Chris Benoit

**Christopher Michael Benoit** (May 21 1967 – June 24 2007) was a Canadian professional wrestler who wrestled for Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).

Benoit ascended to the top of his profession, holding the World Heavyweight Championship in both WCW and WWE, becoming one of the most popular and respected competitors in professional wrestling in the process. Benoit is considered to be one of the greatest technical wrestlers in history.

Chris, his wife Nancy, and their 7-year-old son Daniel were found dead in their Fayetteville, Georgia home on June 25 2007. Authorities confirmed that Benoit killed his wife and son, and subsequently hanged himself.

## Early life

Benoit was born in Montreal, Quebec, the son of Michael and Margaret Benoit. He grew up in Edmonton, Alberta, from where he was billed throughout the bulk of his career. He had a sister living near Edmonton.

During his childhood and early adolescence in Edmonton, Benoit idolized Tom "Dynamite Kid" Billington and Bret Hart; at twelve years old, he attended a local wrestling event at which the two performers "stood out above everyone else". Benoit trained to become a professional wrestler in the Hart family "Dungeon", receiving education from family patriarch Stu Hart. In-ring, Benoit emulated both Billington and Bret Hart, cultivating a high-risk style and physical appearance more reminiscent of the former (years later, he adopted Hart's trademark "Sharpshooter" hold as a finishing move).

## Professional wrestling career

Chris Benoit began his career in 1985 in Stu Hart's Stampede Wrestling. From the beginning the similarities between Benoit and his idol were uncanny, as Benoit adopted many of Billington's moves such as the Diving Headbutt and the Snap Suplex; the homage was complete with his initial billing as "Dynamite" Chris Benoit.

His debut match was a tag team match on November 22 1985 in Calgary, Alberta, where he teamed with "The Remarkable" Rick Patterson against Butch Moffat and Mike Hammer. During his tenure in Stampede, he won several International Tag Team and British Commonwealth titles, and had a lengthy feud with Johnny Smith that lasted for over a year. In 1989, Stampede closed its doors later that year, and with a recommendation from Bad News Allen, Benoit departed for New Japan Pro Wrestling.

Upon arriving in New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), Benoit spent about a year training in their "New Japan Dojo" with the younger wrestlers to improve his abilities. While in the dojo, he spent months doing strenuous activities like push ups and floor sweeping before stepping into the ring. He made his Japanese debut wearing a mask and assuming the name **The Pegasus Kid**. Benoit said numerous times that he originally hated the mask, but it eventually became a part of him.

While with NJPW, he came into his own as a performer in critically-acclaimed matches with luminaries like Jushin Liger, Shinjiro Ohtani, The Black Tiger, and El Samurai in their junior heavyweight division.

In 1990, he won his first major championship, the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, from Jushin Liger. He eventually lost the title (and his mask) back to Liger, forcing him to reinvent himself as **Wild Pegasus**. Benoit would spend the next couple years in Japan having more classic matches, winning the Super Juniors tournament twice (1993 and 1995). He went on to win the Super J Cup Tournament in 1994, defeating Black Tiger, Gedo, and Great Sasuke in the finals, solidifying his status as one of the foremost junior heavyweights in the world.

Benoit would wrestle outside of New Japan occasionally to compete in Mexico and Germany, where he won a few regional championships, including the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship. He would hold that title for over a year, having many forty-plus minute matches with Villano III.

Chris Benoit first came to WCW in June 1992, teaming up with fellow Canadian wrestler Biff Wellington for the NWA World Tag Team title tournament; they were defeated by Brian Pillman and Jushin Liger in the first round.

He did not return to WCW until January 1993 at the *Clash of the Champions*, defeating Brad Armstrong. A month later, at Superbrawl III, he lost to 2 Cold Scorpio, getting pinned with only 3 seconds left in the 20-minute time limit. At the same time he formed a tag team with Bobby Eaton. After he and Eaton lost to Scorpio and Marcus Bagwell at Slamboree, Benoit headed back to Japan.

