Wrestler’s top-rope dive goes awry, sending him crashing into concrete

Heart-stopping moment wrestler’s top-rope dive goes awry, sending him crashing head first into concrete floor and causing skull fracture and brain bleeding

  • Shawn Phoenix, 27, was taking part in International Wrestling Cartel event in Pennsylvania on October 6 when he suffered near-fatal accident 
  • He was performing a flip off top rope onto his rival when he landed on concrete floor after a table failed to break his fall 
  • Phoenix cracked his skull, suffered brain bleeding and permanently lost hearing in his left ear  

An independent pro wrestler from Pennsylvania is lucky to be alive after a nearly fatal accident during an event this fall, which sent him diving from the top rope into the concrete floor.

Shawn Phoenix, 27, suffered a fractured skull, brain bleeding and permanent hearing loss in his ear on October 6, which he now calls the worst day of his life. 

On Wednesday, Phoenix took to social media to release a video recording from the fateful wrestling match in Elizabeth, Pennsylvania, which begins with the pierced and tattooed Phoenix standing on the top rope of the wrestling ring and getting into a somersault. 


Independent pro-wrestler Shawn Phoenix was taking part in an event in Pennsylvania on October 6 when he suffered a nearly deadly accident while performing a move

Phoenix attempted a flip off the top rope, planning to landing onto his opponent 

Instead, he bounced off a wooden table, which was meant to break his fall 

The 27-year-old landed head first on the concrete floor in front of shocked spectators 

Phoenix fractured his skull after slamming the left side of his head against the hard surface  

A referee rushed to the injured wrestler’s aid and he was taken to a hospital 

Phoenix’s plan was to land on top of his opponent, but while he was performing the front flip, his rival rolled out of the way. 

The Pennsylvania native and self-described ‘adrenaline junkie’ is part of the International Wrestling Cartel

A wooden table positioned next to the ring was meant to break Phoenix’s fall, but the wrestler missed and instead landed square on the left side of his head.

As a referee and event staff rushed to his aid, Phoenix remained lying motionless.  

He was rushed to University of Pennsylvania Medical Center Presbyterian, where he stayed for six days. Three months later, Phoenix is still undergoing physical therapy. 

Despite the litany of injuries, Phoenix tweeted Wednesday, ‘I’m unbreakable.’  

Phoenix, who is part of the International Wrestling Cartel, also shared the cringe-worthy video of his accident on Reddit, writing to his fans: ‘I am an adrenaline junkie, unfortunately, it didn’t work out the way I wanted to. I only remember being on the top rope, then waking up on the floor. Imagine the worst headache you’ve ever had.


Phoenix was diagnosed with a brain bleeding and permanent loss of hearing in his left ear (left). He was released from the hospital after six days 

Phoenix said he was in tremendous pain during his hospital stay and could not bear to have the light on because it hurt his eyes 

Phoenix has shared his head X-ray showing the damage to his skull, captioning it ‘unbreakable’ 

‘Then imagine getting hit in the head with a baseball bat with said headache everytime [sic] someone spoke or I looked at the lights.’

The 27-year-old Pennsylvanian native explained that he decided to make the footage public to raise awareness of the risks associated with his profession.

‘I do not want it to be this “unspoken phenomenon,” he said. ‘I want it to be out there, I feel like if it’s available to be seen, I can overcome it.’  

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