The routine move that changed everything for pro wrestler Chris Bey

LAS VEGAS -- It is simply a regular wrestling determination Chris Bey has done a 1000 times. A two-person maneuver helium and his TNA Wrestling tag-team partner, Ace Austin, telephone the "1, 2, Sweet."

Bey places his ft successful Austin's hands and launches backward, catching and trapping his opponent's cervix successful the crook of his upturned limb and driving them face-first to the canvas.

But this time, thing went wrong. He knew it the infinitesimal helium deed the canvas. He was incapable to determination his assemblage oregon consciousness thing from the waist down. His arms were stuck to his broadside and radiating with unbearable heat. He prided himself connected ever being capable to decorativeness what helium started, but this clip helium couldn't. He was ashamed helium was letting down the fans successful attendance by not continuing the match, but helium had nary thought however atrocious it was.

"It's ne'er what you deliberation it's going to beryllium [that injures you]," Bey told ESPN successful May astatine a Las Vegas restaurant. "I've seen capable wrestling to cognize that the brainsick happening isn't the 1 that volition get you. ... It seems routine, but the hazard we instrumentality successful each azygous determination is 1 inch distant from being fatal."

For 8 years, Bey had been moving to beryllium 1 of the champion nonrecreational wrestlers successful the world. At 5-foot-9 and 170 pounds, helium had enactment his assemblage done an arduous ringer of bumps and bruises without ever breaking a bone. He had been spiked connected his caput galore times, had jumped disconnected a balcony successful Texas and had fallen connected his cervix erstwhile a wrestling ring's apical enactment snapped underneath his feet arsenic helium leapt backward retired of the corner.

What Bey experienced connected Oct. 27, 2024, during a tv taping of "TNA Impact!" astatine Wayne State Fieldhouse successful Detroit, was acold antithetic and acold worse than immoderate of that.

A regular determination led to a travel to the ICU astatine DMC Detroit Receiving Hospital, wherever helium underwent exigency spinal cord fusion surgery. When helium woke up, helium learned helium had breached his C4 vertebrae and suffered impermanent paralysis from the cervix down. He was fixed a 15% accidental to locomotion oregon usage his hands again, and his wrestling career, helium was told by doctors, was over.

But for the archetypal clip since helium was 8 years old, wrestling wasn't the lone happening connected his mind. "Once I woke up [from surgery] and I realized that I couldn't consciousness anything, I nary longer cared astir wrestling," Bey said. "Wrestling was nary longer my life. It was nary longer my job. I conscionable cared astir being alive."

Bey's long-distance woman since 2023, chap pro wrestler Brittnie Brooks, was 1 of the archetypal visitors to spot Bey aft surgery.

"It was the scariest happening to see," Brooks told ESPN. "It was conscionable truthful brutal. Never successful my beingness did I enactment up for 24-plus hours due to the fact that I wasn't definite what I was walking into. He couldn't consciousness anything. I retrieve I went to clasp his hand, and helium couldn't adjacent clasp my manus back. That conscionable broke my heart." For the adjacent 2 months, Bey stayed successful a rehabilitation halfway thousands of miles from location and went done hundreds of grueling therapy sessions.

"Seeing him successful that infirmary furniture truly broke me," Bey's mother, who arrived astatine the infirmary 2 days aft the injury, told ESPN. "I had ne'er thought astir him getting hurt, adjacent though I person heard astir wrestlers who had life-changing incidents successful the ring. But portion helium was successful the hospital, a fewer wrestlers told maine they had breached their necks before, truthful that gave maine immoderate benignant of hope."

In the months that followed that archetypal prognosis, anticipation turned to determination. When ESPN met with Bey successful that Las Vegas edifice successful May, helium not lone walked in, but helium besides drove himself determination and utilized his hands to eat.

But those who cognize "The Ultimate Finesser" cognize that if anyone could bash the improbable, it's Daquan Christopher Johnson-Bey.

"He's ever been capable to defy the odds," Brooks said. "I retrieve telling him that I cognize [walking again] sounds unrealistic, but your full beingness has been unrealistic. You person to cognize that you tin bash this."

A PROFESSIONAL WRESTLER was the only happening Bey ever aspired to be. Two days aft his eighth birthday, Bey watched 5-foot-8, 200-pound Eddie Guerrero decision 6-foot-3, 300-pound Brock Lesnar to triumph the WWE title astatine 2004's No Way Out pay-per-view successful what was the pro wrestling equivalent of David slaying Goliath. Bey was hooked.

"It was always wrestling," Bey said. "I didn't cognize how, I didn't cognize wherefore oregon what oregon when. But I knew it had to beryllium wrestling. There was thing other I could deliberation of that I wanted to do."

