How Did Droz's Injury Affect D Lo Brown?

[The Brain]

In the fall of 1999 Droz was injured in a match against D Lo Brown. The injury was caused by a botched powerbomb which resulted in paralysis and the end of Droz’s wrestling career. When a wrestler’s career is cut short it’s natural to speculate on what might have been. In this case even though it was Droz’s career that was ended and his life changed forever the results seemed to affect D Lo too.

Believe it or not D Lo was pretty hot in the summer of 1999. He simultaneously held the Intercontinental and European titles and had a pretty good feud with Jeff Jarrett. To my surprise the fans were really getting behind D Lo. D Lo always seemed to be somewhat of an underdog. He became famous in wrestling by being a lackey for the Nation of Domination and at first was viewed as more of an annoyance than a threat to his competition. It wouldn’t have surprised anyone if D Lo just faded away once the Nation disbanded but he actually got over on his own. At first I wasn’t buying into him as a singles star but after seeing how much the fans were behind him at SummerSlam D Lo started to win me over. Despite losing both his titles to Jarrett at SummerSlam the future looked bright for D Lo Brown.

That all seemed to change after that fateful night against Droz. Don’t get me wrong. Droz was the victim in this match. He’s the one whose life was forever changed. I don’t mean to overlook him but we’ve discussed his injury before. In no way am I comparing the affect this incident had on these two men but for this thread I want to discuss how this effected D Lo’s wrestling career. After the accident D Lo’s momentum was derailed. He was back to being a tag team lackey with the Godfather and after that was put into a joke of a team with Chaz (Headbanger Mosh). D Lo was never relevant after the Droz accident.

I am not suggesting that D Lo’s push was stopped as some kind of punishment. Maybe his confidence was shaken. Maybe his heart wasn’t in wrestling as he felt extreme guilt over what happened. Maybe he wasn’t ever going to go any further anyway. Let’s say the accident with Droz never happened. What would have become of D Lo Brown?

 

[PingPongBundy]

Oh wow, I never thought of it like that before. I never noticed that D Lo seemed to be brought down a peg after the accident. I was still very young then. It wouldn't surprise me if D Lo lost confidence in his ability. He may have been afraid to hurt someone again. Maybe being put in a tag team, where it allowed him to work less in a match, was a good thing for him to build it back up. The reason I say this is that I'm not sure he was punished for it. What makes it different is that Droz came out and publicly came out and he didn't hold ill will towards D Lo, that it was an accident and that this is the risk you take in that ring. That had to go a long way towards ensuring that D Lo wasn't fired and never heard from again.

 

[Slash-LN]

I think anytime you unintentionally hurt someone it probably rattles you. Especially in a situation where it's your job to go out and be physical. I'm sure mentally it shook him.

Like PingPongBundy said Droz did say that he had no ill will towards D'Lo but even with that I'm sure it weighed on him.

Had the Droz thing not happened I don't think D'Lo would have gone any higher on the card. I don't think he would have been a main event guy anyway. He might not have been thrown into tag teams but I also don't think he was put into those teams as punishment. Nor do I think the OP is suggesting that by any means.

I actually was one of the people who got behind him. When I had my action figures I often used him as my Intercontinental champion in feuds with Val Venis and Ken Shamrock. I used him on video games on Nintendo 64 as one of my main mid card type wrestlers when I would nerd out and create my own shows.

Also they did kind of give him a little push when he joined Teddy Long and went on an undefeated streak for a few weeks.

 

[PingPongBundy]

I don't think D'Lo would have gone any higher on the card. I don't think he would have been a main event guy anyway.

I have to agree here. Although, had he been in his prime anywhere between 2006 and last month, I wouldn't have been surprised to see him going for the ECW title and WHC, and maybe even winning the ECW title.

 

[wrestler36]

Yeah, I don't think the accident really affected his spot on the roster. He was pretty over with the fans and created a nice, niche personality for himself. He had that walk, the Austin-esque shaking of the head, the people's elbow-like leg drop and one of the better frog splashes. With that being said, I don't think he ever would have been a long time main event player, not with guys like Rock, Austin, Taker, HHH around. WWE even brought him back in the mid-late 2000s, but it didn't pan out.

 

[Pedigree1]

This had to hurt D-LO no doubt!! THink about it,when you unintentionally do harm to someone (unless your a souless bastard its gonna rattle you!!).. D-Lo was pretty hot up until that point,im not sure how the accident happened i have read accounts it was sweat,Drozs pants were too baggy or some fan threw a cup of water into the ring and D-lo slipped while delivering a powerbomb..

To my knowledge,Droz has no ill feeling towards D-Lo and thats good.. Unfortunately these accidents do happen,but that did derail any push D-Lo had... Had the injury not happened,i would think D-Lo would have been up there not Champion status but in line most definitely..

 

[Y 2 Jake]

I don't think his push stopped because of that accident and I don't think his confidence was shaken to the point that WWE didn't feel they could push him significantly anymore. I think it's just a case of WWE having better people to push in Brown's spot over the next year. The IC title was anybodies in 1999, the year after you had Jericho, Angle, Guerrero & Benoit vying for it.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

There was no way he was punished, it was clear that the fan thrown drink was to blame for him slipping but that wouldn't have helped D.Lo.

Remember this was a roster still very raw from the death of Owen a few months earlier. D Lo had been a bright spot of that period, working well with Jarrett over the IC title.

I am sure D Lo's confidence was shot after this, something not helped by Droz being perhaps the 2nd most likable guy on the roster behind Owen, his spot in Beyond the Mat summed him up - a class act. So that would have hurt D Lo as much as the actual prognosis.

D Lo didn't disappear, but he clearly didn't get back on the horse to the level required to sustain his push. It's well known guys who have a near miss are a little more cautious, as are those who work with them... this is still the most severe incident in an actual match to have taken place in the US for 20 years. Hayabusa's was his own fault and only Misawa's has ended up worse in the business at all.

Unfortunately the other side of this is that it's very likely that even if the accident wasn't his fault and Droz and the E didn't blame him that it's possible some guys of the time didn't want to work with D. Lo. Not cos they didn't trust him, but were worried he didn't trust himself...which can be as bad. You saw it with Kennedy a few years back, guys were so wary that the first chance Orton got he ratted him out and got him fired... he didn't botch that badly, but that he could have was enough. Someone like Austin, already injured once might have seen it as a "bad sign" and actively avoided D.Lo in the ring... not cos he blamed him, but just didn't think the risk was worth it.

Low Down was a crap team, but that wasn't D Lo's fault by an stretch, Chaz was a far weaker link and the gimmick was utter poo... It's telling D Lo was given a very prominent role in TNA as a trainer/backstage guy - his experience is valuable, being the "little nobody" who made it and how to deal with the mistake. Much as Droz is still employed by WWE, D Lo should really be too... hopefully one day it can happen.