WWE Star Reveals Dominik Mysterio Match Was ‘Touch And Go’ Due To Injury

A WWE star has revealed that a match from earlier this year featuring Dominik Mysterio was ‘touch and go’ due to an injury.

WrestleMania 42 saw Dominik Mysterio take on ‘The Demon’ Finn Balor on Night 2 of the April WWE Premium Live Event.

Balor would pick up the win at Allegiant Stadium, but the match seemingly came close to not happening at all, according to the star during a recent appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet.

The former Judgment Day member would reveal that a rib injury could have seen his WrestleMania moment scrapped, saying:

“I had gotten beat up by the Judgment Day. I think I’d been out for a week. Dom was having a match against Penta on Raw. It’s like three weeks before Mania. I do the run-in, I come back, I beat up JD, I beat up Dom, I throw him over the top rope, and I’m in street clothes. I’m gonna do the dive over the top rope, but I’m in street clothes. So, as I’m running, I wear baggier T-shirts, and I go oh, I haven’t done the dive in a while, and I wonder, is this T-shirt gonna get snagged on the top rope, and am I gonna get stuck like Top Dolla?

“This was going through my head as I’m running against the ropes, so as I’m coming back I see the boys outside the ring. I said I gotta jump extra high and I gotta tuck faster than I normally tuck, because I normally kind of extend a little bit, but I tucked early and as I tucked, I popped a rib right in the air, not on the landing, or when they caught me, in the air. I popped the rib, and I remember the boys caught me, great, put me down. I stood up, I fired up like this, and I said, f**k, I popped the rib, no!

“…Three weeks to Mania. How long does the rib take to heal? Oh, sh*t! So then now it was again just this last WrestleMania, it was race against time to get the rib. The problem with the rib recovery is you can’t do anything, there’s no rehab, you can’t do anything really.

“So it was kind of touch and go, and that was kind of a factor into why the match was changed to a street fight because I was able to rely more on the on the toys, the weapons and stuff, than have to actually, you know, wrist locks and twists and rolls and stuff like that.”

This wasn’t the only time that Balor saw a WrestleMania match in jeopardy, reflecting what transpired in the run-up to the 2023 PLE, saying:

“I’ve torn plenty of muscles, trust me. Yeah, actually, I think we are going to talk about the Edge cage match? So three weeks before WrestleMania 39 I get asked to do an impromptu (match). I’m a Raw performer, but they say, ‘Hey, can you come to SmackDown and do a match on SmackDown? It’s like a six-man tag or something.

“I remember I grabbed Cruz Del Toro in a front face lock, and I stepped backwards to tag Damian, and as I stepped backwards, I tore my calf. At first I thought like Cruz was messing with me and slapping me in the back of the leg, and then I looked down, and his arms were around my waist.

“I’m like, oh no, this is bad. So I tagged out, and I’m on the apron, I’m stretching it a little bit. Doesn’t feel too bad, but I got to get back in there. I’m like doing the math in my head. How long to WrestleMania? How long does a calf injury take to repair?”

The WrestleMania 39 Hell in a Cell match against Edge had its issues as well, with Balor asked if there was a point where it could have been called off due to blood and the star explaining:

“So me and Edge had spoke before the match, and I said, ‘Hey, dude, if you want to throw the ladder at me…’ There was a spot where he was gonna hit me with the ladder. I said, ‘Dude, if I’ve got my back to you, just throw it and hit me in the back. If I turn, just hit me with it.’ So I’d still got my back (turned), and he starts throwing it, but I guess I turned at the wrong moment, and then no problem, I just put my hands up and block it. But it’s a ladder, it’s not a chair, so the rungs were here and here, and it just went right through my hands, and in that moment, my brain couldn’t understand why it was still coming towards me, because my hands were up. I was like, what’s going on here?

“So it just went, and it hit me. I was like, that stung, but it’s fine. So, I’m just selling on the ring, and then referee Shawn Bennett comes over, and he goes, ‘Buddy, you okay?’ I said, yeah, I’m fine. He goes, ‘What day is it? I said, ‘It’s WrestleMania, dude.’ You sure you’re okay? I said, ‘Yeah.’ He said, ‘Dude, you’re carved open.’ I’m like, ‘Don’t worry, it’s fine. (He said) ‘They’re telling me we’re gonna stop the match if you don’t get treatment.’ I’m like, ‘Don’t stop the match, I’m fine.’

“They bring the doc into the cage, so I crawl over to the edge of the ring, where the door is for the cage, right? So now the doctor is trying to get in the door, but the door is locked. They opened the door, then she left her medical bag outside because she didn’t realize it’s so bad.”

Balor would go on to explain the lengths the medic went to in order to patch him up and how Edge distracted from what was taking place so that the match could continue.

WrestleMania wasn’t the only time Balor saw serious concerns, however, noting that he was left temporarily blind after his WWE Super ShowDown match in 2019 due to the paint used for his Demon persona.

The Lengths They Go To Entertain

Patching up cuts at ringside, continuing with a plan despite a labrum tear and risking retinal damage due to make up, it sounds like it’s all in a day’s work for Finn Balor.

It shouldn’t come as that much of a surprise that many stars, regardless of which company they are working for, just want to get the job done where possible, regardless of the condition that they are in.

Adrenaline no doubt pays a part in their belief that they are in better condition than they perhaps are, well known for its ability to dampen pain, limit shock and drive someone beyond their limits, right until the moment passes and the reality of the situation sets in.

Thankfully, for the likes of WWE and AEW, their medical professionals are of the caliber that they are less interested in the story playing out and more focused on the health of their subject. As an industry, it’s arguably beyond the “patch em and go” attitude of past generations, with an awareness of the lasting impact of an injury that may seem minor in the moment.

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