Sabu Interview: Undergoing Surgery; Calls WWE Hall of Fame “Fake”

Sabu was recently interviewed for Sports Illustrated’s “Extra Mustard” section.

He mentioned that he has had hip replacement surgery and still needs shoulder replacement surgery and his back “needs fixing,” but he says he is not retiring from wrestling yet.

“I have to continue wrestling,” said Sabu, known outside the ring as Terry Brunk. “I’m not done yet. I don’t know when I’ll be done, but I just know that I’m not.

“I’m doing good. I had hip replacement surgery, but I need shoulder replacement surgery and my lower back needs fixing. Those are actually more painful, but not more painful when I wrestle, so I can live with it. My hip was the most painful when I wrestled, so I got my hip fixed.”

Although he underwent successful hip replacement surgery this past October, Sabu is still in need of money for his post-operation requirements, including physical therapy.

A GoFundMe was set up for Sabu, though he is reticent to ever ask for someone to donate.

“I’d rather not talk about my health,” offered Sabu. “I’m not looking for no handouts, though I do appreciate the ones who have given.”

On which current wrestlers he likes:

Sabu still follows the business, and he prefers to watch the wrestlers who, similar to himself, work in a captivating aerial style.

“Ricochet is awesome,” said Sabu. “That one dude, Finn Balor, is great, and that Neville is too good.

“I like to portray what I like to watch. I don’t do something that I think is boring. If I’m in a match and I have a guy in an arm bar, and I think, ‘If I was in the front row, would I think this was boring?’ If I thought it was boring, I’d get the hell out of there. I could not see having people pay me for me to bore them, even if it was for one second.”

On the WWE Hall of Fame being “fake”:

Although The Sheik was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007, Sabu doubts that he will ever share that distinction, nor does he particularly care about the potential slight.

“It’s such a fake Hall of Fame,” said Sabu. “I’d only do it because I need the money. I don’t know if I would mother— everyone or if I would take it graciously, but I don’t consider it a real Hall of Fame. It’s not like the Baseball Hall of Fame or the Football Hall of Fame. They let anybody in it, anybody who could draw money. The real wrestling Hall of Fames are in Iowa and Amsterdam, New York. They look for donations because they’re so broke, but they have s— from the 1800s.

“Vince’s Hall of Fame only has s— from Vince’s company. If you didn’t work for his company, you’re not in the Hall of Fame. That’s nothing to do with how good you are, it only matters who owned them.”