Jerry 'The King' Lawler's Collapse on RAW Proves WWE Needs Age Restrictions

It was during the Kane and Daniel Bryan match on Monday Night Raw when the crowd in the arena had visibly turned all their attention to the announce table where Jerry Lawler and Michael Cole sit and the commentating went silent.

It was clear something had gone wrong.

The WWE has announced that long-time color commentator Jerry “The King” Lawler suffered a heart attack and was rushed to a local Montreal hospital. The 62-year-old ring veteran was reported to be breathing on his own and his heart was beating.

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UPDATE: @jerrylawler suffered a heart attack while commentating during last night’s broadcast of @wwe #Raw in Montreal wwe.com/shows/raw/2012…

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"— Joey Styles (@JoeyStyles) September 11, 2012"

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Update from @michaelcole on WWE #RAW: "His condition has stabilized. He's breathing on his own, and his heart is beating on its own."

— WWE (@WWE) September 11, 2012"

While this incident is a complete accident and no one is at fault, there are lessons that must be learned to avoid anything like this from happening again in the future.

Lawler was involved in a match just prior to the medical emergency, which could have led to the issues that caused the heart attack in the first place. Lawler was involved in physical confrontations and two matches over a three-week period. Therefore, the 62-year-old veteran should not have been subjecting himself to the rigors of in-ring work.

There has been no direct link between Lawler’s activity on Monday’s Raw and his heart attack yet, but this should be a serious enough message to Vince McMahon and every member of the WWE management team that an in-ring age limitation should be mandated.

As harsh as it sounds for the veterans of the ring, risking permanent health problems or even death is not worth the heartache or the financial implications they would have on the WWE as a company.

The WWE must create an investigative team to not only find out why Lawler’s heart attack happened when it did and if his match earlier in the night was indeed the cause, but find out an appropriate age restriction for the ring.

Whether it’s 50, 55, 60 or another age, there should be definite age restrictions on current and former WWE superstars to ensure that they don’t hop back in the ring and do damage to their bodies by working a match they can’t handle.

There is no guarantee that Lawler’s heart attack was caused by his performance in the ring just moments before the incident, but the possibility is there and it is very realistic.

WWE must ensure the safety of all their performers and staff, thus making an age restriction one of the easiest ways to make sure that something this terrible never happens again.

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