In 1994, Benoit began working with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) in between tours of Japan. He was a dominant wrestler there gaining notoriety as the "Crippler" after he put Rocco Rock out of action.

At "November 2 Remember '94" Benoit accidentally broke Sabu's neck within the opening seconds of the match. The injury came when Benoit threw Sabu with the intention that he take a face-first "pancake" bump, but Sabu attempted to turn mid-air and take a backdrop bump instead. He did not achieve full rotation and landed almost directly on his neck. After this match, Paul Heyman, the head booker of ECW at the time, came up with the idea of continuing the "crippler" moniker for Benoit, which Chris confirms on his DVD *Hard Knocks: The Chris Benoit Story*. From that point until his departure from ECW, Chris was known as the "Crippler" Chris Benoit. However, when he returned to WCW in the fall of '95, WCW modified his ring name to the "Canadian Crippler" Chris Benoit.

Benoit and Dean Malenko won the ECW Tag Team Championship from Sabu and The Tazmaniac in February 1995. After winning, they were initiated into the Triple Threat stable, led by ECW World Heavyweight Champion, Shane Douglas. The team lost the titles to The Public Enemy that April at *ECW's Three Way Dance*.

Benoit would spend some time in ECW feuding with the Steiner Brothers and rekindling the feud with 2 Cold Scorpio having more classic matches. He was forced to leave ECW after his work visa expired, and Heyman was supposed to renew it, but he failed to make it on time, so Benoit left as a matter of job security. He toured Japan until WCW called.

    New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling (WCW) had a working relationship, and because of their "talent exchange" program Benoit signed with WCW in late 1995/early 1996. He started out in WCW as a member of the cruiserweight division, having lengthy matches against many of his former rivals in Japan.

After impressing higher-ups, he became a member of the reformed Four Horsemen in 1995, alongside Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, and Brian Pillman. When Pillman abruptly left the company for the WWF, Benoit was placed into his ongoing feud with (booker) Kevin Sullivan. Sullivan booked a feud in which Benoit was having an affair with Sullivan's (real life) wife Nancy (also known as Woman). Benoit and Nancy were forced to spend time together to make the affair look real, (hold hands in public, share hotel rooms, etc.) This on-screen relationship developed into a real-life affair off-screen. Because of this, Sullivan and Benoit had a contentious backstage relationship at best and Benoit defeated Sullivan in a Retirement match. Benoit did, however, admit having a certain amount of respect for Sullivan, saying on the DVD *Hard Knocks: The Chris Benoit Story* that Sullivan never took undue liberties in the ring during their feud, even though he blamed Benoit for breaking up his marriage.

In 1998, Benoit had a long feud with Booker T. They fought over the WCW World Television Championship until Booker lost the title to Fit Finlay. Booker won a "Best-of-Seven" series which was held between the two to determine a Number One Contender. Benoit went up 3 to 1 before Booker caught up, forcing the 7th and final match on *Monday Nitro*. During the match, Bret Hart interjected himself, interfering on behalf of Benoit in an attempt to get him to join the New World Order. Benoit refused to win that way and told the referee what happened, getting himself disqualified.

Booker refused that victory, instead opting for an eighth match at the 1998 Great American Bash to see who would fight Finlay later that night. Booker won the final match and went on to beat Finlay for the title. This feud significantly elevated both men's careers as singles competitors, and both remained at the top of the midcard afterwards.

In 1999, Benoit teamed with Dean Malenko once again and defeated Curt Hennig and Barry Windham to win the WCW World Tag Team Championship. This led to another reformation of the Four Horsemen with the tag team champions, Anderson, and Steve "Mongo" McMichael. After a falling out with the latter two, Benoit and Malenko left the Horsemen.

