At one time, Chris Candido had the world in his hands. He was one of the best technical wrestlers in the world, married one of WWE‘s most popular divas in Sunny, and quickly shot up the ranks in both WWE and ECW. However, life doesn’t always go as planned. His time in WWE ended sooner than he might have hoped. Addiction issues arose and his marriage ended up on the rocks.
It was after he beat his addiction issues and got his life back together that things tragically ended. Candido was back on a major national wrestling stage. His marriage was back intact. He even looked like he could be a top star again. However, just like that, he died at 33 after what should have been a routine surgery.
Chris Candido’s Road To WWE Began With ECW And Jim Cornette
Chris Candido got his start in wrestling as a teenager in New Jersey. In 1986, he and a friend began working in the industry by setting up rings. He went on to train at Larry Sharpe’s Monster Factory and then made his debut in the ring that same year. Candido was 14 when he worked his first match. By 1993, Candido made his way to the pre-Extreme ECW, where he worked in a stable known as The Suicide Blondes. This led to Jim Cornette taking notice of the wrestler.
Candido had fallen in love with Tammy Lynn Sytch in high school and the two joined Cornette’s Smoky Mountain Wrestling together, where she worked as his manager. He won several titles while working for Cornette and then even won his only world title when he captured the NWA World Championship after Shane Douglas vacated the title when ECW broke away. He held the title for three months and then one year later, he and Tammy signed with WWE.
WWE changed his name to Skip and made Tammy into Sunny, and they took on a fitness guru tandem who often mocked other wrestlers for being out of shape. It was here that Sunny became one of the biggest stars in WWE and Candido found his biggest national success as part of the Bodydonnas with Tom Prichard (Zip). However, it was also here that his life began falling apart. Reports that Sunny cheated on him with multiple wrestlers strained their marriage. This was also when both wrestlers began experimenting more with drugs.
Chris Candido Had Stints In ECW And WCW After Leaving WWE
In an interview, Chris Candido’s brother Jonny said that when they got to WWE, they started abusing drugs more. He was just in the eighth grade when this happened, but he said he remembered a lot of messed up stuff going on with his brother and Sunny. Many of his stories were horrific, and it was obvious things needed to change fast or Chris might end up dead. By 1996, Chris quit WWE and went to ECW, and eventually Sunny joined him there.
This was a fresh start for Candido. Sunny was only in ECW limited times, but Candido himself became part of Shane Douglas’ Triple Threat faction with Bam Bam Bigelow. He had a long tag team title reign with Lance Storm before he finally left after three years. After this, Candido worked in WCW for a short time in 2000, but mostly disappeared from the world of professional wrestling outside of indie promotions.
The Tragic Death Of Chris Candido Came After An Injury In TNA Wrestling
According to Jonny, Chris Candido was doing more and more drugs to block out the idea that Sunny was cheating on him. “He desperately didn’t want to believe it because she would come home to him every night, and he literally had this unconditional love for her,” Jonny said. “He was so nice and so naïve; he would…believe anything she told him.”
That isn’t how his life would end though. Chris reportedly got his life back under control again. He even got another chance at wrestling on a big stage again when he signed with TNA Wrestling in 2005. He worked with some top stars, including AJ Styles, Dustin Rhodes, and Diamond Dallas Page. Candido was on his way up the ladder, but it all came crashing down when he broke his leg in a tag team match at Lockdown 2005. TNA kept him involved in storylines, even having him come out in a wheelchair to help The Naturals win the tag titles. However, that episode aired days after he died.
At 33, Chris Candido had titanium plates and screws inserted into his legs after the injury. While recovering, he ended up developing a blood clot in his leg. Though many people believe the blood clot killed him, his brother Jonny said the autopsy said that the cause of death was acute pneumonia, caused by a sleep aid he received against doctor’s orders. His lungs reportedly filled with fluid, and he died while recovering from his surgery. TNA honored him with a tag team tournament in his name and in 2009, the Hardcore Hall of Fame inducted him into its membership.
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