10.
Ultimately, the threshold percentage of votes required to remove Chris Benoit was not met and he still remains in that Hall of Fame.
11.
Chris Benoit was born in Montreal, Quebec, the son of Michael and Margaret Chris Benoit.
12.
Chris Benoit grew up in Edmonton, Alberta, from where he was billed throughout the bulk of his career.
13.
Chris Benoit trained to become a professional wrestler in the Hart family "Dungeon", receiving education from family patriarch Stu Hart.
14.
In-ring, Chris Benoit emulated both Billington and Bret Hart, cultivating a high-risk style and physical appearance more reminiscent of the former.
15.
Chris Benoit began his career in 1985, in Stu Hart's Stampede Wrestling promotion.
16.
Chris Benoit's debut match was a tag team match on November 22,1985, in Calgary, Alberta, where he teamed with "The Remarkable" Rick Patterson against Butch Moffat and Mike Hammer, which Benoit's team won the match after Benoit pinned Moffat with a sunset flip.
17.
The first title Chris Benoit ever won was the Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship on March 18,1988, against Gama Singh.
18.
In 1989, Stampede closed its doors, and with a recommendation from Bad News Allen, Chris Benoit departed for New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
19.
Chris Benoit made his Japanese debut in 1986 under his real name.
20.
Chris Benoit said numerous times that he originally hated the mask, but it eventually became a part of him.
21.
Chris Benoit eventually lost the title in November 1990 back to Liger, forcing him to reinvent himself as Wild Pegasus.
22.
Chris Benoit spent the next couple years in Japan, winning the Best of the Super Juniors tournament twice in 1993 and 1995.
23.
Chris Benoit went on to win the inaugural Super J-Cup tournament in 1994, defeating Black Tiger, Gedo, and The Great Sasuke in the finals.
24.
Chris Benoit wrestled outside New Japan occasionally to compete in Mexico and Europe, where he won a few regional championships, including the UWA Light Heavyweight Championship.
25.
Chris Benoit held that title for over a year, having many forty-plus minute matches with Villano III.
26.
Chris Benoit first came to World Championship Wrestling in June 1992, teaming up with fellow Canadian wrestler Biff Wellington for the NWA World Tag Team Championship tournament; they were defeated by Brian Pillman and Jushin Thunder Liger in the first round at Clash of the Champions XIX.
27.
Chris Benoit did not return to WCW until January 1993 at Clash of the Champions XXII, defeating Brad Armstrong.
28.
Chris Benoit was booked as a dominant wrestler there, gaining notoriety as the "Crippler" after he put Rocco Rock out.
29.
The injury came when Chris Benoit threw Sabu with the intention that he take a face-first "pancake" bump, but Sabu attempted to turn mid-air and take a backdrop bump instead.
30.
Chris Benoit did not achieve full rotation and landed almost directly on his neck.
31.
Chris Benoit spent some time in ECW feuding with The Steiner Brothers and rekindling the feud with 2 Cold Scorpio.
32.
Chris Benoit was forced to leave ECW after his work visa expired; Heyman was supposed to renew it, but he failed to make it on time, so Benoit left ECW in August 1995 as a matter of job security and the ability to enter the United States.
33.
New Japan Pro-Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling had a working relationship, and because of their "talent exchange" program, Chris Benoit signed with WCW in late 1995 along with a number of talent working in New Japan to be a part of the angle.
34.
Chris Benoit was brought in to add a new dynamic for Anderson and Flair's tormenting of Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage in their "Alliance to End Hulkamania", which saw the Horsemen team up with The Dungeon of Doom, but that alliance ended with Dungeon leader and WCW booker, Kevin Sullivan feuding with Pillman.
35.
When Pillman abruptly left the company for the WWF, Chris Benoit was placed into his ongoing feud with Sullivan.
36.
In 1998, Benoit had a long feud with Booker T They fought over the WCW World Television Championship until Booker lost the title to Fit Finlay.
37.
Chris Benoit went up 3 to 1 before Booker caught up, forcing the 7th and final match on Monday Nitro.
