GCW & Joey Janela Respond To Backlash Following Reveal Sabu Used Kratom Before Retirement Match

GCW owner Brett Lauderdale and Joey Janela have defended booking Sabu to wrestle a retirement match over WrestleMania 41 weekend. Sabu retired at Joey Janela's Spring Break 9 in a match against Janela on April 18.

It was announced on Sunday, May 11 that Sabu had passed away. An interview from Uncrowned with Joey Janela about Sabu's retirement match was released on Monday, May 12, during which Janela stated that Sabu was given kratom before his retirement match and was "on another f*cking planet" while backstage at Spring Break. Janela also noted that the match was at risk just hours before it was set to take place.

"I was fairly confident that he was fine. I was kept in contact with him and he has a team of people around him, guys this time. They were all saying he was ready to go, that he was going to the gym, that he was on a training program. I believed them until the day of the show. Then two hours before, I get a call: 'Sabu can't walk.' 'What do you mean Sabu can't walk?' They said, 'Yeah, Sabu, something with his knee - they're locked up. He can't walk. And his feet are bleeding. He's not coming. Sabu's not coming,'" Janela recounted.

"I said, 'Sabu's f***ed.' So we talked to Matt Tremont, and Tremont is about to be the replacement for the match. And I feel like this is going to be the most embarrassing moment of my wrestling career. There's 2,000 people here. This is one of the biggest Spring Breaks ever. The biggest crowd 'Mania weekend, indie-wise. And I'm going to have to go out there and announce that Sabu, once again, no-showed. And no-showed his own retirement match. We are an hour into the show and I said, 'Just get Sabu here.' So they gave him something called kratom. You can buy it at a smoke shop or something; it's like a legal opiate or something. They said, 'He's hopping on the bed, he's hopping off the bed, and we're going to get him to the show.' So he shows up two hours into the show. Sabu was on a different f***ing planet. Everyone in the backstage was like, 'What the f***? Is this match going to happen?' And my God, did it happen," Janela continued.

Janela later claimed that Sabu was knocked out after he fell out of the ring with a barbed wire board minutes into the match.

"He was definitely out cold. He was done. They were telling me there was no way. The refs were communicating to me that there's no way he's continuing this match. Like holy s***, that is the one time you want the barbed wire to stop you. He just blew right through it," Janela added.

"And then The Sandman came out and that was all Sabu needed, then the resurrection happened. Jesus resurrected two days later, the anniversary...couldn't f***ing believe it, dude. He was ready to go again. I guess that concussion knocked him back into 1996 or something, I don't know."

Kratom is a tropical tree native to Southeast Asia. At low doses it acts as a stimulant and works as a sedative at high doses. Kratom is not controlled under the Controlled Substances Act in the United States, although the DEA has listed it as a drug and chemical of concern.

There was a backlash over Sabu using kratom ahead of the retirement match. Joey Janela and Brett Lauderdale have since responded to the backlash.

Janela replied to a fan on X/Twitter:

"I'm truly devastated over this and this whole deal has really affected me. Kratom is something Sabu took daily for years it helped him get off other substances, Sabu loved his weed & Kratom his body was wrecked doing what he loved for 40 years.

"I did an interview for that article 2 days after the match not knowing what would transpire weeks later & I said he was 'knocked out' after that spot when despite being a rough deal, he was not that. I was just trying to add to the lore and unpredictably of sabu. I loved sabu he was legitimately my idol growing up, & my friend I just wanted to give him & the fans one last great sabu spectacle.

"I’m sorry for lashing out at you but your tweet caused a snowball affect that has many people saying I was in part responsible for my friends death. Sabu was fine after, the day after signed at wrestlecon and has been doing many appearances since, I don’t know what the cause of death all I can say is I wouldn’t change a thing & happy he went out on top."

GCW's Brett Lauderdale issued the following statement:

"As a rule, I try not to respond to every claim made on social media, but sometimes I need to speak up and get on the record.

"When I received word of Sabu's passing on Sunday, I was devastated. I have known Sabu personally for almost 20 years and been in constant contact with him for the last 2 years.

"We were friends, and I cared about him and had/have deep respect for him. In the months leading up to the match, I told him repeatedly how much I believed in him and how excited I was for him to finally get his flowers and be celebrated the way he had earned and deserved. He was both nervous and excited, but determined to give the fans 1 last extreme performance to remember.

"Any suggestion that I or 'GCW' or Joey Janela 'forced' him to do this match, supplied him with substances or somehow caused his death is irresponsible, disingenuous, hurtful, and false. It's upsetting and discouraging to see people so eager to cast judgment without knowledge of the facts.

"I would never knowingly put someone who I believed was a danger to themselves or others in the ring and my track record shows this to be true. I have pulled people - in a public and painful manner - from big matches before, sometimes literal moments before a match was to begin and I would do it again if I had to.

"I spoke to Sabu moments before the match, and he was Sabu. He was the same Sabu I had encountered in years past when I participated in his matches as a referee and later as a promoter. He was the same Sabu I met with the following day at Wrestlecon, and the same Sabu that made multiple appearances on podcasts and at conventions in the weeks that followed.

"The truth is Sabu lived a hard life both in and outside the ring. He was fearless and reckless... qualities that both endeared him to millions and made us worry about him at the same time. Decades of extreme took it's toll and no matter what we want to believe, nobody is immortal.

"While SABU will live forever, Terry Brunk will not and unfortunately his time has finally come. It's sad, and my heart goes out to his friends and family and I join them in mourning his loss.

"I feel lucky and blessed to have known him and I am proud to have been able to host his final match. Sabu was a legend and his impact in our world was immeasurable. He will never be forgotten."

Ahead of Lauderdale's statement, it was reported by Fightful Select that GCW were "frustrated, embarrassed and humiliated" by Janela's interview and Brett Lauderdale had spoken to Janela about the situation.