Bix Posted August 30, 2007 Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 http://www.wrestlingobserver.com/wo/news/h...t.asp?aID=20574 WWE suspends 10 wrestlers by Dave Meltzer WWE today officially suspended 10 of its performers based on information received from investigators in the Albany, NY district attorneys office. None of the names have been released but it will likely be obvious over the next week who at least some of them are. The suspensions would likely be based on proof that performers were using Signature Pharmacy or another Internet prescription type firm after the implemenation of the Wellness policy. The company also has informed all performers that beginning 11/1, the company will publicly release the names of anyone who is suspended under drug policy violations. http://corporate.wwe.com/ WWE® Statement On Performer Suspensions STAMFORD, Conn., August 30, 2007 - Based on independent information received from investigators from the Albany County, NY D.A.’s office, WWE has today, under the penalty provisions of its wellness policy, issued suspension notices to 10 of its performers for violations. It has been WWE’s practice not to release the names of those who have been suspended, but notice has been sent to all WWE performers that names of anyone who is suspended under the Wellness Policy as of November 1 will be made public. I'm sure names will start to leak soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/2007/08/...ng_scandal.html Top WWE names emerge in doping scandal BY T.J. QUINN DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER Thursday, August 30th 2007, 4:10 PM The WWE was rocked again today, after several of wrestling's top names emerged in the Albany district attorney's probe into a widespread Internet doping scandal. The wrestling conglomerate based in Stamford announced that it will suspend 10 of its biggest stars for violation of its wellness policy. Top wrestlers Randy Orton, Charles Haas, Jr., Adam "Edge" Copeland, Robert "Booker T" Huffman, Shane Helms, Mike Bucci, Anthony Carelli, John "Johnny Nitro" Hennigan, Darren "William Regal" Matthews, Ken "Mr. Kennedy" Anderson and Chavo Guerrero were all identified as clients of Signature Pharmacy in Orlando, the site raided by Albany County and Florida law enforcement agencies in February for distributing steroids and other prescription drugs to clients who had not been examined by doctors. The investigation is part of a probe into illegal Internet drug distribution by Albany D.A. David Soares. The WWE said in a statement that it issued suspension notices based on independent information received from the Albany D.A. The WWE's announcement comes as members of Congress prepare to investigate steroid use in professional wrestling, as the Daily News reported today. Two of its recently deceased stars - Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero - also received steroids and other drugs from Signature, as prescribed by Florida physician Gary Brandwein, who has pleaded not guilty to criminal sale of a controlled substance and criminal diversion of prescription drugs. Benoit murdered his wife and son before killing himself in June and Guerrero died in a Minneapolis hotel in 2005 from heart disease. Guerrero received the steroids testosterone and nandrolone, along with the estrogen-blocker anastozole, a drug commonly taken by men on steroids to prevent developing breast tissue, Nov. 2, 2005, just 11 days before he died of heart disease. Guerrero's nephew, Chavo Guerrero, found Guerrero unconscious in the hotel room. Benoit received steroids from Signature, based on a Brandwein prescription, in February, 2006. The WWE stars are among the first athletes to face discipline for their part in the nationwide Signature Pharmacy scandal, the Internet steroid ring that has already led to guilty pleas from nine doctors, anti-aging clinic owners and operators. Law enforcement sources have said they expect the names of numerous NFL and Major League Baseball athletes to emerge as well. That's 11, who wasn't suspended? Mike Bucci since he's not talent anymore? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Posted August 30, 2007 Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 It'll be interesting to see how some people react when they find out it's Edge, Kennedy, etc. under fire. Ridding the business of steroids doesn't necessarily mean a workrate paradise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=2998062 ESPN adds Batista and Funaki. I suspect we'll get the timeline narrowed down soon by someone to help us figure out who was actually suspended. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 http://www.wrestlingobserver.com/wo/news/h...t.asp?aID=20579 New York Daily News lists wrestlers as clients of Signature Pharmacy and more background on the story by Dave Meltzer In an article by T.J. Quinn of the New York Daily News, the newspaper received a list of wrestlers who were clients of Signature Pharmacy. The names listed were: Randy Orton Charlie Haas Adam Copeland aka Edge Robert Huffman aka King Booker Shane Helms aka Gregory Helms Mike Bucci aka Simon Dean Anthony Carelli aka Santino Marella John Hennigan aka John Morrison Darren Matthews aka William Regal Ken Anderson aka Mr. Kennedy Chavo Guerrero ESPN added three other names Dave Bautista Shoichi Funaki Chris Mordetzky aka Chris Masters Based on records obtained through sources by the Observer months back, Copeland's last reported prescription came several years ago, when he was recuperating from neck surgery. So many of these incidents here may have predated the Wellness policy implemented in February 2006. It is known Orton and Helms' had transactions that predated the policy, and that the timing of both Copeland and Helms' transactions at the time came during periods of injury rehabilitation. So it may not yet be the time to make Ken Anderson look like a fool, depending on the date, because he has admitted use prior to February of 2006. It is by no means confirmed that these men are among the ten who were suspended earlier today. WWE was aware of many of the names months ago from a Sports Illustrated investigation and chose not to suspend the wrestlers at the time