Whenever the subject of toughest wrestler comes up, fans in the know never fail to mention Tracy Smothers. The first thing everyone mentions is the fact he wrestled three different bears over five matches. That’s plenty to brag about. But fans who pick up his autobiography in 2020 will be stunned to read about the riots, the shoots, and the backstage brawls Tracy has survived.
Tracy just went public about his toughest fight this week. He is currently battling stomach cancer. Over the past two months we’ve conducted interviews during hospital stays, chemo treatments, and wicked bouts of illness and infection. There have been nights he could barely talk, but he refused to take a break. Working his book kept his spirits up and kept him going.
I can tell you that all the stories about bears and riots don’t even begin to tell how tough this man is. Cancer should have known better than to pick a fight with Tracy Smothers. He’s going to crush this illness. It will just be one more story from an incredible life full of nasty, hard-won fights.
Like Tracy said on Facebook, this is not the end. It’s just a tune up, a repair job. He’s got a lot of dings under the hood, but he’s got a lot of miles left to go. I’m proud to call him a friend, and I cannot wait to unleash his full story next year.