Lio Rush is taking is time with his return to the ring.
“The Man of the Hour” went down with a shoulder injury during the PWG Battle of Los Angeles tournament in January. He appeared in a non-wrestling capacity at NJPW Capital Collision in May, but it was unclear when he’d be cleared to compete.
In an interview with Denise Salcedo, Rush discussed his injury and noted that, having recently recovered from another shoulder injury, he felt more prepared this time around. He confirmed that he tore multiple muscles, so he had to have surgery.
“What happened at PWG, my shoulder went into my armpit, and my arm was stuck,” said Rush. “And I remember knowing that the match was almost gonna be done, like I was at the final minutes of the match. I was happy that I made it though the entire match without getting hurt or injured or anything. And I remember taking a buckle bomb in the corner, and I remember getting hurt almost five years ago with that, and telling myself, ‘Man, I hope I don’t get hurt with this move again. I hope I don’t get hurt with this move again.’ And then I landed in the corner, and I didn’t get hurt, and I was like, ‘Yes!’ But then the very next move is when I got hurt. So I think I was shocked. My shoulder went into my armpit, and my arm was stuck. I didn’t know what to really do. So I rolled to my back, and I put my wrist kinda in between my legs, and I pulled and popped my shoulder back in place.
“But once I got to the hospital, I was informed that in the process, I tore some muscles and possibly some ligaments, so I had to get an MRI. Then once I got the MRI, it showed that I tore three different muscles in my shoulder. I had to get surgery. So that was a lot to deal with. I immediately snapped into the mode of, from being angry and being so disappointed to it being kind of familiar because of my other shoulder injury. So I was like okay I know what to do. I know what kind and how much work has to get put into this in order to get back to where I need to be. And from that point on, it was just time to get to work, and that’s what I did. But yeah it was rough. It still is rough because I’m away from the business that I love and so much is happening, and I’m missing out on it. But I truly believe that things happen for a reason, and I hope it’s for a reason. So I’m in good spirits.”
When asked about his recovery, Rush stated that his surgeon expected him to be out between six and nine months. While he’s healing faster than expected, Rush emphasized that he wants to return when he’s healthy and ready.
“As far as a return, the doctor, the surgeon did say that I am expecting a six-to-nine month recovery period, which was very hard to hear,” said Rush. “And I got hurt back in January. I just had my surgery not too long ago, so I have some time, but I will say I’m healing a lot quicker than I thought I would. My personal trainer, my surgeon, they’re saying that I’m healing a lot quicker, probably from muscle memory, being an athlete my entire life. So I’m definitely healing pretty quickly. But like I said, I’m in no rush to come back. Although I miss it a lot, I do want to take my time because I wanna be healthy, I wanna be ready, mentally. I want to be in the best shape that I’ve ever been in, and I plan on doing that. So hopefully sooner rather than later.”
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