Later in 1999, he also won the WCW United States Championship before bringing together Malenko, Perry Saturn, and Shane Douglas to form "The Revolution". The Revolution were a group of younger wrestlers who felt slighted (both kayfabe and legitimate) by WCW management, believing they never gave them the chance to be stars, pushing older, more established wrestlers instead.

Benoit's most notable match of 1999 was with Bret Hart on *WCW Nitro* on October 1999, in Kansas City, Missouri, as a tribute to Owen Hart, who had recently died due to an equipment malfunction.

By January 2000, they made their last try at keeping him, putting the WCW World Heavyweight Championship on him at Souled Out. However, due to disagreements with management and to protest the promotion of Kevin Sullivan to head booker, Benoit left the company the next day alongside his friends Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, and Perry Saturn, forfeiting his title in the process.

Along with Guerrero, Saturn, and Malenko, Benoit debuted in the WWF as a stable that became known as The Radicalz. After losing their "tryout matches" upon entry, The Radicalz aligned themselves with WWF Champion Triple H and became a heel faction. Benoit quickly won his first title in the WWF just over a month later at WrestleMania 2000, pinning Chris Jericho in a triple threat match to win Kurt Angle's Intercontinental Championship.

Benoit then entered into a long-running feud with Jericho, who made fun of Benoit's demeanor by referring to him constantly as "Mr. Roboto" due to his cold personality. It was also in this time period that Benoit wrestled in his first WWF pay per view main events, challenging The Rock for the title in July 2000 and as part of a fatal four way title match in September. Both times, Benoit appeared to have won the WWF Championship, only to have the decision reversed by then-WWF commissioner Mick Foley due to cheating on Benoit's part.

Benoit and Jericho met on PPV four times in nine months, exchanging the title back and forth and culminating in Jericho defeating Benoit in a ladder match at the 2001 Royal Rumble. Benoit won the Intercontinental Title three times between April 2000 and January 2001.

In early 2001, Benoit broke away from The Radicalz (who had recently reformed three months earlier) and turned babyface, feuding first with his former stable-mates and then with Kurt Angle, whom he wrestled at WrestleMania X-Seven. The feud continued after Benoit stole Angle's cherished Olympic Gold Medal. This culminated in a match at Judgment Day 2001 where Angle won a Two out of three falls match with the help of Edge and Christian. In response, Benoit teamed up with his former rival Jericho to defeat Edge and Christian in that night's Tag Team Turmoil match.

The next night on *WWF Raw* in San Jose, California, Jericho and Benoit challenged WWF Tag Team Champions Stone Cold Steve Austin and Triple H for their titles. Jericho and Benoit ended their reign and used the win as a springboard to challenge Austin for his world title (This was the night that Triple H suffered a legit injury by tearing his quadricep muscle while attempting to clothesline Jericho).

Benoit got two title matches the following week, first losing via Montreal Screwjob in Calgary and then just barely losing to Austin in Benoit's hometown of Edmonton. Unfortunately, also in that time period came a four-way TLC match where Benoit suffered a neck injury that required surgery with Dr. Lloyd Youngblood. Despite this, he worked through until the King of the Ring, where he was pinned in a triple threat match versus Austin and Jericho. Benoit missed the next year due to his neck injury.

During the first WWE Draft, he was picked by Vince McMahon third to be part of the new *SmackDown!* roster, although still on the injured list. However, when he returned, he did so as a member of the *RAW* roster. On his first night back, he turned heel again and aligned himself with Eddie Guerrero, and he feuded with Steve Austin briefly. He and Eddie Guerrero were then moved to SmackDown during a storyline "open season" on wrestler contracts, with Benoit taking his newly won Intercontinental championship with him. Rob Van Dam defeated Benoit at SummerSlam 2002 and returned the title to *RAW*.

After returning to *SmackDown!* in October, he was crowned the first winner of the WWE Tag Team Championship, alongside foe and partner Kurt Angle. They both turned face again by betraying Los Guerreros. The two made an impressive combination, but could not stand each other.

