A referee had a seizure and endured a brain injury after wrestlers’ negligence during a recent OVW taping.
During an OVW Rise taping on March 12, 2026, wrestler Brendan Balling collided with referee Dallas Edwards as he attempted a flying forearm on his opponent, Tony Evans. The latter pulled Edwards in front of him, which appeared to be a planned spot, but Balling landed hard on the referee, knocking him out.
Dallas Edwards ended up having a seizure in the middle of the ring, but the wrestlers didn’t seem to care, as they just kicked the referee out of the way and continued with the match. Fans and several wrestling personalities have criticized the wrestlers and OVW for their negligence.
The promotion has since taken down the episode of Rise from its YouTube channel, but it’s still available on Triller TV. They have yet to make an official statement.
Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp provided an update with a statement from Dallas Edwards’ girlfriend. She asked the fans to keep Edwards in their prayers and revealed that the referee sustained a brain injury and that doctors are monitoring him.
“Please keep Dallas in your thoughts as your day begins. I am not going to provide much more information at this time except to the parties who already know, but last night resulted in a brain injury that is being monitored and will continue to be monitored by doctors here.”
WrestleZone wishes Dallas Edwards a speedy recovery.
UPDATE: OVW has issued a statement on the incident involving Edwards.
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