Injuries in professional wrestling are never pleasant, but they are almost an expected part of the physical world that wrestlers live in. While they risk their bodies in the name of entertainment, injuries are part of the career path and are treated to the best of their ability. they can. Sometimes injuries can be minor enough to get you back in the ring, but they can also veer to the devastating and horrible side.
fighters in impact wrestling I know the horrible side of injuries very well. As they fight tooth and nail to ensure the success of their smallest promotion, the members of the list push their bodies to the absolute limit. While fans appreciate his dedication, it should also be known that it comes at a high price that is hard to escape.
10 joseph alexander
Not since AJ Styles has had a single wrestler who encapsulates the spirit of Impact Wrestling like Josh Alexander has. After working for years on the independent scene as the top unsigned talent on the scene, The Walking Weapon signed to Impact in 2019 and quickly took the promotion by storm.
After a record-breaking reign as Impact World Champion, Alexander sadly ended his reign following a torn triceps in 2023. As someone who has been holding the promotion on his back as the top drawing star, this is a huge success for the promotion. Fortunately, Alexander’s future continues to look bright despite the injury.
9 Jesse Sorensen
Watching a fighter get injured on live television is never a good feeling, particularly when it comes to a very serious, career-affecting injury. Sadly, if there’s one thing Jesse Sorensen’s wrestling career is known for, it’s his legitimate neck injury at Against All Odds 2012.
In a number one contender’s match for the X Division Championship, Sorensen faced Zema Ion in what appeared to be a preview of the division’s future. Unfortunately, following a moonsault to the outside, Sorensen’s vertebrae were instantly crushed and he went down on live television and never wrestled for the promotion again.
8 daffney
Professional wrestlers often find themselves in precarious positions given their line of work. However, what those fighters ask in return is that you keep them as safe as possible while they put their bodies on their line. Unfortunately, veteran wrestler Daffney didn’t feel that secure during her wrestling career.
After a series of injuries while in the ring with various wrestlers, including Abyss and The Beautiful People, Daffney’s body was beaten up. The last straw was a concussion during a tryout match with a relatively new wrestler, and Daffney’s career never quite recovered.
7 eddie edwards
When fights heat up and weapons get involved in the ring, sometimes things may not proceed as planned due to the unpredictability of foreign objects. Eddie Edwards learned this fact all too well when Sami Callihan took a baseball bat straight to his face in 2018.
Instead of hitting a nearby steel chair with the bat, Callihan missed and struck Edwards square in the face, instantly breaking his nose and cheekbone. The shock was unbelievably sickening and brutal looking and kept Edwards on the shelf for a month while he recovered.
6 scott steiner
Whether fans appreciate Scott Steiner or not, there’s no denying that he had a Hall of Fame-worthy career throughout his multiple decades as a wrestler. Unfortunately, he reached his peak as a wrestler long before he came to the end of his in-ring days.
In 2007, possibly well past the prime of his career, Steiner suffered a horrific throat injury while on tour in Puerto Rico for Impact. After a kick to the throat, Steiner tore his windpipe and was only given a few hours to live unless he was put into a coma and surgically repaired. Unbelievable, Steiner continued to fight for another fifteen years after the incident.
5 boy kash
The X-Division’s high-flying fighting style can come at a price for the fighters involved, and that’s something veteran Kid Kash knows all too well. Kid Kash has never been the top wrestler in a promotion, but he’s kept a steady work schedule for over thirty years.
During his third stint with Impact Wrestling in 2012, Kash suffered a broken nose during a match with Jesse Sorensen and Shannon Moore at a house show. Reports described the injury as “ghastly” and kept Kash on the shelf for two months.
4 Khazarian
Despite never having been the top wrestler in a promotion, Kazarian has enjoyed a long career in professional wrestling, with his first big break coming from Impact Wrestling. During the early days of the company’s X-Division, Kazarian was one of the top contenders for the championship with AJ Styles standing in his way.
While the two became embroiled in a feud, Kazarian was one of the first to suffer a botched Styles Clash, which has occurred multiple times in the Phenomenal’s career. Kazarian took the move incorrectly in a way that was coined the “Kazarian Bump” and injured his neck in the process in a very horrible way.
3 Chris Candido
When it comes to untimely deaths in professional wrestling, the list is sadly long. While the wrestlers passed away while battling their own personal demons, Chris Candido’s may be the most tragic due to how sudden it was.
During a cage match at Lockdown 2005, Candido broke his leg after his opponent fell on top of it while executing a leg drop. Days after the incident, Candido was rushed to the hospital and passed away due to complications from pneumonia.
2 kurt’s angle
If there’s one fighter who’s known for never giving up, even in the face of injury, it’s Kurt Angle. Angle’s injury history is well documented, as is his refusal to stop matches, even if his body tells him otherwise.
During a match with EC3 on an episode of Impact Wrestling, Angle sprained his knee mid-match after performing a series of German suplexes. Despite the injury, and the impending surgery it required, Angle continued to wrestle for several minutes before the match was ultimately called off.
1 mickie james
While in the midst of her latest rodeo, Mickie James suffered a terrible setback trying to pull off a storybook ending to her solid career. As the reigning Impact Knockouts Champion, Mickie James was due to defend her championship at the 2023 edition of Rebellion, but fate had a different plan.
After achieving her goal of becoming the Knockouts Champion, James intended to defend her championship, but suffered a rib injury en route to defending her title. Following the announcement of her injury, the jury is still out on what this means for the Cinderella story at the end of James’ career.