Angle won his third WWE Championship from Big Show at Armageddon 2002, and Benoit faced him for the title at the 2003 Royal Rumble. Although Benoit lost the match, he received a standing ovation for his efforts after a very outstanding match. Benoit returned to the tag team ranks, teaming with the returning Rhyno. At WrestleMania XIX, the WWE Tag Team Champions, Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin, put their belts on the line against Benoit and his partner Rhyno and Los Guerreros in a triple threat tag team match. Team Angle retained when Shelton Benjamin pinned Chavo.

Benoit feuded with John Cena and the Full Blooded Italians, teaming with Rhyno occasionally. In June 2003, the WWE United States Championship was reactivated, and Benoit participated in the tournament for the belt. He beat Rhyno in the first round  and then Matt Hardy in the second, before losing the final match to Eddie Guerrero at Vengeance 2003. The two feuded over the title for the next month, and Benoit's popularity ascended to an all-time high. He defeated the likes of A-Train, The Big Show, and Brock Lesnar by submission. General Manager Paul Heyman began a vendetta against Benoit along with Lesnar, preventing him from gaining a shot at Lesnar's WWE Title.

When Benoit won a qualifying match for the 2004 Royal Rumble against the Full Blooded Italians in a Gauntlet Match, Heyman named him as the number one entry, but Benoit swore victory. On January 25 2004 Benoit won the 2004 Royal Rumble by last eliminating Big Show, and thus earned a WWE Championship title shot at WrestleMania XX. As a result of the long-standing Royal Rumble tradition that the winner receives a shot at the world champion at WrestleMania, being on the SmackDown! brand at the time, Benoit challenged for the WWE Championship. Benoit, however, exploited a "loophole" in the rules and challenged World Heavyweight Champion Triple H.

This "loophole" clause has become standard storyline practice, with the Royal Rumble winner being free to choose which title he will challenge for. With this win, Benoit became one of only two men to enter at #1 and win the Royal Rumble (the other being Shawn Michaels at the 1995 Royal Rumble). Though the match was originally intended to be a one-on-one match, Shawn Michaels, whose Last Man Standing match against Triple H at the Royal Rumble for the World Heavyweight Championship ended in a draw, thought that he deserved to be in the main event. When it was time for Benoit to sign the contract putting himself in the main event, Michaels superkicked him and signed his name on the contract, which eventually resulted in a Triple Threat Match between Michaels, Benoit, and the champion, Triple H.

On March 14 2004, at WrestleMania XX, Chris Benoit won the World Heavyweight Championship by forcing Triple H to tap out to his signature submission move, the Crippler Crossface. It marked the first time the main event of a WrestleMania ended in submission. (It happened again at WrestleMania 22 and WrestleMania 23). After the match, an emotional Benoit celebrated his win with the then-reigning WWE Champion and best friend Eddie Guerrero. Four years after they came to WWE together, they stood in the ring at Madison Square Garden, both of them world champions. It is considered the biggest win of Benoit's 19-year career, as he won his second official World Championship in the main event of the biggest show of the year.

The match was voted the 2004 PWI Match of the Year. This was Benoit's first World Heavyweight Title reign. The rematch was held at Backlash 2004 in Benoit's hometown of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. This match was a Triple Threat match, which also involved Triple H and Shawn Michaels. It was Michaels who ended up submitting to Benoit's Sharpshooter, allowing Benoit to retain his title, once again proving he was worthy of the main event.