Born successful Maryland and raised successful Alexandria, Virginia, Bey would necktie socks astir his elbows and knees to make makeshift pads and enactment connected matches with his friends. His begetter fed his obsession by buying his youngest of six children thing associated with pro wrestling: video games, pay-per-views, title belts and DVDs. In a spot of foreshadowing, a 13-year-old Bey posted a video of himself unboxing a replica TNA World Championship belt, a rubric helium would vie for a decennary later.

"My older siblings didn't person a 'thing,'" Bey said. "Wrestling was my happening ... that kept maine retired of trouble; my parents were blessed with it."

He spent his precocious schoolhouse years navigating betwixt his imagination and what helium thought others expected of him. In machine graphics class, helium sent emails to wrestling schools successful betwixt classwork.

"I thought I had to spell to assemblage until my elder twelvemonth erstwhile I realized my household couldn't spend it," Bey said. "My grades weren't bully capable and it would person been a discarded of clip due to the fact that wrestling was the lone happening I wanted to do."

Bey's begetter passed distant from colon crab successful 2016, the aforesaid week arsenic WrestleMania 32. The time aft the funeral, Bey watched perennial underdog Zach Ryder observe successful the ringing with his ain begetter aft an improbable Intercontinental championship. Bey took it arsenic a sign.

"I was truthful huffy due to the fact that I realized I would ne'er acquisition that infinitesimal with my father," Bey said. "My full narration with my dada increasing up was built connected my obsession with wrestling. Our past speech was portion I was visiting Las Vegas, and the much I thought astir it, the much I realized I needed to marque the determination there."

Bey chased his wrestling imagination to Las Vegas, signed up to bid astatine the Future Stars of Wrestling installation and spent his aboriginal 20s surviving with roommates and hardly scraping by financially. He rapidly became well-known successful the autarkic wrestling country earlier helium made his WWE debut connected an occurrence of "WWE 205 Live" successful October 2019. The quality didn't onshore him a WWE contract, but it did get him noticed by TNA Wrestling, which signed him the adjacent day. His imagination of becoming a full-time wrestler had yet travel true.

The accolades rapidly followed. Bey won the X-Division Championship astatine Slammiversary successful July 2020 and challenged for the Impact World Championship. However, his champion tally whitethorn person been his astir unexpected.

He joined Austin to signifier the tag squad ABC successful 2023 arsenic portion of the lauded Bullet Club unchangeable retired of Japan. In little than 2 years, they had go three-time Impact World Tag Team champions.

"We had our dreams arsenic singles wrestlers but had a heart-to-heart successful 2022 and decided to fastener successful arsenic a tag squad together," Austin told ESPN. "We took it earnestly due to the fact that we were 2 incredibly talented and talented performers who had immense futures up of us. Instead of trying to propulsion against each different and marque it connected our own, the accidental was placed for america to travel together, and we did. That's my member now."

Their exceptional tally led to a main-event lucifer against a tag squad they idolized, the high-flying, innovative brothers known arsenic The Hardy Boyz.

ON OCT. 26, 2024, Bey and Austin headlined TNA's Bound for Glory pay-per-view against The System and The Hardy Boyz successful an highly convulsive and physically taxing Full Metal Mayhem lucifer that progressive tables, ladders and chairs.

"That was a truly peculiar nighttime for me," Jeff Hardy told ESPN. "I had spent each that clip coating up the canvas, those chairs, the ladders and each the tables, truthful I was ace excited. It was an thought I had [to recreate Tables, Ladders & Chairs 2 from WrestleMania X-Seven successful 2001], and a imagination travel existent to spot that lucifer travel to beingness again aft 23 years. But moving with [Bey and Austin] was truly large for america due to the fact that they helped america get utilized to this new-school benignant of wrestling."

Jeff and his brother, Matt, are 30-year veterans of the manufacture known for their death-defying and high-flying moves, but Jeff recovered himself successful awe of what "The Ultimate Finesser" could bash successful the ring.

"He's not adjacent real, similar a video-game quality oregon thing erstwhile you ticker him retired determination live," Jeff said. "He's conscionable truthful superhuman-looking and ever successful bully shape. The mode helium moves, man, it's conscionable truthful inspirational for me, being older [47 years old], to ticker a feline similar Chris enactment successful the ring."

Although ABC didn't triumph the match, it was a career-defining infinitesimal for Bey. At the TV tapings the adjacent day, Bey and Austin were booked for different lucifer with The Hardy Boyz for the TNA World Tag Team Championship.

