Tony DeVito officially announced his retirement from in ring competition during an ALW show in Cocoa Florida. The 53 year old revealed he was forced to step away after suffering a stroke in his eye, with doctors advising him he could no longer wrestle.
Addressing the crowd, DeVito explained the moment that ended his career.
“I woke up that morning, and I could not see out of my left eye. Now I was born and I can’t see out of my right eye already. I was born that way. That day, I went to a doctor. I got diagnosed with a stroke in my eye. So basically, that means I had a blood clot, the blood leaked out. I have blood behind my retina. Doctors told me that wrestling is done.”
He reflected on his 35 years in the business and the physical toll it took.
“I’ve been in the business longer than most of the guys in the locker room are old. I’ve wrestled for the World Wrestling Federation. I’ve wrestled for Extreme Championship Wrestling. I’m a former Ring of Honor World Tag Team Champion. I’ve done a lot of good stuff in this business.”
While his in ring career is over, DeVito made it clear he is not done with wrestling.
“This ain’t really a goodbye. This is I’ll see you later, because I’m not done with this business. I may not be able to come in here and compete and do what I love to do, but some way, somehow, I will be here.”
DeVito is best known for his runs in Extreme Championship Wrestling as part of The Baldies and in Ring of Honor with HC Loc as The Carnage Crew, where they held the ROH World Tag Team Titles and helped introduce the Scramble match format. He plans to remain involved with ALW and the independent scene, just no longer between the ropes.
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