By: Blaine van der Griend
Only one man has a name so nice he gets to say it twice. But the other thing that seems to be repeated a lot is Mr. Kennedy's streak of bad luck.
Kennedy joined Live Audio Wrestling last Sunday to comment on his recent injury, his suspension last year after a wellness policy violation and his recent movie role in "Behind Enemy Lines 3." All of which have contributed to his wrestling career being put on hold.
Kennedy was drafted to Smackdown last June and shortly after, he suffered an injury in a match with Shelton Benjamin. An injury that he is still recovering from and says he will never forget.
"We were basically side to side and he hit his finisher and our bodies got kind of caught between each other and I couldn't move my arm," Kennedy said. "I hit the mat on my chest and my arm was stretched across my chest, so I hit elbow-first and it just popped my arm right out of its socket. That was the most painful thing I've ever gone through in my life."
He made a brief appearance on Raw this past Monday to promote the release of his movie on DVD. But he mentioned in the interview that his arm still needs time to heal and he hopes to be back in the ring as soon as possible.
"The date that Dr. Andrews gave the office for my return date, was February 28. I could come back sooner, or I could come back later," Kennedy said.
Most performers in this business would naturally get nervous that "their spot" could be passed on to the next person, as they heal from an injury. But Kennedy made it clear to the LAW that he doesn't have a nervous bone in his body and is more anxious than anything else to jump back into action.
"I feel confident in my abilities," he said. "I have something to offer them. There are a lot of things that I can't do when I'm on the road five days a week. I'm always in a hurry to get back, just because I love it and it sucks having to watch it on TV at home and not be a part of it."
As confident as he is, nobody's perfect and Kennedy made the mistake of telling reporters last year that he did not take steroids. Later that year, Kennedy was one of 11 WWE performers suspended for violating the WWE's wellness policy by purchasing anabolic steroids and other performance enhancers and painkillers from Signature Pharmacy online. Kennedy was very open in revealing his own side of the story to the LAW and acknowledged where he went wrong.
"I just learned to basically shut my mouth about stuff. It seemed as though any time I would turn around and say something, well they would analyze that stuff and say 'he did this, this, this and this.' I'd be reading about it at home and be like 'no, that's not right,' Kennedy said. "When they asked me if I took steroids and I said no, I didn't at the time. The thing is, my doctor was getting the stuff from Signature Pharmacy. I never once went to an Internet website and ordered any of that stuff."
Kennedy seemed well aware of the pressure that some of the fresher talent might have to take steroids. But he says it isn't really a necessity and people should avoid it. He is also aware of the negative spin that the media puts on drugs like this and was very open about it in the interview.
"In this day and age, in the business, you don't need stuff like that," he said. "People think that by taking steroids, you instantly turn into the incredible hulk and you beat women and children and rage and throw stuff around and kill your family members."
Kennedy also touched a bit on how comfortable or uncomfortable he feels as a babyface and he says at the moment that his best days are behind him.
"I find that it's easier to get somebody to boo you than it is to get somebody to cheer you," Kennedy said. "Some of my best stuff was actually down in OVW, under Paul Heyman's direction. I'd love to go back to being a heel. I would like to be a babyface some day."
You can listen to the rest of this interview and others at www.thefightnetwork.com/downloads/
Don't forget to tune into the LAW every Sunday night at 11pm EST on Newstalk 1010 CFRB and Sirius 98 Hardcore Sports Radio
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