"What was truthful brainsick is that [Bey] went done the warfare the nighttime before," Jeff recalled. "And past the adjacent time helium couldn't consciousness his assemblage from the cervix down."

FOR MUCH OF his career, Bey had wrestled astatine 1 speed: overdrive.

Aside from a hep wounded that had been nagging him for years, Bey was ne'er slowed down by the high-velocity benignant of his matches. Bey's small, yet muscular framework allowed him to propulsion disconnected singular feats of athleticism. Although Bey was a small banged up from the erstwhile evening's match, helium and Austin were comfy delivering a toned-down lucifer against The Hardy Boyz.

"We're astatine the highest of highs, and past the adjacent time we thought that we were going to person thing lighter to bash due to the fact that of the lucifer we had conscionable done the nighttime before, but that wasn't the case," Austin said. "It was a 'go hard' lucifer again, but we didn't bash thing overly brainsick oregon unsafe successful the match."

The show was going smoothly until Bey and Austin went for their finishing move.

"[Bey] steps into my hands, and I motorboat him backmost toward Matt. And Matt reversed it into, ironically, a neckbreaker," Austin remembered. "The timing connected the landing wasn't perfect, but it didn't look unsafe oregon retired of the mean to me. I watched them deed the crushed and it looked precise normal."

But it wasn't normal.

"We missed each different by an inch, and Matt leans a small spot connected apical of me," Bey said. "My cervix twists to the right, inverted, and it conscionable snaps my neck."

"In my caput I was like, 'Wow, Chris didn't get arsenic overmuch aerial arsenic helium usually does,'" Matt told ESPN. "He was a small little than I expected, and I tried to leap underneath him, but I didn't deliberation I made interaction with him. When I get up, we spell to the operation with Austin, and I spot Chris laying successful the aforesaid spot. I thought to myself that it was unusual that helium hadn't moved astatine all."

Motionless connected the canvas, Bey could lone ticker the lucifer retired of his peripheral imaginativeness and anticipation that cipher landed connected him, perchance causing further harm. Referee Daniel Spencer noticed thing was incorrect and communicated with the wrestlers to unreserved to a decorativeness truthful paramedics could get into the ring.

"I inactive wasn't definite what was going on, but Jeff changed from doing his signature Swanton Bomb dive disconnected the apical enactment to the lightest limb driblet helium could perchance do," Matt said. "Thank God Chris had spoken up, due to the fact that that Swanton could person made things brutally worse. I was hoping that it was conscionable a stinger that helium could shingle disconnected and get up from.

"This was the scariest wounded I've ever been a portion of," Matt added.

The ringside doc asked Bey to compression his hand, but Bey couldn't marque his fingers adjacent astir the doctor's. He asked Bey to wiggle his toes, but Bey said helium couldn't consciousness them.

Bey was loaded onto a stretcher and rushed to the hospital. He was acrophobic that the exigency responders transporting him would person to ruin the wrestling boots helium had precocious purchased successful bid to dainty him. Still unsure of the severity of his injury, helium managed to calmly nonstop the medics however to decently region them.

"I knew that cutting those boots would've meant that it's genuinely over," Bey said. "The information that we didn't person to chopped those boots gave maine -- astatine that infinitesimal astatine slightest -- immoderate benignant of a feeling that this isn't arsenic atrocious arsenic they're making it retired to be."

Austin met Bey astatine the hospital, wherever everyone was opening to afloat recognize conscionable however atrocious the wounded was. "His X-ray came back, and determination were 2 pieces of his cervix perfectly retired of alignment," Austin said. "It was astir similar the missive Z."

Fortunately, his spinal cord was inactive intact, and a surgeon was swiftly brought successful to operate.

"From the infinitesimal I was successful the infirmary to the infinitesimal they enactment maine nether for country was the worst clip of my life," Bey said. "That feeling, which is weird due to the fact that I couldn't consciousness thing but pain, vigor successful my arms and vigor that's moving down my spine. ... It was the worst feeling of my life."

When Bey woke up from surgery, helium was capable to assistance his forearms but couldn't usage his hands. Two weeks later, doctors informed Bey that it was apt -- but not definite -- helium would beryllium utilizing a wheelchair for the remainder of his life.

"When I heard that it wasn't a 0% accidental [to locomotion again], I knew that determination was a chance," Bey said. "There was thing worthy warring for."

Bey asked his friends and TNA to support a choky lid connected his wounded diagnosis during his betterment until helium was capable to update everyone himself. Aside from a GoFundMe run that was launched to screen his aesculapian expenses -- to date, it has raised implicit $110,000 -- fewer extracurricular of his ellipse knew what was up for Bey.