The next night in Calgary, he and Edge won the World Tag Team titles from Batista and Ric Flair, making Benoit a double champion. On *RAW*, Benoit defeated Triple H in a one-hour Iron Man match. Benoit scored the first fall with a pinning predicament out of a Crossface attempt. Triple H then rallied to take a 3-1 fall advantage by a Pedigree pinfall, spinebuster pinfall, and a count out decision. After Benoit evened the falls up 3-3 via Sharpshooter and Crippler Crossface submissions, he got the final pin in the match's closing seconds (due to the outside interference of Eugene) to retain the title. On August 15 2004, Chris Benoit was defeated by Randy Orton for the World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam. This title change is notable because it is rare for a top face World Champion to ever drop the title cleanly to a heel. His reign lasted 5 months, and he gained 7 straight pay-per-view victories.

Benoit then feuded with Edge, leading to Taboo Tuesday where Chris Benoit, Edge, and Shawn Michaels were all put into a poll to see who would face Triple H for the World Heavyweight title that night. Michaels received the most votes and as a result, Edge and Benoit were forced to team up to face the then tag team champions, La Résistance, in the same night. However, Edge deserted Benoit during the match and Benoit was forced to take on both members of La Résistance by himself. He still managed to win the World Tag Team titles. At Survivor Series 2004, Benoit sided with Randy Orton's team while Edge teamed with Triple H's team, and while Edge was able to pin Benoit after a Pedigree, Orton's team won.

The Benoit-Edge feud ended at New Year's Revolution. The feud stopped abruptly, as Edge feuded with Shawn Michaels, and Benoit entered the Royal Rumble. The two then continued to have matches in the following weeks until the two of them, Chris Jericho, Shelton Benjamin, Kane, and Christian were placed in the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 21. Edge won the match by knocking Benoit off of and smashing his arm with the ladder. The feud finally culminated in a Last Man Standing Match at Backlash 2005. Edge won with a brick shot to the back of Benoit's head. On June 9 2005, Benoit returned to *SmackDown!* after being the first man selected by the *SmackDown!* side in the 2005 Draft Lottery, and participated in an ECW-style revolution against the *SmackDown!* heels. Benoit appeared at One Night Stand 2005, defeating Eddie Guerrero. At the end of the night he delivered a flying headbutt to his former WCW boss and former *RAW* General Manager Eric Bischoff.

On July 24 at The Great American Bash 2005, Benoit failed to win the WWE United States Championship from Orlando Jordan, but he faced him in a rematch at SummerSlam 2005. Benoit defeated Jordan in 25 seconds with the Crippler Crossface to win the title. On the next two editions of *SmackDown!*, Benoit defeated Jordan by submission in 23.4 seconds and 22.5 seconds. Two weeks later, Benoit defeated Jordan by submission in 49.8 seconds. Benoit then started wrestling Booker T in some friendly competitions, but it was all a ploy, as Booker and his wife, Sharmell, cheated Benoit out of the US title on an episode of *SmackDown!*.

Chris Benoit appeared on *RAW* on November 14 2005 for Guerrero's tribute show hosted by both *RAW* and *SmackDown!* superstars. Benoit was devastated at the loss of his best friend and was very emotional during a series of video testimonials, where he said that he loved Eddie and will never forget him, eventually breaking down on camera. The same week on *SmackDown!* (taped on the same night as *RAW*), Benoit defeated Triple H in a tribute match to his fallen friend. Following the contest, Benoit, Helmsley, and Dean Malenko all assembled in the ring and pointed to the sky in salute of Guerrero.

After controversy surrounding a US title defense against Booker T, Theodore Long set up a "Best of Seven" series between the two. Booker T won three times in a row, due largely to his wife's interference, and Chris Benoit faced elimination in the series. Benoit won the fourth match to stay alive, but after the match, Booker suffered a legitimate groin injury, and Randy Orton was chosen as a stand-in. Benoit defeated Orton twice by disqualification. However, in the 7th and final match, Orton defeated Benoit with the help of Booker T, Sharmell, and Orlando Jordan, and Booker captured the US title. Benoit feuded with Orton for a short time, only to compete against Booker for the US title. Benoit was given one last chance at the US title at No Way Out 2006 and won it by making Booker submit to the Crippler Crossface, ending the feud. Soon after, Benoit defeated Randy Orton in a No Holds Barred match on *SmackDown!* via Crippler Crossface.

