A referee in an indie wrestling match is reportedly dealing with a “brain injury” after an in-ring accident caused a scary scene Thursday during an OVW show in Louisville, Kentucky.
Referee Dallas Edwards appeared to suffer significant head trauma and seizure-like symptoms after inadvertently taking a blow to the head by wrestler Brendan Balling during a match against Tony Evans. In a frightening scene caught on video, Edwards goes down hard after taking the brunt of a top-rope maneuver from Balling, slamming the back of his head on the mat. Balling immediately checks on Edwards and then the match continues around the fallen referee, however moments later Edwards appears to begin convulsing inside the ring.
Advertisement
He is then dragged and kicked into the corner by Evans, before the severity of the situation appears to dawn on the performers and the show is halted, with medical personal attending to Edwards.
A woman identified as Edwards’ girlfriend issued a statement Friday morning indicating that Edwards had been hospitalized and asking the wrestling community to “keep Dallas in your thoughts.” Edwards was reportedly “awake, coherent, and in good spirits.” A picture of Edwards smiling while giving a thumb’s-up from the hospital bed was posted.
“Please keep Dallas in your thoughts as your day begins. I am not going to provide much more information at this time except to the parties who already know, but last night resulted in a brain injury that is being monitored and will continue to be monitored by doctors here.
“Seeing all the support you guys have already given is amazing and I didn’t want to leave everyone without some kind of update.”
In a follow-up post on Facebook, Balling called Edwards “one of the best refs I’ve ever had” and said that he felt “horrible” about the botched maneuver that led to Edwards’ hospitalization.
(Brendan Balling, Facebook)
All prayers to Dallas. Not only one of the best refs I’ve ever had but one of the best guys I’ve been able to meet during my time at OVW. Obvious accident, but can’t help but feel horrible about everything. Dallas will be back and better than ever and so will I. Thank you to everyone. See you Sunday.
OVW, short for Ohio Valley Wrestling, is a long-running independent wrestling promotion based in Louisville and founded in 1993. The company is best known for serving as the primary developmental territory for the WWE from 2000-08. It currently serves as a developmental territory for TNA Wrestling.