I'm Proud of Steve Scott
Last night, Too Hot Steve Scott made his return to professional wrestling as a part of Synergy Wrestling at their event inside the World Famous Monster Factory.
Hearing this made me smile. In fact, a few mutual friends that checked out Steve’s return texted me to say he looked like he never skipped a beat.
As a friend of Steve’s for a long time, I know the tough journey he’s been on. Steve has dealt with issues relating back to a concussion he received on April 12, 2014 at ACE Pro Wrestling. During a tag team encounter, Steve accidentally received a back-fist to the dome, knocking him out and receiving a concussion. I took him to the hospital that night and saw the effects instantly. He was in bad shape.
Over the next few years, he had a few more during some matches. I’ve learned, by watching Steve’s struggles, how serious concussions could and can be. Many people suffer from debilitating symptoms and can’t overcome it. It’s a serious epidemic for contact sport athletes, and over the past decade, studies and research has shown the long lasting effects. Some just don’t ever come back.
Steve’s passion and drive got him back. However, in full disclosure, I was worried for him.
When I was booking Project: Diverge for April 2018, one of the main components of doing the event was solely on using Steve as a performer. I personally went to the last JAPW show in the Rahway Rec Center to watch Steve wrestle in a three-way match. I solely went to see how he looked in the ring and how his health was. Once I saw his in-ring work look crisp and concise, I knew we were good to go.
I purposely booked Steve against Tom O’Malley for the opening match of the Operation New Wave Tournament for two reasons. The first was simple; those two are good friends that have always wanted to wrestle each other one-on-one. The second reason was a little more in-depth.
For that night, I knew that to set the pace for the entire night, you needed a great back-and-forth opening contest. Although Tom was a solid meat-and-potatoes guy with size and a great ground game, Steve was the proverbial sizzle on the steak. Steve has a style that is very flashy with underrated psychology, but more importantly, he has a unique charisma that makes people gravitate towards him, especially inside of a wrestling setting.
Tom and Steve tore the house down, set the pace, and was the catalyst that helped Operation New Wave be a successful event.
From that night, however, slowly Steve started to fizzle out from the independent wrestling game. For some reason, it seemed as if Steve forgot who he was as a person. He was lost. And it broke my heart, on top of many other people who felt the same as I did.
With this year in particular being topsy-turvy, it makes a lot of people reconsider their careers, lives, and purpose. As someone who also sees Steve post on social media, he documented his struggles both mentally and physically through his Facebook account. It was personally tough for me to see, but Nick Reigota said something to me prior to one of our podcast recordings that put everything into perspective.
Nick stated that he truly respected Steve’s social media usage and his journey, because unlike many others who just posted the positives of their days and just try to showcase “how great their lives are”, Steve bared his soul for both his good days, his bad, and everything in between. And I, although sad to see him low, agreed whole-heartedly with that assessment.
There is nothing fake about Steve Scott the human being. He’s sarcastic, quick witted, and a jokester. But he’s also someone who struggles with the day-to-day issues of life, just like the rest of us. He’s dealt with tragedy, lost belief in himself, and couldn’t find his way. I always worried if Steve would get that passion and zest for life again that he once had.
But earlier in the year, he did. He got back to the gym. He dropped a ton of weight. He started eating healthier. His positivity returned. He got his mind right. He set his goal to return to the ring, and he did. Last night, Too Hot Steve Scott got that cell phone, took a selfie, and made it back into the wrestling ring. Win, lose, or draw, Steve gained a personal victory last night.
Steve Scott should be an inspiration for those wondering about finding their purpose and how to overcome adversity. He’s suffered with concussions, loss of people close to him, and a disappearing path onto what makes him Steve Scott. He started putting the work in, set a goal, and achieved the first part of that.
Knowing Steve, I believe he thinks he could do better and done more with himself last night. But you have to start somewhere. Too Hot Steve Scott is back inside of a wrestling ring, and that makes me happy.
Most of all, it makes me believe. And I believe in Steve Scott.
Jon Harder
