AEW’s Juice Robinson opened up about taking on his toughest opponents yet: two major health setbacks.
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In an interview on Up Close w/ Renee Paquette, Robinson recalled recovering from spinal surgery and a broken leg and how it’s changed his outlook on his career.
Robinson’s eight-month recovery from a broken leg was even tougher as it followed a recent back surgery.
“I haven’t really went into detail about either of them, but I had spine surgery,” he recalled, via WrestlingNews.co. “I ruptured a disc in my lower back, and it was pressing on a nerve, and I was having issues with my leg. As far as like, it was, I was having trouble using it. It was the beginning of what could have gotten much worse.”
The AEW fan favorite shared that suffering an injury to such a crucial part of the body made him confront his own mortality, unlike any previous injury.
“Yeah, it’s not only scary, but it has this like… I guess scary would be thinking, ‘Oh, I’m not invincible,’” he said. “We get hurt a lot, but like, spine, that’s like brain, heart, those are… you break, I’ve broken my hands… but spine, yeah, you know, you need that. Every little thing is controlled by that stack of dimes.”
Juice Robinson Recounts How He “Snapped” His Leg
After recovering from back surgery, Robinson was just getting back on track when he faced another setback. “I came back, I thought it would be a lot harder than it was. I was up moving pretty quick. It took a while to get back in the ring, and then when I was, I was just starting to get going, and I snapped my leg,” he recalled.
He said recovering from the broken leg was harder than recovering from the spine surgery. “And that one, you know, that was a lot harder than the back. I didn’t realize it, but it’s hard to sit down for four months, five months, and then, you know, now you’re in a walking boot, and then… just a long, long process,” Robinson continued.
The prolonged time away took a heavy mental toll, pushing him into a profound period of self-reflection.
“Everybody says that that’s the hardest part is like, one thing to physically mend, but it’s the mental aspect of what you do in that downtime,” host Renee Paquette pointed out.
“Yes, a lot of introspection,” Robinson replied. “‘What am I doing? How long have I been doing this?’ What’s left? You know, I’ve been doing this 17 years, which is like crazy to think about for me… This is what I do. This is just what I do. I’m a pro wrestler.”