For the adjacent 2 months, helium did rehab and carnal therapy astatine DMC Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan six days a week. If determination was an accidental to bash further sessions, helium added those. He was determined to defy the odds. Still, wrestling was the furthest happening from his mind.

He returned location to Las Vegas connected Dec. 28, 2024, utilizing a wheelchair. In mid-January, helium had committed himself to rehab with Dr. John Beedle, DC, of Genesis Integrated Medicine, a practitioner Bey had been moving with to dainty terrible degenerative hep illness anterior to his spinal cord injury.

"I told him, 'You're going to get retired of that wheelchair and wrestle again,'" Beedle recalled. "I didn't adjacent cognize if what I was saying astatine that constituent was going to happen, but you conscionable got to judge successful it."

Training with Beedle pushed Bey mentally and physically beyond thing helium had ever done wrong the squared circle, but helium remained humble and hopeful that helium would marque advancement toward his betterment goals.

"I'm a precise honorable idiosyncratic astir my life, and I'm grateful for the clip that I had successful wrestling due to the fact that I cognize however hard this concern is," Bey said. "I'm a first-generation wrestler who didn't cognize anybody successful this business. No 1 helped maine get into this business. And successful 8 years, I accomplished truthful overmuch and lived my dream. I went retired against my idols, The Hardys.

"I ne'er thought to myself that I didn't marque it. I knew I did. Now, I conscionable wanted to beryllium capable to unrecorded and beryllium functional."

By Jan. 21, little than 3 months post-injury, Bey had improved from incapable to consciousness thing beneath his waist to wiggling his toes to taking assisted steps with a walker.

"I ever thought he'd locomotion again, but I thought it would instrumentality years," Austin said. "He blew those projections retired of the water."

On his birthday, Feb. 13, helium posted a video to societal media of him lasting and walking toward the camera, unassisted.

"Nothing is impossible, you conscionable person to judge and bash the work," Bey wrote successful a connection posted to Instagram on with the video. "Will I ever wrestle again? Never accidental never. I'm conscionable truthful grateful to beryllium alive. ... It's going to beryllium a agelong road, but I volition ne'er springiness up. This volition beryllium the Greatest Story Ever Told."

FOR YEARS, BEY said helium wouldn't be a WrestleMania until helium was portion of the show. But considering what helium had conscionable gone through, helium was thankful to beryllium seated successful then-undisputed WWE champion Cody Rhodes' household and friends suite astatine Allegiant Stadium successful Las Vegas for Rhodes' main-event lucifer against John Cena connected Night 2 of WrestleMania 41 successful April.

The lawsuit capped disconnected a whirlwind week of nationalist appearances for Bey, who had been successful the nationalist oculus lone erstwhile since his wounded astatine the "Beynefit for Bey" amusement held by Future Stars of Wrestling successful Las Vegas connected March 23. He was apprehensive astatine archetypal to measurement retired successful beforehand of pro wrestling fans looking antithetic than the antheral they were utilized to seeing alert astir the ring. But helium enactment his fears speech to instrumentality successful the biggest wrestling lawsuit of the twelvemonth successful his adopted hometown.

"I felt similar I would've been doing myself a disservice to not beryllium determination successful immoderate benignant of a manner because, successful my eyes, I helped physique the metropolis for wrestling," Bey said. "This was an accidental for maine to assistance observe what we've done for the metropolis and person a accidental to spot each my friends, the fans and radical who person supported maine who whitethorn not cognize however overmuch I admit their support."

Bey's week astatine WrestleMania

Thursday, April 17

10 a.m.: Bey starts his week astatine a TNA fundraiser meal called "Chris Bey, All Day," wherever helium and Matt and Jeff Hardy talk and Bey answers questions astir his wounded and recovery.

2 p.m.: Bey meets with Beedle for rehab work.

10 p.m.: Bey makes his archetypal televised quality alongside Austin astatine TNA Unbreakable, wherever helium addresses the assemblage astir his betterment and acknowledgment them for their support

Friday, April 18

1 a.m.: Bey drives himself to Grammy-nominated hip-hop creator Wale's yearly WrestleMania event, WaleMania, and takes photos with fans who caught him walking into the venue. He past joins the event's impermanent of honor, Jeff Hardy, connected stage.

Saturday, April 19

3 a.m.: Bey appears astatine rapper Westside Gunn's "Heels Have Eyes: 4 The Culture" wrestling lawsuit and delivers a rousing code for the fans successful attendance.

9 a.m.: After a fewer hours' rest, helium heads to the WrestleCon normal astatine the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino to airs for pictures and motion autographs for fans.

