“Thought it was the end of my career,” 52-year-old WWE veteran reveals dealing with career-threatening injury amid fear of amputation

One is heavily prone to injuries in an otherwise great art of pro wrestling. While some grapplers have been fortunate enough to have not borne the brunt of it, others aren’t. Similarly, R-Truth, who’ll turn 53 in January, tore his quads in late 2022 during a match with Grayson Waller on NXT. That was ugly.

The WWE vet was the latest guest on Chris Van Vliet‘s Insight podcast. He went into the details of his excruciating year-long battle with torn quadriceps that only exacerbated over time. The docs had identified five different bacteria around the infected area. The priority for the medics was to cut down on the infection, or else amputation was the only way out.

The real-life Ron Killings admitted being on antibiotics that cost him around $4700/week. He even had a PICC line inserted into his leg for six weeks. It was so messed up back then that Truth was almost convinced he wouldn’t be able to set foot inside the squared circle ever again.

However, at Survivor Series: WarGames last year, the former K-Kwik returned during a backstage segment also featuring The Alpha Academy and Pretty Deadly. That was the first big return of the night, of course, apart from CM Punk. On December 18, Truth competed in his first WWE match in over a year against JD McDonagh on Raw.

At that point, the former US Champion was auditioning to be recruited into the Judgment Day. Truth would often invade their clubhouse. After a while, it seemed as if Damian Priest was the only one in the faction who was fine with his theatrics. Even though Priest dumped Truth shortly after that, the latter’s inclusion in the story did result in a successful tale.

Is R-Truth thinking about premature retirement after recent injury scare?

Having debuted in then-WWF in 1998, R-Truth has been a student of this game long enough to be wary of its ins and outs. In the same interview as above, Truth also dove into his contemplation of retirement from wrestling in general.

Quoting the evergreen Rey Mysterio, Truth said just like the Master of 619, he’ll let his body decide when it’s time to hang up. The former Awesome Truth member claimed he’s got some moves that the young crop of WWE talent has yet to see.

Truth believes he can still keep pace with men almost half his age. At the moment, he’s involved in a rivalry with Pete Dunne on Raw. The Judgment Day alumnus has been mocking the Brit over his infamous “Butch” gimmick for weeks now.

Related: WWE seemingly confirms debut of former AEW champion for Raw debut on Netflix

Stay Updated!

Join our newsletter to receive exclusive updates and curated insights directly to your inbox.

Subscribe NOW