The next week on *SmackDown!*, Benoit kayfabe broke John Bradshaw Layfield's (JBL) hand (JBL actually needed surgery to remove a cyst). A match was set up for the two at WrestleMania 22 for Benoit's title, and for the next several weeks, they attacked each other. JBL won the match with an illegal cradle to win the title. Benoit used his rematch clause two weeks later in a steel cage match on *SmackDown!*, but JBL again won with illegal tactics.

Benoit entered the 2006 King Of The Ring tournament, only to be defeated by Finlay in the opening round, after Finlay struck Benoit's neck with a chair and delivered a Celtic Cross. At Judgment Day 2006 Benoit gained some revenge by defeating Finlay with the Crippler Crossface in a grudge match. On the following edition of *SmackDown!*, Mark Henry attacked Benoit during a match, giving him back and rib injuries. Benoit then announced a sabbatical to heal nagging shoulder injuries. On October 8, Benoit made his return at No Mercy, defeating William Regal by submission in a surprise match. Later that week, he won his fifth United States Championship from Mr. Kennedy also by submission. Benoit then engaged in a feud with Chavo and Vickie Guerrero. He wanted answers from the Guerreros for their rash behavior towards Rey Mysterio, but was avoided by the two and was eventually assaulted. Benoit retained his United States Championship at Survivor Series 2006 and Armageddon 2006, both times defeating Chavo Guerrero. Benoit and Chavo's feud finally ended after a match with no-disqualification rules in play, where Benoit retained his title.

After defeating Guerrero, Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) claimed that he was the best man to hold the US title, so he challenged Benoit for the title at WrestleMania 23, where Benoit retained. Their rivalry continued with similar results again at Backlash. At Judgment Day, however, MVP gained the upper hand and the title in a two-out-of-three falls match.

On the June 11 edition of *RAW*, Benoit was drafted from *SmackDown!* to *ECW* as part of the 2007 WWE Draft, after losing a match to Bobby Lashley. Benoit won his ECW debut match teaming up with CM Punk and defeating Elijah Burke and Marcus Cor Von by disqualification. On June 19 2007, Benoit wrestled his last match, defeating Elijah Burke in a match to determine who would face CM Punk for the vacated ECW World Championship at Vengeance. Benoit missed the weekend house shows, telling WWE officials that his wife and son were vomiting blood due to food poisoning (see below). When he failed to show up for the pay-per-view, viewers were informed that he was unable to compete due to a "family emergency," and he was replaced in the title match by Johnny Nitro. Nitro went on to win the match and became ECW Champion.

## Murders and suicide

On Friday, June 22, 2007, Chris Benoit killed his wife Nancy in the bonus room of their house which was being used as an office. According to the police report, her limbs were bound prior to her death, with her arms being restrained with coaxial cables, and her feet being duct-taped together. A balled up combination of a tube sock and tape was also found in the kitchen trash and appeared to be soaked in dried blood, which led police to believe that it was being used as a makeshift gag prior to her death. Her body was found wrapped in a blanket. A copy of the Bible was left by her body. Injuries indicated that Benoit had pressed a knee into her back while pulling on a cord around her neck, causing strangulation.

Officials said that there were no signs of immediate struggle. Toxicologists found alcohol in her body, but were unable to determine whether it had been present before death or was a decomposition product. Decomposition also made it difficult to estimate pre-death levels of hydrocodone and alprazolam, found in "therapeutic levels" in her body. In any case, her medical examiner saw no evidence that she was sedated as her son had been when he was killed.

