On the March 12, 2022 episode of SmackDown, Big E suffered a broken neck during a tag team match which saw him team with Kofi Kingston against Sheamus and Ridge Holland.
The latter attempted a belly-to-belly suplex at ringside, though the move went wrong and Big E landed on his head, breaking his neck in the process. It's been more than two years since then and while Big E is still part of WWE - he was recently on hand for WrestleMania weekend - there's been no sign of him stepping back into the ring.
Before the Show of Shows, there were rumours he might return to take down Gunther after Kingston and Xavier Woods were on the receiving end of repeated beatdowns from Imperium. Now, though, it's clear that was never in the cards based on a bittersweet update from the former WWE Champion.
"Hey, all! Two year neck scans are in. Things are unchanged," Big E said on X this weekend. "My C1 has healed fibrously but has not formed new bone. I'm not medically cleared and truthfully, I may never be cleared. But I am blessed to be free of pain, immensely happy and otherwise healthy. Life is good."
While we're overjoyed to hear that Big E is healthy, it's heartbreaking to think his in-ring career has been cut short. A former NXT Champion and Intercontinental Champion (not to mention a multi-time Tag Team Champion), The New Day member finally won the WWE Championship in 2021.
However, like Kingston before him, he lost the title in short order to Brock Lesnar.
"The great thing is they put me in control of that," Big E said last month. "Obviously, I'm listening to the doctors. They know more than I do as far as my health and prognosis. It's one of those things where my ability to live my life day-to-day and to be in the gym is not compromised at all."
"But, obviously, getting in the ring and taking bumps, getting thrown on my back and my neck is a little bit different. I've been doing physical things my entire life, and I never wanted to leave sports hobbled and crippled. Now, at 38, those are considerations of mine. I want to make sure that I'm making the best decision for myself and for my health moving forward. It's just one of those things I want to be smart about.
"It's just a matter of listening to the doctors, taking in enough information, looking at my more recent set of scans and deciding if the gamble is worth it," he concluded.
Big E could take on a role backstage in WWE (similar to Jason Jordan), but as of now, it's unclear whether he has any interest in doing so.