MMA Has Chris Benoit Like Tragedy; Justin Levens and Wife Dead
In what appears to be a similar situation to the Chris Benoit murder suicide tragedy, MMA fighter Justin Levens and his wife were found dead from gunshot wounds in a home in Laguna Niguel, Calif. earlier today. Police believe it was a murder suicide on the part of Levens.
Saying this is jumping the gun would be an understatement, but I’m a believer that Benoit’s brain damage was a big factor in what he did. MMA is a violent sport and if a similar study comes out that Levens brain was damaged due to all the knockouts he took, just like all those football players that went wacko, then it strengthens the argument that more concussion preventing measures need to be taken in MMA, wrestling and all contact sports.
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Categories: Chris Benoit Tragedy Coverage, Wrestler Deaths & Obituaries, Wrestling News Archive
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Do some research before you start comparing a psycho wrestler to a guy that had depression issues.
How would a guy, that was only knocked out twice in his whole career, get so much severe brain damage such as a guy who was knocked over the head most likely tens of thousands of times?
“MMA is a violent sport”
Way less violent than the dozens of amateur and professional boxers that die each year, or the industry that you call professional wrestling. Or even horse racing, where hundreds of horses are raced to death per year. Or football players being paralyzed.
Your absolutely right, I’ve argued many times that wrestling is more testing on the body than MMA in the long run and yes you can obviously make a case for boxing, but whether he was knocked out, TKOed or whatever, getting blows to the head doesn’t do you good.
Fair enough I’m not sitting here writing a scientific report, but who’s to say his brain wasn’t affected in some way? I did say “if” a brain report comes out.
“comparing a psycho wrestler to a guy that had depression issues”
Benoit had severe depression! Which was possibly caused by the brain deterioration.
The cases are not “exactly” the same obviously.
Benoit suffered through 20 years of severe head trauma. To try and compare the two situations is rather idiotic. By the time he died his head was mush.
Levens took maybe 10-20 shots to the head and you are trying to compare him to a guy that took a lifetime of shots to the head.
“that more concussion preventing measures need to be taken in MMA”
Medical suspensions are given. What more do you want? 24/7 supervision by the athletic commissions?
The Benoit incident came after years of deteriation, didn’t they say he had the brain of an 80 year old alzheimers patient?
Boxing has always been notorious for brain damage, just look at Ali.
As for MMA, there is no way they take as serious hits to the head as wrestlers. As much as UFC fans want to brand the WWE fakem there is no denying what the wrestlers put themselves through everyday.
I agree they are on different sides of the spectrum, I’m not saying Levens is a peg that fits exactly in to a Benoit shaped hole here, but when I see a believed murder suicide what else am I going to compare it to on a wrestling site?
So Benoit is the king of head trauma, that doesn’t mean an MMA fighter that took two TKO’s from punches and strikes and two outright KO’s on top of countless thin gloved head shots didn’t lose a few brain cells.
I made it clear that I could be jumping the gun and he may have been fine, its just a thought to ponder.
The study of concussions and head trauma in athletes is only just starting to come to light. After just one bang to the head, having any others scan do serious damage.
I’d like to so you take 10-20 head shots and see what hapens to your brain. And if he was depressed, there are all sorts of things that can cuase that, even regular supplements. You must be brain dead anyway to go in a cage and fight.
This make me think, what about Rampage Jackson. Its fair to say he lost his mind.
That was more because he hadn’t eaten or slept for several days.
“I’d like to so you take 10-20 head shots and see what hapens to your brain.”
I have, easily. I’ve been knocked out cold quite a few times in “street fights” and I’ve also sparred with some pretty decent boxers/MMA fighters. So I’ve taken my fair amount of shots to the head and nothing has changed. It’s like smoking cigarettes. You smoke one it’s not going to do any harm. You smoke pack after pack for twenty years you are bound to get cancer or have a really hard time breathing.
“And if he was depressed, there are all sorts of things that can cuase that, even regular supplements.”
Justin was dealing with depression his whole life, even before becoming a MMA fighter. So yours and Kee’s argument about getting depression from taking shots to the head is idiotic. It’s well documented, but someone was in a hurry to take a shot at MMA instead of getting their facts straight.
“You must be brain dead anyway to go in a cage and fight.”
This is why wrestling sites should leave MMA alone. Or at least be educated before you make comments like these. You look at MMA as a blood sport. I look at it as two guys or girls competing in the truest sport in the world. There has never been a documented death in sanctioned MMA, and there has never been a career ending injury either. It might look brutal to the common person, but if you spent some time to actually get into it instead of making dumb comments like the ones you’ve made, you’d see my point. With what has happened in the professional wrestling business, you’d be brain dead to even think about getting involved in that sport. And that is fact.
“This make me think, what about Rampage Jackson. Its fair to say he lost his mind.”
Once again, it’s just you trying to make something of nothing.
I just want to clarify I’m not linking the guy’s depression to anything, I wasn’t even aware he was depressed, you brought that in to the conversation, I was talking about Benoit.
D88, it’s looking like getting knocked out a few times has done someting to your temprement haha calm it down
Its all good, a nice debate helps everyone to learn. That’s what the comments are for.
“D88, it’s looking like getting knocked out a few times has done someting to your temprement haha calm it down”
I’d hardly call that having a temper. People need to be educated though. If I seemed like an ass I’m sure I was being one. Just didn’t like to have to be told by one of my friends about an article that was, intentionally or not, trashing MMA.
So you’re definitely not a wrestling fan anymore? Not that you can’t like both or anything.
I’d watch MMA more, but there’s only so many hours in a day.
I try to keep up with wrestling but I can’t. The last full show I watched was WM 24, which was great I might add, only time I actually broke down in tears watching pro wrestling(referring to HBK/Flair). Just can’t get into it any more. Or at least not enough to watch six hours of it a week, and then on top of it order two ppvs a month.
All that was said, was that MMA is violent, which it is, just because it isn’t as violent as WWE doesn’t mean it isn’t at all. Getting knocked out means your brain temporarily shuts down, so it’s bound to do damage, whether it’s one or a hundred times. Your brain collides with your skull and essentially short cicuits, it WILL do damage, only the extent of that damage is debateable.
Remember, these guys train everyday of their careers, so you have no idea what’s gone on behind the scenes.
I know what ISN’T going on behind the scenes. You make it sound like these guys get KOed every day in training. Most MMA fighters don’t go 100% in training, and some even wear headgear during sparring.
Reality is, any contact sport is violent. But people make it seem like MMA is the most brutal sport out there. Sure, you can punch, kick, knee, throw an elbow, break someones arm. But fighters rarely end up with a serious injury and as shocking as this seems only a few that I can recall have had a concussion over the past twenty years of the sport.
Anyways, back on topic. Looks like the guy shot his wife in the heart and himself in the head. He’s a piece of trash but him doing this certainly wasn’t caused by how “violent” the sport is. Which makes this case even worse IMO because this guy knew what he was doing and instead of facing the world like a man he took the easy way out and killed himself. Benoit I think just lost it. Not saying it was ok for Chris to do what he did. But his career and all the drugs he was apparently on took a tole on his brain.
HE WAS A GREAT WRESTLER AND I THINK HE HAD PROBLEMS AFTER SO MANY YEARS IN THE RING.LET THEM REST IN PEACE WOULD YOU.