Hello and welcome to the WrestleTalk News, I am Luke Owen.
Headline: Tracey Caddell Passes Away
We kick off today’s news with the passing of wrestling promoter Tracey Caddell.
Caddell was a wrestler on the independent scene in South Carolina, most famous for co-founding
OMEGA with Matt Hardy - and is the father of current Impact star Trevor Lee.
Matt Hardy took to Twitter to say, “Heartbroken by the passing of my friend, Tracy Caddell,
father of Trevor Caddell.
Tracy & I founded ECWF, which became OMEGA, together in 92.
Tracy was physically limited after a bad accident in 93, so he eventually became @TLee910’s
biggest supporter & promoter.
RIP, my brother.”
OMEGA graduate Shannon Moore tweeted, “@TLC910 Rest Easy My Friend.
Thanks for being one of the Father Figures I had when I was a kid in the Wrestling Business.
Your home was our Dojo and friendship was unmatched.
You where a proud Father and created one of the best Wrestlers in the World @TLee910!!Much
Love.”
The WrestleTalk team would like to extend our condolences to Caddell’s family and
friends.
Headline: Brickhouse Brown Passes Away, Aged 57
Although it was believed he had passed away nine days ago, it has now been officially
announced that Frederick Seawright - aka Brickhouse Brown - has passed away at the age of 57 after
a battle with prostate cancer.
He had been pronounced dead by a nurse at a Mississippi hospice on July 20th, but woke
up up just as the coroner arrived to remove the body.
Brickhouse Brown started his career in Texas in 1982, and had great success working on
top of the card against Jerry Lawler in Tennessee.
He was awarded the Cauliflower Alley Club courage award back in April, where he noted
that his cancer was terminal and he only had six months left to live.
The WrestleTalk team would like to extend our condolences to Seawright’s family and
friends.
And f**k cancer.
Headline: Nikolai Volkoff Passes Away, Aged 70
It was also announced yesterday that WWE Hall of Famer Nikolai Volkoff had passed away at
the age of 70.
Dave Meltzer reported that Volkoff suffered a heart attack recently and refused surgery,
with PWInsider adding that Volkoff spent several days in a Maryland hospital to be treated
for dehydration and other alignments.
Volkoff worked for Vince McMahon Sr.’s WWWF as Bepo Mongol, before feuding with Bruno
Sammartino in the 1970s over the WWWF title.
He will be best known however to wrestling fans of the 1980s as one half of the villinious
tag team with The Iron Sheik, and his feuds with Hulk Hogan.
Volkoff entered into semi-retirement in the mid-90s, but will be remembered for his famous-for-all-the-wrong-reasons
tag match against The Bushwackers at Heroes of Wrestling, and his entrance into the Gimmick
Battle Royal at WrestleMania X-7.
Triple H tweeted, “Nikolai entertained while inciting anger in fans all across the @WWE
Universe as an in-ring competitor, but backstage he was a gentle and thoughtful family man.
Our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time.”
His tag team partner Iron Sheik tweeted, “MY BEST FRIEND.
MY PARTNER.
MY BROTHER.
WE GET MORE HEAT THAN ANYONE ON EARTH.
I TRUST HIM WITH MY LIFE.
HE TAKE CARE OF ME WHEN I WAS DOWN.
I MISS YOU FOREVER.”.
The WrestleTalk team would like to extend our condolences to Volkoff’s family and
friends.
Headline: Brian Lawler - aka Grandmaster Sexay - Passes Away, Aged 46
And we conclude this very sad episode of the WrestleTalk News with the tragic passing of
Brian Lawler - better known to wrestling fans as Brian Christopher aka Grandmaster Sexay
- who has passed away at the age of 46 following a suicide attempt.
It was reported last week that the son of Jerry “The King” Lawler had been arrested
for a second time in as many months for DUI and evading police.
Ryan Satin of Pro Wrestling Sheet reported that Brian Lawler was rushed to hospital after
attempting to hang himself.
Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer reported that Lawler was pronounced brain dead early
on Sunday morning, and was put on life support for his family to say their goodbyes.
The decision to take him off life support was made around 4:30 later that afternoon.
His brother Kevin Lawler announced the news via Facebook saying, “as of 30 minutes ago
he has officially passed.
I love U and will miss U my brother!
A very sad day today.
Words can't describe.”
Meltzer added on a Wrestling Observer Breaking Audio, “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.”
Lawler made a name for himself in WWF’s Attitude Era, firstly as part of their Lightheavyweight
Division as “Too Sexy” Brian Christopher [18], before forming the heel tag team Too
Much with Scott “Too Hot” Taylor.
A babyface turn changed his character to Grandmaster Sexay, where he teamed with the newly renamed
Scotty 2 Hotty as Too Cool along with WWE Hall of Famer Rikishi.
They team held the WWF Tag Team Championships in 2000, and Lawler was released from the
company in 2001 after being caught with drugs crossing the Canadian border.
He later returned for his father’s feud with Michael Cole, and reformed Too Cool to
take on The Ascension at NXT Arrival in 2014.
Triple H tweeted on Lawler’s passing, “Incredibly sad news about the passing of Brian Christopher.
A tragic loss of life.
Both @StephMcMahon and I are thinking of Jerry Lawler and the entire Lawler family this evening.”
His Too Cool partner Rikishi posted on Instagram, “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.”
The WrestleTalk team would like to extend our condolences to Lawler’s family and friends.
A big shout out to MeltzerIsMyDaddy on Reddit’s Squared Circle who has listed everywhere in
the world where you can get help with suicide prevention, we’ve posted a link to it below
in the show notes.
We love every member of the SWAFTNation - even those who made fun of my hairline in our WOS
Wrestling interviews video - so please seek help if you need it.
We would also like to encourage you to post below your favourite memories of Tracey Caddell,
Brickhouse Brown, Nikolia Volkoff and Grandmaster Sexay in the comments below.
We’ve got other wrestling news stories here on WrestleTalk so click the videos on screen
right now to check those out.
I’ve been Luke Owen and that was wrestling.