FanHouse Randy Orton

In the old days of professional wrestling, the WWF and other promoters were so adamant that their product was real that when John Stossel dared to ask whether it was fake, he got slapped -- for real. But the pro wrestling industry has changed enough that now the WWE admits it's all staged -- and when a wrestler like Randy Orton freaks out on a reporter, the WWE is quick to say that it was all an act, too.

WWE star Randy Orton was in a bad mood when he appeared on a Mexican TV show, and his mood got considerably worse when the interviewer asked him if his multiple injuries were a sign that he's "fragile."

Just yesterday we presented the news that Congress was planning a hearing to investigate the prevalence of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs in professional wrestling. Now, SI.com is reporting that 14 wrestlers have been tied to a steroids/HGH pipeline. Their list of wrestlers implicated in the scandal includes Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Chavo Guerrero, Shane Helms, Randy Orton, John Hennigan, Ken Anderson, Shoichi Funaki, Brian Adams, Charles Haas, Edward Fatu, Darren Matthews, Adam Copeland, and Sylvain Grenier.

As a response, the WWE recently suspended 10 wrestlers for violating the company's drug policy. MJD quite humorously pointed out the euphemism employed by the WWE to describe the suspensions as violations of the company's "wellness policy." Right, and I'm a professional sportswriter. It's good to see the WWE taking some action towards suppressing the use of illegal drugs in the sport, which has ultimately proved to be quite dangerous. It makes you wonder though, will the product suffer as a result?
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