Big E Confirms He'll Make a Full Recovery From His Neck Injury, Reveals WWE Return Timetable
Big E suffered a fractured C1 and C6 vertebrae back on the March 11 episode of Friday Night SmackDown and has since been providing fans with updates on his recovery. By now he's out of his massive neck brace and has mobility in his neck, but in a new interview with ESPN that dropped on Wednesday, he confirmed that while doctors expect him to make a full recovery, he'll be out of action for at least a full year.
"It's very sobering to hear that," E said . "... I think to be great at something like [pro wrestling], or at least to be competent, you can't spend all your time worrying about possibly fatal injuries or breaking your neck. You have to go out there and be free and in the moment. I think a lot of us as performers don't spend a lot of time thinking about that stuff. I never thought I would be."
E explained that his recovery has included using a bone stimulator machine, stem-cell treatment and calcium supplements. He'll also be back with WWE later this month in Nashville for the latest WWE Tryouts.
"Honestly, it hasn't been a dark period," E said regarding his recovery. "I'm so thankful for all the people who checked in on me and reached out, who have concerns. I'm not saying I'm perfect. I'm not saying every day is the greatest ever for me. But I really haven't struggled with that type of stuff."
One of the many people to reach out to him during his recovery has been Ridge Holland, the wrestler who accidentally caused the injury when he tossed E with an overhead belly-to-bell suplex.
"I have no issue whatsoever with Ridge," E said. "He's reached out and said some very kind things. ... What we do is dangerous, and there are inherent dangers. And to that degree, we all kind of know what we sign up for, and it was unfortunate that it went down that way. But I'm not dead. I'm alive. I'm doing well."
WWE returns to pay-per-view on July 30 with the SummerSlam event at Nashville's Nissan Stadium. Check out the updated lineup for the show below:
- Undisputed WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar (Last Man Standing Match)
- Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships: The Usos vs. The Street Profits
- SmackDown Women's Championship: Liv Morgan vs. Ronda Rousey
- United States Championship: Bobby Lashley vs. Theory
- Pat McAfee vs. Happy Corbin