Daniel Christopher Benoit was Chris' third child and second son, having older paternal half-siblings named David and Megan via Chris's first wife, Martina, who were all living in Canada at the time the murder-suicide took place. He was Nancy's only child, as she had no children with her ex-husbands Jim Daus or Kevin Sullivan. Daniel was suffocated and killed in his bedroom, and a copy of the Bible was left by his body. Daniel had internal injuries to the throat area, showing no bruises. Reports determined Daniel was sedated with Xanax and likely unconscious when he was killed. Daniel's body had also just started to show signs of decomposition but was not as far along as his mother's body.

It was later alleged that Daniel had fragile X syndrome and that this was the cause of domestic problems in the Benoit family. It was also suggested that needle marks on Daniel's arms were the result of growth hormones given to him because Benoit and his family considered him undersized due to fragile X. Benoit's coworker and best friend, wrestler Chris Jericho, stated that from his own research on the condition, the symptoms "fit Daniel to a tee, all across the board". Concerning those who had publicly stated that they had no knowledge of Daniel having the condition, Jericho said, "If Chris had decided that he wanted to keep it to himself, you wouldn't have been able to pry that out of him with anything." Despite Jericho's initial statements regarding Daniel, he later stated in his 2011 book *Undisputed*, "It turned out that Daniel didn't have fragile X, but at the time it made sense because I was grasping at straws." District Attorney Ballard later released a statement saying that a source with access to Daniel's medical files found no mention of any pre-existing mental or physical ailments. Likewise, Daniel Benoit's teachers reported that he was on par with other students and not about to be held back as previously thought. Speaking publicly for the first time in a major public interview on a *Talk is Jericho* podcast in 2016, Nancy's sister, Sandra Toffoloni, unequivocally denied any claims that Daniel had ever had fragile X or any other such condition. She also stated that claims of needle track marks on Daniel's arms were "preposterous".

At about 3:30 p.m. EDT on Saturday, June 23, 2007, fellow wrestler and close friend Chavo Guerrero received a voicemail message from Benoit's phone stating that both Nancy and Daniel had food poisoning and he would be late for that night's house show in Beaumont, Texas. Guerrero called Benoit back and found that Benoit sounded tired and groggy as he confirmed everything that he had said in his voice message. Guerrero, who was "concerned about Benoit's tone and demeanor," called him back 12 minutes later. Benoit did not answer the call, and Guerrero left a message asking Benoit to call back. At 3:44 p.m. EDT, Benoit called Guerrero back, stating that he had not answered the call because he was on the phone with Delta Air Lines changing his flight. Benoit stated that he had a stressful day due to Nancy and Daniel "being sick from food poisoning". Guerrero then replied with "All right man, if you need to talk, I'm here for you". Benoit ended the conversation by saying "Chavo, I love you". During a 2014 appearance on Chris Jericho's *Talk is Jericho* podcast, Guerrero said Benoit sounded "off" when he talked to him, especially when he said "I love you" with emphasis. Another co-worker who often traveled with Benoit called him from outside the Houston airport; Benoit answered and told the coworker that Nancy was vomiting blood and that Daniel was also vomiting. Benoit failed to show up for the house show in Beaumont, and left a voicemail on Chavo's cell phone that he would be on a flight that would arrive in Houston at 8:00 a.m. CDT on the following Sunday morning.

On Sunday, June 24, 2007, five text messages were sent to co-workers between 3:51 a.m. and 3:58 a.m. using both Chris and Nancy Benoit's cell phones. Four of them were the Benoits' address; the fifth said that the family's dogs were in the enclosed pool area, and also noted that a garage side door had been left open. Guerrero and referee Scott Armstrong were two of the recipients of these texts. Guerrero was woken up by the texts, and went back to sleep, telling himself that he was picking Benoit up at the Houston airport in a few hours. Benoit failed to show at the Houston airport on the flight that arrived at 8:00 a.m. Late Sunday morning, Benoit called WWE's talent relations office stating that his son was vomiting, and that he and Nancy were at the hospital with him. He also stated that he would be taking a later flight into Houston where he was scheduled to face CM Punk for the vacant ECW World Championship at Vengeance: Night of Champions. Benoit failed to appear for the event in Houston on the night of Sunday, June 24.

