While appearing on TMZ Inside The Ring, Braun Strowman detailed a career-threatening neck injury he suffered in the ring and how the time off led to the creation of his new television series, Everything on the Menu with Braun Strowman. The show premieres this Friday at 10 o’clock Eastern Standard Time on the USA Network, following Friday Night SmackDown.
The injury occurred in 2023 during a match with Otis, leaving Strowman temporarily paralyzed. In 2023, I had that really bad neck injury in the ring where I pinched my spine and both my arms went limp, and I was paralyzed for about three seconds during the match. You watch that match with Otis, you can see it happen,” he recalled. The severe symptoms continued after the match. “I go to take off. I’m really weeble wobbling. I give the rest of the match. And while I’m out there in the ring and in the back, it feels like I’m having boiling water poured down my arms, or my fingers would go numb and go to sleep,” he said.
The fear of his career being over was immediate. “I’m literally freaking out, oh my God, my career is over. My day-to-day life’s over. Thankfully, I’m really close with Stone Cold Steve Austin; this injury was really, really similar to the injury that ended his career,” Strowman stated. Austin provided a huge sense of relief. “I called Steve. Talk to Steve a lot. He gave me a lot of reassurance and eased my mind with have the surgery. He’s had great success afterwards, no issues and stuff like that”.
Strowman underwent surgery with WWE’s support. “WWE took great care of me, got me down to Andrews medical, got me patched up. They threw a metal plate, four screws in there”. The idea for the food show, produced by WWE Studios, emerged as he recovered, realizing he needed an alternative platform to connect with fans. “I’m sitting there realizing, like, how truly blessed my life has been to this point, even if my career in the ring is over and all this other stuff, and having this epiphany, I guess, of how blessed I am, not only with my physical stature, but the ability that I have inside of me of putting smiles on people’s faces”. The premise of ordering every dish on a menu was inspired by his actual habits, with Strowman admitting: “I wish I could order everything on the menu”.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit TMZ Inside The Ring with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription. You can watch the full episode on the TMZ Inside The Ring YouTube channel.
