Braun Strowman and Ricochet last teamed up on May 1 to take on Chad Gable and Otis, only days after Strowman’s return from a concussion. However, it appears another significant ailment will keep the big man away from the ring for a long time.
In an Instagram post, Strowman announced that he underwent neck fusion surgery on his C4 and C5 vertebrae, which will “take a little bit of time to heal.”
Road to recovery starts now!!!! Level one #fusion on my c4/c5 #vertebrae was in the great hands of #DrCordover at @andrews_sports_medicine was a great experience considering. Thank you to @wwe for always taking the up most care of us. This was very scary to find out about having to have done and they were there every step of the way reassuring that I was going to have the best care possible. This will take a little bit of time to heal from. But I assure you ( in the words of the #Terminator ) I’ll be back!!!! Thank you all in advance for the well wishes.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cs_cDDhAh6R/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MmJiY2I4NDBkZg==
Many pro wrestlers who have undergone neck fusion surgery have returned to the ring. Stone Cold Steve Austin was able to continue his wrestling career after his operation, while Edge even returned as well despite triple-fusion surgery and nine years away from the ring. Other wrestlers who have undergone serious neck surgeries include Jeff Hardy, John Cena, Sheamus and CM Punk.
However, as Strowman alluded to, this surgery will take time to heal from, meaning he is likely to miss significant time from WWE programming.
Meanwhile, Ricochet now a singles wrestler, defeated the Miz on Monday’s episode of Raw to qualify for the men’s Money in the Bank match. Unless WWE puts him into another tag team, he will have to navigate the Raw roster like this for the time being as Strowman heals.