"It was caller for my hands due to the fact that I had lone practiced signing a fistful of times astatine occupational therapy," Bey said. "It was precise strenuous connected my hands, and I near determination aching a small bit."

1 p.m.: Bey makes an quality astatine a pre-WrestleMania enactment hosted by Sirius XM's "Busted Open Radio" astatine Wynn Las Vegas. He participates successful a sheet with big Dave LaGreca and retired wrestlers Bully Ray Dudley, Mark Henry and Tommy Dreamer, wherever helium addresses his wounded and singular recovery.

4 p.m.: Bey meets Cody Rhodes' household and friends astatine a suite successful Allegiant Stadium for Night 1 of WrestleMania. It's the archetypal WrestleMania helium has ever attended successful person.

Sunday, April 20

3 a.m.: Bey makes yet different early-morning astonishment quality pursuing WrestleMania. He introduces the nonrecreational debut of Brodie Lee Jr., the 13-year-old lad of the precocious Jon Huber (also known arsenic Luke Harper successful WWE and Brodie Lee successful AEW), astatine a Game Changer Wrestling event.

"Brodie Jr. asked maine if I could beryllium determination for him that nighttime ... I would bash thing for him," Bey said. "I thought I was going to spell location and get astatine slightest a nap earlier the adjacent day. But it was an awesome acquisition to bash that for him."

10 a.m.: A fewer hours later, Bey is astatine WrestleCon again. "I figured WrestleMania is not going to beryllium backmost successful Vegas anytime soon [WWE announced successful June that WrestleMania would instrumentality to Las Vegas successful 2026], truthful I mightiness arsenic good propulsion myself to the carnal limits portion I can."

Wouldn't beryllium a #WrestleMania without my #NightmareFamily pic.twitter.com/yBB8vYgauU

10 p.m.: The week culminates successful the Rhodes household suite, wherever Bey watches Cena triumph the WWE undisputed title for a grounds 17th time. It is astir 20 years to the time since Bey's dada ordered him his archetypal WrestleMania, WrestleMania 21, wherever Cena won his archetypal satellite championship.

"I person nary regrets astir the determination to bash arsenic overmuch arsenic I did," Bey said. "The emotion I received made maine happier than I could ever imagine, and it made the conception of being capable to support going and support pushing myself that overmuch easier."

TODAY, BEY CAN spell to the gym and bash respective workouts that see airy weightlifting, plyometrics and jumping exercises. After losing 32 pounds portion successful rehab, helium has regained 15 implicit the past mates of months. He inactive has immoderate occupation utilizing his hands for basal functions, specified arsenic opening bottles and tying his shoes. He besides has immoderate mobility issues stemming from his longtime hep issues. According to Bey, he's "about 45%" of what helium was earlier the injury, a monumental fig for a antheral who was thought to perchance ne'er locomotion again.

As for wrestling, he's not definite when, oregon if, helium volition beryllium capable to get backmost into the ringing and is reluctant to enactment a timeline connected making a decision.

"It's specified a hard happening to reply due to the fact that I don't privation thing similar that to ever hap to him again," Bey's parent said of her lad perchance returning to the ring. "But I cognize my lad and I cognize his strengths and I ever knew the time helium acceptable his caput to becoming a pro wrestler that helium would marque it. So, if helium wants to travel backmost to wrestling and that makes him happy, past I americium blessed with it too."

The boots helium had aesculapian unit cautiously region from his feet the nighttime of his wounded stay successful his closet. He hopes he'll beryllium capable to enactment them connected again.

"Never accidental never," helium said. "Adam Copeland [a.k.a. Edge successful WWE] was retired for 9 years for a cervix injury, and erstwhile I talked to him, helium assured maine that adjacent if I could get back, it does instrumentality a batch of time. He was capable to bash it astatine his property [46 years old], and if helium could bash it, I could decidedly bash it."

Until then, Bey is funny successful moving successful pro wrestling successful a antithetic capacity, with everything from shaper to writer connected the table.

"I should usage my talents successful immoderate mode imaginable to assistance proceed and propulsion guardant the adjacent generation," helium said.

No substance what the aboriginal holds, this isn't the extremity of Bey's story.

"I telephone this 'the top communicative ever told' due to the fact that I was surviving my imagination astatine the highest level that radical told maine would beryllium unattainable," Bey said. "I had a life-altering wounded and perchance life-ending injury. But done the grace of God, with each the likelihood stacked against me, not lone americium I backmost connected my feet, but I'm successful the process of becoming an jock again. And should that time travel erstwhile we get to extremity it my way, erstwhile the euphony hits and I travel backmost retired to the ringing successful afloat wrestling cogwheel and a brace of boots, it's conscionable the top communicative ever told."