38.
Chris Benoit refused to win that way and told the referee what happened, getting himself disqualified.
39.
In 1999, Chris Benoit teamed with Dean Malenko and defeated Curt Hennig and Barry Windham to win the WCW World Tag Team Championship.
40.
In October 1999 on Nitro in Kansas City, Missouri, Chris Benoit wrestled Bret Hart as a tribute to Bret's brother Owen Hart, who had recently died due to an equipment malfunction.
41.
However, due to disagreements with management and to protest the promotion of Kevin Sullivan to head booker, Chris Benoit left the company the next day alongside his friends Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, and Perry Saturn, forfeiting his title in the process.
42.
Chris Benoit spent the next few weeks in Japan before heading to the WWF, who acknowledged his WCW World Heavyweight Championship win and presented him as a former world champion.
43.
Chris Benoit joined the World Wrestling Federation near the end of its Attitude Era.
44.
On both occasions Chris Benoit appeared to have won the title, only to have the decision reversed by then-WWF commissioner Mick Foley due to cheating on Chris Benoit's part.
45.
Chris Benoit simultaneously entered into a long-running feud with Jericho for the Intercontinental title, with the two meeting at Backlash, Judgment Day and SummerSlam; Chris Benoit winning all three matches.
46.
Chris Benoit won the Intercontinental title three times between April 2000 and January 2001.
47.
In early 2001, Chris Benoit broke away from The Radicalz and turned face, feuding first with his former stablemates and then with Kurt Angle, whom he wrestled and lost to at WrestleMania X-Seven.
48.
Chris Benoit gained some amount of revenge after beating Angle in an "Ultimate Submission" match at Backlash.
49.
The feud continued after Chris Benoit stole Angle's cherished Olympic Gold Medal.
50.
Chris Benoit got two title matches the following week, first losing in a manner similar to the Montreal Screwjob in Calgary and then losing in a close match in Chris Benoit's hometown of Edmonton.
51.
However, Chris Benoit injured his neck in a four-way TLC match that required surgery with Dr Lloyd Youngblood.
52.
Chris Benoit missed the next year due to his neck injury, missing the entire Invasion storyline.
53.
Chris Benoit defeated Rob Van Dam on the July 29,2002 edition of Raw to become Intercontinental Champion for the fourth time.
54.
Angle won his third WWE Championship from Big Show at Armageddon, and Chris Benoit faced him for the title at the 2003 Royal Rumble.
55.
Chris Benoit returned to the tag team ranks, teaming with the returning Rhyno.
56.
In June 2003, the WCW United States Championship was reactivated and renamed the WWE United States Championship, and Chris Benoit participated in the tournament for the title.
57.
Chris Benoit lost in the final match to Eddie Guerrero at Vengeance.
58.
When Chris Benoit won a qualifying match for the 2004 Royal Rumble against the Full Blooded Italians in a handicap match with John Cena, Heyman named him as the number one entry.
59.
Chris Benoit became only the second WWE performer to win the Royal Rumble as the number one entrant along with Shawn Michaels.
60.
However, Chris Benoit exploited a "loophole" in the rules and moved to the Raw brand the following night to announce he would instead challenge World Heavyweight Champion Triple H at WrestleMania.
61.
On March 14,2004, at WrestleMania XX, Chris Benoit won the World Heavyweight Championship by forcing Triple H to tap out to his signature submission move, the Crippler Crossface, in a highly acclaimed match.
62.
Chris Benoit wrestled in two matches at Bad Blood in his respective rivalries; he and Edge failed to regain the World Tag Team Championship while he successfully defended the World Heavyweight Championship against Kane.
63.
Chris Benoit then teamed with William Regal at Unforgiven against Ric Flair and Batista in a winning effort.
64.
Chris Benoit then feuded with Edge, leading to Taboo Tuesday where Chris Benoit, Edge, and Shawn Michaels were all put into a poll to see who would face Triple H for the World Heavyweight title that night.
65.
