Travicity
12-02-2010, 09:48 PM
The Pittsburgh City Papers featured an article today on two of the most important personalities in professional wrestling that have never been on-air characters within the WWE Universe, their attorney Jerry McDevitt and Dr. Joseph Maroon, who heads up the WWE Wellness Policy.
The pair are profiled since they are both from the Pittsburgh area. It was noted that McDevitt first became familiar with the McMahon family and the then-WWF after representing Jim Neidhart following an incident on an airplane.
"he kept telling me he was really worried about what this guy named Vince was going to do to him, " said McDevitt. Neidhart was acquitted.
McDevitt's work in that criminal case led to him taking on work for the WWF, where he has rightfully earned the reputation of being one hell of a legal bulldog, going as far as to get McMahon acquitted of his steroid distribution charges in New York in 1994.
"I've watched this company grow over the years," sais McDevitt. "I've also developed a strong relationship with Vince and Linda. I think that comes from going through a criminal trial with someone. ... I was with them when the jury came back 'not guilty,' and I stood on the stage with their family when Linda recently gave her concession speech" on election night."
After the death of Eddie Guerrero in 2005, McDevitt suggested Maroon to head up the company's Wellness Policy.
I spent my entire career trying to fix the cars after they were already broken," Maroon said. "But working with WWE was a "chance to institute preventative measures. ... And I truly believe that this is the best preventative medical program I have ever seen in sports."
The article also discusses the evolution of the Wellness Policy as it exists today, noting WWE spends upwards of $3 million a year. William Regal, Sheamus and MVP are both interviewed in the piece with MVP discussing how the Policy likely saved his life after finding a cardiac issue. Sheamus discussed how he was monitored after suffering a concussion, with someone spending the entire night with him and then having to take a test the next day. When the test came back positive, he was pulled from the ring. Regal said that he knows that without WWE, he wouldn't be alive.
The article goes into detail on the medical layout WWE takes on the road with them and compares it to the past policy of utilizing local doctors.
""Vince McMahon has no idea when they're testing these guys and the punishments are set forth clearly in the wellness policy," McDevitt said. "This is handled completely by the doctors and the testing lab. Vince McMahon is left completely out of that loop. Anyone who says differently, just doesn't understand the policy and how it works."
The piece shows how far the company has come in the last five years since starting the program and is overall, well worth going out of your way to read. It is also not just a puff piece as it examines the deaths of wrestlers over the years, the discovery of CTE, the Benoit tragedy and much more.
PWI
The pair are profiled since they are both from the Pittsburgh area. It was noted that McDevitt first became familiar with the McMahon family and the then-WWF after representing Jim Neidhart following an incident on an airplane.
"he kept telling me he was really worried about what this guy named Vince was going to do to him, " said McDevitt. Neidhart was acquitted.
McDevitt's work in that criminal case led to him taking on work for the WWF, where he has rightfully earned the reputation of being one hell of a legal bulldog, going as far as to get McMahon acquitted of his steroid distribution charges in New York in 1994.
"I've watched this company grow over the years," sais McDevitt. "I've also developed a strong relationship with Vince and Linda. I think that comes from going through a criminal trial with someone. ... I was with them when the jury came back 'not guilty,' and I stood on the stage with their family when Linda recently gave her concession speech" on election night."
After the death of Eddie Guerrero in 2005, McDevitt suggested Maroon to head up the company's Wellness Policy.
I spent my entire career trying to fix the cars after they were already broken," Maroon said. "But working with WWE was a "chance to institute preventative measures. ... And I truly believe that this is the best preventative medical program I have ever seen in sports."
The article also discusses the evolution of the Wellness Policy as it exists today, noting WWE spends upwards of $3 million a year. William Regal, Sheamus and MVP are both interviewed in the piece with MVP discussing how the Policy likely saved his life after finding a cardiac issue. Sheamus discussed how he was monitored after suffering a concussion, with someone spending the entire night with him and then having to take a test the next day. When the test came back positive, he was pulled from the ring. Regal said that he knows that without WWE, he wouldn't be alive.
The article goes into detail on the medical layout WWE takes on the road with them and compares it to the past policy of utilizing local doctors.
""Vince McMahon has no idea when they're testing these guys and the punishments are set forth clearly in the wellness policy," McDevitt said. "This is handled completely by the doctors and the testing lab. Vince McMahon is left completely out of that loop. Anyone who says differently, just doesn't understand the policy and how it works."
The piece shows how far the company has come in the last five years since starting the program and is overall, well worth going out of your way to read. It is also not just a puff piece as it examines the deaths of wrestlers over the years, the discovery of CTE, the Benoit tragedy and much more.
PWI