Benoit, according to District Attorney Ballard and the city sheriff, committed suicide by hanging. Benoit used a weight machine cord to hang himself by creating a noose from the end of the cord on a pull-down machine from which the bar had been removed. Benoit released the weights, causing his strangulation. Ballard said Benoit was found hanging from the pulley cable. On the 2016 *Talk is Jericho* podcast, Nancy's sister Sandra Toffoloni clarified some details further. She said that over the weekend, the search history on Benoit's computer showed he had researched "the quickest and easiest way to break a neck". He had then later used a towel around his neck attached to the handle of the machine, which he pulled down using a very heavy weight and let go, breaking his neck instantly. However, the police report done by Fayette County Police Department states he had no damage to his neck area other than that which came from the cable around his neck. It also states the only thing he researched on his computer in that time period was that of the Prophet of Elijah and the resurrecting of a dead boy. No mention of the claims made by Toffoloni were on the police report and his autopsy report made no mention of damage to Benoit's cervical vertebrae, hyoid bone, trachea or larynx area, further indicating he didn't snap his neck as a manner of suicide.

On Monday, June 25, 2007, WWE wrestlers and senior officials arrived in Corpus Christi for *WWE Raw*, which was to take place on that Monday night at the American Bank Center. As the early hours of the afternoon progressed and the show got closer to starting, WWE senior officials were increasingly concerned that they had not heard from Benoit in over 24 hours. Guerrero then showed WWE Vice President of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis (aka Johnny Ace) the texts that he and Armstrong had received from Chris and Nancy's cellphones in the early hours of Sunday. As some more time progressed without any contact from Benoit, WWE called the Fayetteville, Georgia, police for a welfare check at the Benoit household. After discovering the bodies, the police notified WWE around 4:15 p.m. (CDT), informing them that they had discovered three bodies at the Benoit home and the house was now ruled as a "major crime scene".

A suicide note was not discovered during the initial investigation, but one was later discovered in a Bible that had been among Benoit's possessions that were sent to his first wife (Martina Benoit) and their two children in Canada. Benoit's father Michael Benoit stated that Chris had left "a hand-written notation in there saying, 'I'm preparing to leave this Earth.'" A memorial for Nancy and Daniel took place in Daytona Beach, Florida, on July 14, 2007. Both were cremated and their ashes placed in starfish-shaped urns for Nancy's family. Chris was also cremated, following a private memorial service in Ardrossan, Alberta, on August 6, 2007, but the fate of his ashes has not been publicly revealed.

Neuroscientist and former wrestler Christopher Nowinski stated that Benoit may have been suffering from repeated, untreated concussions throughout his wrestling career, ultimately leading to an unstable mental state. Nowinski was quoted as saying that Benoit "was one of the only guys who would take a chair shot to the back of the head ... which is stupid". Tests conducted on Benoit's brain by Julian Bailes, the head of neurosurgery at West Virginia University, showed "Benoit's brain was so severely damaged it resembled the brain of an 85-year-old Alzheimer's patient". Other tests conducted on Benoit's brain tissue revealed severe chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), and damage to all four lobes of the brain and brain stem. Bailes and his colleagues concluded that repeated concussions can lead to dementia, which can contribute to severe behavioral problems. Benoit's father said that brain damage may have been the leading cause of the double murder-suicide. A statement released by WWE described this as "speculative". Nancy Benoit had filed for divorce in May 2003, allegedly after domestic abuse from Chris, but had withdrawn it in August 2003. In February 2008, *The Atlanta Journal-Constitution* (*AJC*) reported that Nancy may have suspected her husband of having an affair with a female WWE wrestler, and that they may have also argued over a life insurance policy. The *AJC* claimed the source was a recently released report from the Fayette County Sheriff's Office.