Michaels received the most votes and as a result, Edge and Chris Benoit were forced to team up to face the World Tag Team Champions, La Resistance, in the same night.
66.
At Survivor Series, Chris Benoit sided with Randy Orton's team while Edge teamed with Triple H's team, and while Edge was able to pin Chris Benoit after a Pedigree, Orton's team won.
67.
The feud stopped abruptly, as Edge feuded with Shawn Michaels, and Chris Benoit entered the Royal Rumble, lasting longer than any competitor before being eliminated by Ric Flair.
68.
Chris Benoit appeared at ECW One Night Stand, defeating Eddie Guerrero.
69.
Chris Benoit then won three consecutive matches against Jordan in less than a minute.
70.
Chris Benoit was devastated at the loss of his best friend and was very emotional during a series of video testimonials, eventually breaking down on camera.
71.
Booker T won three times in a row, due largely to Sharmell's interference, and Chris Benoit faced elimination in the series.
72.
Chris Benoit won the fourth match to stay alive at Armageddon, but after the match, Booker suffered a legitimate groin injury, and Randy Orton was chosen as a stand-in.
73.
Chris Benoit was given one last chance at the United States Championship at No Way Out and won it by making Booker submit to the Crippler Crossface, ending the feud.
74.
At Judgment Day, Chris Benoit gained some revenge by defeating Finlay with the Crippler Crossface in a grudge match.
75.
Chris Benoit then took a sabbatical to heal nagging shoulder injuries.
76.
Chris Benoit then engaged in a feud with Chavo and Vickie Guerrero.
77.
Chris Benoit wanted answers from the Guerreros for their rash behaviour towards Rey Mysterio, but was avoided by the two and was eventually assaulted.
78.
Chris Benoit missed the weekend house shows, telling WWE officials that his wife and son were vomiting blood due to food poisoning.
79.
WWE executive Stephanie McMahon later indicated that Chris Benoit would have defeated CM Punk for the ECW World Championship had he been present for the event.
80.
Chris Benoit included a wide array of submission holds in his move-set and used a crossface, dubbed the Crippler Crossface, and a sharpshooter as finishers.
81.
Chris Benoit used a diving headbutt to finish off opponents.
82.
The diving headbutt, which saw the deliverer leap off the top rope and land head first on the opponent, was partially blamed for the head trauma that caused Chris Benoit to commit his crimes.
83.
Chris Benoit married twice, and had two children with his first wife, Martina.
84.
On February 25,2000, Chris Benoit and Nancy's son Daniel was born; on November 23,2000, Chris Benoit and Nancy married.
85.
In 2003, Nancy filed for divorce from Chris Benoit, citing the marriage as "irrevocably broken" and alleging "cruel treatment".
86.
Chris Benoit claimed that he would break and throw furniture around.
87.
Chris Benoit later dropped the suit as well as the restraining order she had filed.
88.
Chris Benoit became good friends with fellow wrestler Eddie Guerrero following a match in Japan, when Chris Benoit kicked Guerrero in the head and knocked him out cold.
89.
Chris Benoit was close friends with Dean Malenko, as the trio travelled from promotion to promotion together putting on matches, eventually being dubbed the "Three Amigos" by commentators.
90.
Chris Benoit's lost tooth, his top-right lateral incisor, was commonly misattributed to training or an accident early on in his wrestling career.
91.
Over a three-day period, Chris Benoit had killed his wife and son before committing suicide.
92.
Chris Benoit's son was drugged with Xanax and likely unconscious before Chris Benoit strangled him.
93.
Chris Benoit then committed suicide by hanging himself on his lat pulldown machine.
94.
Chris Benoit was found to have Xanax, hydrocodone, and an elevated level of testosterone, caused by a synthetic form of the hormone, in his system.
95.
The chief medical examiner attributed the testosterone level to Chris Benoit possibly being treated for a deficiency caused by previous steroid abuse or testicular insufficiency.
96.
Once the details of Chris Benoit's actions became apparent, WWE made the decision to remove nearly all mentions of Chris Benoit from their website, future broadcasts, and all publications.