because the time frame predated the Wellness policy. If the prescriptions did predate the policy, suspensions are questionable, but perhaps due to government pressure, WWE feels it has no choice. If the prescriptions were dated after February of 2006, the company had little choice in the matter. Three other names, now deceased, Chris Benoit, Brian Adams and Eddy Guerrero were also on the list. There are believed to be several more former WWE wrestlers on the list, including one that was expected to be hired this week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loss Posted August 30, 2007 Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 Wow. This is absolutely devastating. That leaves HHH, Cena and Rey as the only big names they have left, if those are the same names that were suspended. Michaels and Taker will be back soon, and besides that, they have Umaga, Matt and Jeff Hardy, and then a bunch of people who don't mean anything. I know Johnny Ace was pushing for Sid to come in according to F4W, but it supposedly wasn't going to happen. Is that the name Meltzer referred to as someone expected to be hired this week? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KCook Posted August 30, 2007 Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 Couldn't happen to a nicer company or a nicer lot of guys. Looks like they're actually stamping out the gas. That's going to just kill business. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 I know Johnny Ace was pushing for Sid to come in according to F4W, but it supposedly wasn't going to happen. Is that the name Meltzer referred to as someone expected to be hired this week?Could be D-Lo Brown. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF3 Posted August 30, 2007 Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 Is Sydal a possibility? Or was he already hired and thus doesn't count? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 Wouldn't most indy guys be more likely to be buying from a truck behind a gym? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest STAN Posted August 30, 2007 Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 I'm surprised Batista was named. You'd think with his alleged "Connections" he'd find a safer way to do his business. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF3 Posted August 30, 2007 Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 Wouldn't most indy guys be more likely to be buying from a truck behind a gym? Good point...though that's starting to sound like a more effective and secretive way of doing things than doing it online. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2007 Wouldn't most indy guys be more likely to be buying from a truck behind a gym? Good point...though that's starting to sound like a more effective and secretive way of doing things than doing it online. The thing is: - You're getting pharmaceutical grade this way. - You are getting steroids w/ a scrip for WWE. The question remains whether these scrips were deemed passing, hidden in lieu of getting more steroids from a more "legit" doctor whose prescriptions they showed to Dr. Black, or just got scrips for HGH, which wouldn't be detected in the testing but is on WWE's banned substance list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 Update! http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/2007/08/...ng_scandal.html Eddie "Umaga" Fatu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cox Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/more...lers/index.html This adds dates to some of them as well. It looks like most wrestlers started to phase out by early this year, but then again, that might have been around the time this pharmacy got busted. Add Sylvan to the list, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KCook Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/more...lers/index.html This adds dates to some of them as well. It looks like most wrestlers started to phase out by early this year, but then again, that might have been around the time this pharmacy got busted. Add Sylvan to the list, too. Oh jeez, these guys are fucked. Herb was saying that they were only screwed if these scripts were written after February 2006, and these were for sure. Edit: Herb: "Based on these dates, the entire policy's credibility is shot... Ken Anderson (Mr. Kennedy) comes across like a complete fool becasue his last package was sent in February, one full year after he claimed to have gotten clean due to the Policy." Really, couldn't pick a sweller guy to look like a complete fool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Evans Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 Does it say something that this doesn't shock me in the least. Especially Kennedy. Just close up shop. IT'S ALL OVER! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loss Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 While it's obviously part of the problem, this isn't really just the result of a smoke and mirrors wellness policy. This is the culmination of Vince McMahon's national expansion of the WWF and the changes that were made that led to his greatest success. It's not a year in the making. It's 25 years in the making. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 While it's obviously part of the problem, this isn't really just the result of a smoke and mirrors wellness policy. This is the culmination of Vince McMahon's national expansion of the WWF and the changes that were made that led to his greatest success. It's not a year in the making. It's 25 years in the making.I wouldn't necessarily even say it's just WWF. Other major sports are going through the same thing. The Jason Grimsley investigation for example and the media's current battle to get some of those names released. WWE, on paper, has a stronger steroid policy than any professional sport. So when cornered on something like this, they have to take bigger action than the other sports who just point to their own drug policies. One thing I wonder is how effective WWE would be if they made a 100% honest effort. MLB despite their best efforts still clearly has issues with steroid usage. This isn't just something that can go away with testing. There is HGH for which there is yet no effective test. There are masking agents. This is a legitimate struggle. On the legal front, I wonder if this gives WWE a leg up on Congress. Congress will ask about their policy. They'll cite the wellness policy, note they have suspended wrestlers. How can Congress respond at that point? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 WWE, on paper, has a stronger steroid policy than any professional sport.Prescription loophole, so no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loss Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 While it's obviously part of the problem, this isn't really just the result of a smoke and mirrors wellness policy. This is the culmination of Vince McMahon's national expansion of the WWF and the changes that were made that led to his greatest success. It's not a year in the making. It's 25 years in the making.I wouldn't necessarily even say it's just WWF. Other major sports are going through the same thing. The Jason Grimsley investigation for example and the media's current battle to get some of those names released. WWE, on paper, has a stronger steroid policy than any professional sport. So when cornered on something like this, they have to take bigger action than the other sports who just point to their own drug policies. One thing I wonder is how effective WWE would be if they made a 100% honest effort. MLB despite their best efforts still clearly has issues with steroid usage. This isn't just something that can go away with testing. There is HGH for which there is yet no effective test. There are masking agents. This is a legitimate struggle. On the legal front, I wonder if this gives WWE a leg up on Congress. Congress will ask about their policy. They'll cite the wellness policy, note they have suspended wrestlers. How can Congress respond at that point? It's definitely not just the WWF. WCW would be getting hit terribly hard right now if they were still around. ECW would look worse than anyone. I agree testing is not the only answer, because it's not just about punishing people who fail. It's about making philosophical changes and basically restructuring the wrestling business. Even if everyone involved has great intentions, it's going to take years to complete something like that. The main things against them are that there are suspensions that have occurred that they've kept under wraps to prevent disruption of storylines, that they haven't been consistent in how they've handled failures and that they created a culture over the span of 20+ years that encourages and rewards drug use. I do think WWE is probably doing their best to clean up now, but look how much it took for them to take action. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 Here's a question. If you had legitimate drug testing, how would you handle positive tests? Could a company afford to routinely scrap advertised matches/main events? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bix Posted August 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 http://www.pwtorch.com/artman/publish/article_21532.shtml Greta Van Susteren interviewed WWE attorney Jerry McDevitt tonight on her "On the Record" program on Fox News Channel. McDevitt talked about meeting with investigators regarding Signature Pharmacy clients who were contracted WWE performers. McDevitt said they told Albany, N.Y. authorities that if they confimed the information, they would act on it. Once confirming the shipments, Vince McMahon acted on it. Van Susteren asked if the wrestlers would be suspended without pay. McDevitt said that's the case. McDevitt said there may be two more suspensions tomorrow. He said they have to talk with the talents to confirm information first. He said that talent has been told the will be publicly identified in the future. "It's a fair notice issue to us," he said, regarding why they aren't revealing names today of those suspended. "We do that in the belief that it will give greater transparency to the program and hopefully operate as a deterent to anybody who wishes to engage in this activity." McDevitt said this is not just a WWE problem. He said Signature Pharmacy was sending drugs to policemen, firemen, and pro athletes. He said he heard the NFL would be coming out with an announcement in the next few days. He said, "What you're going to find is that the drug of choice, if you will, for any athlete who wants to avoid a drug testing policy is human growth hormone which there is no test for. And it's a problem all leagues have, it's a problem we have, it's a problem anybody has who is engaged in drug testing. There's no scientific method to detect when an athete takes human growth hormone." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sek69 Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 It seems kind of silly for WWE to act like they're taking some sort of high ground by not naming names until after 11/1, when it's going to be obvious when 3/4ths the roster is off TV. Speaking of, with this many suspensions I would think WWE is going to have to address this on air at some point, even a total revival of kayfabe won't accept that many guys just vanishing off TV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khawk20 Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 It seems kind of silly for WWE to act like they're taking some sort of high ground by not naming names until after 11/1, when it's going to be obvious when 3/4ths the roster is off TV. Speaking of, with this many suspensions I would think WWE is going to have to address this on air at some point, even a total revival of kayfabe won't accept that many guys just vanishing off TV. Nah, it'll be easy to kayfabe it. Vince comes out at the start of next week's RAW and says he's suspending every wrestler that they have eliminated from suspicion from being his love child. The move is designed to eliminate the confusion surrounding the issue (less pro wres guys around to confuse things). They will all be re-instated when he finds out who his kid is. Crazy ol' Vince could make that work, I'm sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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