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Rey Mysterio has admitted exclusively to Sportskeeda that he feels the risks of performing as a top-level star in WWE are bigger than ever before.
The 45-year-old veteran spoke to me in the aftermath of the TLC pay-per-view that saw Kairi Sane sustain a suspected concussion during a brutal tag team bout at the event.
It is the latest in a long line of injuries suffered by the company's stars, with the likes of Samoa Joe, Velveteen Dream, Sheamus all still yet to return from injury, while countless members of the roster have all spent time on the shelf in recent years.
While it's undoubted that WWE's performers benefit from some of the best medical care and attention in the world while they perform, the risks of working their way through a grueling international schedule is bound to take its toll.
We asked Mysterio for his insight on the issue, with the 45-year-old United States Champion himself no stranger to serious injuries and surgeries over the course of his career.
In his view, are the risks of performing at the top of WWE bigger than they've ever been?
"Yeah, I think 100%," he told me while promoting the upcoming debut of WWE on BT Sport in the UK come January.
"This era that we're living in now, of this hybrid, high-paced, high-flying style is just unbelievable.
"It's hard for me to try and stay up with the talent - they're going crazy.
"But this is the transition and the evolution of wrestling. There is definitely a higher risk but, at the same time, you can see that the high risk goes along with how precisely they try to perfect every move that is accomplished in the ring.
"That's nothing different to when I started and was taking all those risks - because there are always risks when you step into the ring - but the hybrid style has gone to another level.
"They are maintaining it and, as yet, I haven't heard that anyone has been seriously hurt...we just love to keep entertaining our fans."
Ever the high-flyer, Rey's in-ring style still mirrors much of what fans saw from him two decades ago during his more formative years in the business.
How, then, might the former world champion fare if he were starting his career again in the present climate?
He went on to explain: "I am very adaptable and if that was the case, I'd be doing and getting even more creative, like talent is now.
"I would definitely thrive in that atmosphere."
Big props go to Rey Mysterio for taking the time to talk to Sportskeeda this week, and thanks as ever to WWE for the access to talent.
UK fans, remember that BT Sport becomes the exclusive television home of WWE from the new year - it'll be the only place to see RAW and SmackDown each week.
