WWE Hall of Fame wrestler Jeff Jarrett sat down with country music star and Fox Nation's John Rich to talk about his faith, career, and the "ugly side" of the pro wrestling world.
"It's a grind," Jarrett told Rich on an episode of Fox Nation's "The Pursuit!" released on May 18. "You're out blowing and going... and there's the pharmaceuticals that go around and quite frankly, the number of deaths that happened in our industry... so it's real."
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Pro wrestling has always been part of Jarrett's life. It was a family business and legacy. Jarrett's grandmother, a promoter, brought him to her events in and around Nashville and got him his first job selling concessions at wrestling bouts. His father, Jerry Jarrett, also was a wrestler and longtime promoter. Jeff made his in-ring debut at age 18, working for his father, and he never looked back.
Jeff Jarrett was first introduced to WWE fans on TV in the character of "Double J" Jeff Jarrett, an arrogant, young country singer with plans to dominate the WWE and the country music industry.
He would eventually leave the WWE and started his own company, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), in 2002. (It later became known as TNA Entertainment.) He ultimately rejoined WWE several years later and was inducted into its Hall of Fame.
And while Jarrett acknowledged that there are "safeguards" in the industry, he admitted that often sometimes the strain of the performances leads to destructive habits.
"We were talking 180, 200 shows a year," he said. "You have that adrenaline rush going and you're doing it six and seven nights in a row, but you've also got to go to sleep."
"Guys start -- and I was guilty, never into the pills but alcohol -- just to sort of mellow things out and before you know it, it turns on you," he lamented.
Today, Jarrett runs one of the largest touring companies in the world. He reflects that when his life was at its pinnacle, he experienced tragedy.
"My [first] wife, she was diagnosed with breast cancer in '98. And then it came back right at the height of my professional career," Jarrett remembered. "We had three daughters at home and we lost her May of 2007."
"It was really a very, very challenging time because I would, you know, leave the office or leave the show or the ring and then, you know, check-in on your wife," he said. "And then you got kids and then you got support groups around you and family. That was a really, very, very difficult time."
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"Everybody's going to hit that point not once, but many times, on their pursuit," said Rich. "What's the advice you would give people when they hit that spot? What should they focus on? What's the one thing that'll get them through that?"
"If there's one thing I could tell somebody -- and I would tell them to pull the chair in real close and listen real good -- because we can kid ourselves and try to think about what's going to happen next week and next month... when in reality all we really have control over is today," said Jarrett.
"Between now and the time you put your head on the pillow, live right, be good to people, live in God's will," he concluded. "If you work as hard as you possibly can, have your priorities straight, and really live in God's will, you're going to be OK. I can assure you that."
To watch all of this episode of "The Pursuit! with John Rich," and see Rich and Jarrett recreate his signature guitar smash, go to Fox Nation and sign up today.
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