BRAD'S COMMENTARY  
Commentary for May 6, 2005

The passing of Chris Candido has led me to write this commentary…for a few reasons. First I would like to recall some memories of Chris. His stint in ECW was priceless. His promos were always a joy to watch. One that sticks out in my mind was when he dressed as Terry Funk, and did his “Funker” impersonation. It was flawless. Candido was ever the entertainer. Then he went to the WWF as Skip. The gimmick itself left a lot to be desired, but Chris did the best he could with it. His matches were always good. Who else could make a feud with Barry Horowitz watchable? I will admit that I don’t watch TNA very often. But I did tune in last week and catch an excellent performance by Candido. He was in a wheelchair, pretending to be hurt, so as not to have to wrestle. The turning point in the match came when The Naturals distracted the referee, so Chris could run into the ring and hit a member of America’s Most Wanted with a chain that he produced from the cast he was wearing. He did the damage, and quickly returned to his wheelchair, selling his “injury” like a champ. Chris, I believe, was one of the most underrated wrestlers in recent memory. I had the pleasure of meeting him in 1997 at Terry Funk’s “50 Years of Funk” event. He treated me very well. Chris was scheduled to work the IZW shows that I am booked on in May. It’s a bummer that I won’t get the opportunity to share a locker room with him and sit under the learning tree.

The other reason for writing this commentary is to remind everyone of something that I think is taken for granted--Life is precious, and too short. Chris’ death, in a round-about way, was as a result of an injury sustained in the ring. It could have been me, or anyone else. Every time that we get in that ring to entertain the fans, we risk something similar happening to us. We try our best to walk out of the ring as healthy as we entered it, and we wish the same for our opponent. Wrestling is a dangerous profession. On any given day, any one of us could end up maimed or dead. I just hope that the fans appreciate that risk that we take for them. I hope that Chris didn’t die in vain. I hope that people remember him as the performer that he was.

Losing a “brother” also makes me realize what a waste of time all the hate in the wrestling business is. I haven’t walked in a dressing room in the last 6 years and not heard someone talk shit about someone else who was in that very same locker room. I have often participated in these conversations. There is constant conniving, and backstabbing, trying to upstage one another and take each other’s spots. Wrestlers commentaries are constantly full of hate, bashing other wrestlers or promotions. One day we are going to wake up and realize that it didn’t accomplish anything. Or even worse. We could die, never having that realization.

Life is too short. We don’t know when it will end. Make the most of it. And most importantly, if you love someone, tell them. Don’t be too macho, to utter those three words. Tell them you love them EVERY TIME YOU SEE THEM…because it could also be the last. I hope that this hits home with some of you.

Tune in next week, where I will hopefully have a more cheery commentary.

Until then,