Wrestling tragedy: Jay Briscoe dies in a car accident
The ROH Tag Team Champion passed away at just 38 years old.
A tweet from AEW/ROH President Tony Khan took the wrestling world by surprise on Tuesday night.
In it, Khan confirmed the death of half of the reigning ROH Tag Team Champions: Jamin Pugh, known to fans as Jay Briscoe, has passed away at just 38 years old.
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Bove and another person died in a car accident
Pugh died in a car accident that occurred Tuesday night at 5:30 p.m. local time in his hometown of Laurel, Delaware.
The driver who caused the accident, who rammed the front of Pugh’s car, was also killed.
According to preliminary information, there were other people (two children) in the car in addition to Pugh, some of whom were seriously injured.
The school district in the small town of Laurel (population about 4,000) has announced that Wednesday classes will be suspended for one day due to the “unimaginable tragedy” in the community.
(We will update the article as more information becomes available.)
WWE picked up the sad news on an NXT live broadcast shortly after it became known. Commenters Vic Joseph and Booker T sent their condolences to Pew’s family and friends.
A few hours before the fatal crash, Pugh posted this photo on Twitter:
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History of formative tag team and great individual successes
Jay Briscoe and his brother Mark were formative figures of Ring of Honor for over 20 years and were considered one of the most influential tag team wrestlers of the time.
The brothers first won ROH tag team gold back in 2003. Just a few weeks earlier, on December 10 at “The Last Battle”Jay and Mark began their thirteenth reign by defeating FTR (Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler) in a bloody dog collar match.
Jay Briscoe was also successful in the solo field. On April 5, 2013, he won the ROH World Championship from Kevin Steen (Kevin Owens) at Supercard of Honor VII in New York. In September 2014, Briscoe repeated his world title success by defeating Michael Elgin.
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A wrestling scene mourns the loss of a loving family man
Traveling across the United States and around the world for the past two decades, the brothers have continued to run their family business, a chicken farm.
Briscoe, the father of several daughters, was considered a great family man.
Longtime ROH owner Carrie Selkin wrote, “I lost one of my kids and the world lost a great man.”
Daniel Wheeler from FTR (Brisco’s last foe in December): “I’ve been in tears since hearing the news. I just can’t find the words. Rest in peace Jay.”
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WWE Star Sami Zayn: “I’m at a loss for words right now to appropriately express my sadness. I love Jay and Mark Briscoe. I always have. I wouldn’t be here without her. I’m so lucky I shared the ring with Jay Briscoe and I had so many laughs with him and I’m so sad To know neither of them will happen again. RIP MY FRIEND”.
WWE Director of Relations Paul Levesque expressed his condolences, saying, “An amazing actor who has created a deep connection with wrestling fans all over the world. My condolences to Jay Briscoe’s family and friends.”
Brett Lauderdale (Game Changer Wrestling): “Jay Briscoe was an amazing athlete, a brother to many (in and out of the ring) and most of all a father who loved and treasured his family above all else. A truly heartbreaking loss. He will never be forgotten. Rest in peace Jamin. Thank you all a thing.”
The official statement from AEW/ROH: “It is with heavy hearts that we mourn the tragic passing of Jamin Pugh, better known to wrestling fans around the world as Jay Briscoe. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and fans.”
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