Ultimate Warrior died on April 8 of heart disease and natural causes, according to the Maricopa County (Ariz.) medical examiner, who released an autopsy report on Monday.
Warrior, born James Hellwig, collapsed while walking in a hotel with his wife, Dana, a day after appearing on WWE Monday Night Raw at the cap of a historic weekend that saw Warrior return to the wrestling mainstream after an 18-year absence from the sport.
A headliner in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Warrior defeated hulk hogan in the main event of WrestleMania 6 in 1990 for the WWE title in his most memorable match.
A dispute with Vince McMahon over pay and his work calendar led to an extended absence from WWE. Warrior returned to the limelight with a brief run in 1998 in WCW, but in recent years had made his living as a motivational speaker.
Warrior was announced as a Class of 2014 inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame earlier this year. He was inducted on April 5, and announced that night that he signed a multi-year deal with WWE to serve as an ambassador for the company.
According to the preliminary autopsy report released on Monday, Warrior died of “atherosclerotic/arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease” and of natural causes, meaning no drugs or alcohol were directly involved.
A full autopsy report likely won’t be completed for several months.
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