GCW Owner Brett Lauderdale Issues Statement on Sabu’s Passing & Backlash Over Issues with His Retirement Match at GCW Event

As noted before, Indie Wrestling Hall of Famer and ECW legend Sabu passed away this past Sunday at the age of 60. Joey Janela and Game Changer Wrestling recently faced online backlash over controversial comments made by Janela and GCW owner Brett Lauderdale during a recent interview about their handling of Sabu’s health situation for his retirement match at this past April’s Joey Janela’s Spring Break 9 event.

Lauderdale recently issued an official statement on Twitter about Sabu’s passing and the backlash over GCW’s handling of his retirement match.

“As a rule, I try not to respond to every claim made on social media, but sometimes I need to speak up and get on the record.

When I received word of Sabu’s passing on Sunday, I was devastated. I have known Sabu personally for almost 20 years and been in constant contact with him for the last 2 years.

We were friends, and I cared about him and had/have deep respect for him. In the months leading up to the match, I told him repeatedly how much I believed in him and how excited I was for him to finally get his flowers and be celebrated the way he had earned and deserved. He was both nervous and excited, but determined to give the fans 1 last extreme performance to remember.

Any suggestion that I or “GCW” or Joey Janela “forced” him to do this match, supplied him with substances or somehow caused his death is irresponsible, disingenuous, hurtful, and false. It’s upsetting and discouraging to see people so eager to cast judgment without knowledge of the facts.

I would never knowingly put someone who I believed was a danger to themselves or others in the ring and my track record shows this to be true. I have pulled people – in a public and painful manner – from big matches before, sometimes literal moments before a match was to begin and I would do it again if I had to.

I spoke to Sabu moments before the match, and he was Sabu. He was the same Sabu I had encountered in years past when I participated in his matches as a referee and later as a promoter. He was the same Sabu I met with the following day at Wrestlecon, andthe same Sabu that made multiple appearances on podcasts and at conventions in the weeks that followed.

The truth is Sabu lived a hard life both in and outside the ring. He was fearless and reckless… qualities that both endeared him to millions and made us worry about him at the same time. Decades of extreme took it’s toll and no matter what we want to believe, nobody is immortal.

While SABU will live forever, Terry Brunk will not and unfortunately his time has finally come. It’s sad, and my heart goes out to his friends and family and I join them in mourning his loss.

I feel lucky and blessed to have known him and I am proud to have been able to host his final match. Sabu was a legend and his impact in our world was immeasurable. He will never be forgotten.”

Sabu was my friend, and I was devastated to learn of his passing…

Please read: pic.twitter.com/yNJUxJJJgu

— brett lauderdale (@Lauderdale11) May 13, 2025