Posted on by bdamage1
Brian Damage
Grappling with Tragedy is a series of articles that deal with unfortunate, tragic incidents that have occurred throughout the history of professional wrestling. It is unlike the ‘Wrestling with Sin’ series that deals more with the seedier side of wrestling like arrests, murders and suicides. Grappling looks more at particular tragic incidents that have in some instances altered pro wrestling in some way.
Dr. Destruction
John Coggeshall was a professional wrestler who began his career on the New England independents back in 1987. Coggeshall wrestled under the moniker of ‘Doctor Destruction.’ Coggehall helped establish the Rhode Island based indie fed…Main Event Wrestling Federation. Coggeshall loved pro wrestling and helped organize charity wrestling events at the local Rhode Island YMCA.
On April 3rd, 2004…during an independent show in Newport, Rhode Island…Coggeshall suffered a serious injury during a triple threat match. Coggeshall suffered a heart attack from those injuries at the event and was rushed to a nearby hospital. He died just a day later. John ‘Dr. Destruction’ Coggeshall was just 34 years old at the time of his death.