The death of Brian Lawler froze the wrestling community over the weekend. While his time in WWE was brief, Lawler did form a lasting bond with Rikishi as part of Too Cool. And early Monday morning, Rikishi said goodbye to his friend.
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“My uce @therealgrandmastersexay our last dance together…. Brian’s living spirit was always his passion for adventure and love for the wrestling business!! What I will carry with me most is the Grandmasta’s infectious smile and wicked laugh but most of all is his passion to entertain each & every person he ever came in contact with.
RIL B #UltimateUceGMS #LoveYou#TooCool #Respect #MyRiddah#RoadPartners – JRF @thesamoandynastyFam
My condolences and respect goes out to King @realjerrylawler brother Kevin Lawler and entire family . I’m sry for our loss 🙏🏾,” he wrote.
Alongside Scotty Too Hotty, Lawler adorned the name Grandmaster Sexay and joined up with Rikishi to form the popular stable in 1999. originally used as villains, the hip-hop inspired group quickly become fan favorites. The group’s momentum ran for a handful of years but was ultimately used to launch Rikishi into single’s stardom.
“WWE is saddened to learn that Brian Christopher Lawler, who is best known in WWE as Too Cool’s Grandmaster Sexay, has passed away. Lawler, who is the son of WWE Hall of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler, competed during the height of the Attitude Era. WWE extends its condolences to Lawler’s family, friends and fans.”
Lawler’s death came after he attempted to hang himself in a Tennessee jail. He had been arrested on DUI charges earlier in July and was being held on $40,000 bail. Lawler’s attempted suicide put him in critical condition and he was rushed to the hospital. However, he has suffered severe brain damage and was put on life support. n Sunday afternoon the Lawler family made the decision to take him off life support.
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Radio discussed the heartbreaking sittuation.
“He was on $40,000 bond and Jerry has been doing stuff to get him out of things and just felt that he needed to learn and he wasn’t gonna get him out this time.” He continued, “Jerry is good with grief. He’s a unique person but still, could you imagine? You have a kid. Even if the kid goes wrong, you’re gonna always love the kid. He did what he thought was the right thing. He’s 46 years old [and] he should have grown up a long time ago and you can’t keep bailing him out of his trouble. So sad. Brian couldn’t handle it in prison, I guess. Whatever it was, he hung himself today. It’s like a Von Erich story. Very much like one. [He was] a second generation wrestling trying to live up to the name of the father,” he said.
[H/T WrestlingNews.co]
