Stacy Carter, ex-wife of legendary Memphis professional wrestler Jerry Lawler, announced Tuesday via Twitter that Lawler underwent heart surgery Tuesday morning and is under sedation after suffering a heart attack while commentating on WWE's "Monday Night Raw" in Montreal.
A stent and balloon were placed in Lawler's heart, according to Carter, in an angioplastic surgery typically performed to treat obstructed vessels and arteries.
In a release, the WWE said late Tuesday morning that Lawler was in a cardiac care unit in stable condition.
The WWE also said, "We are hopeful Jerry makes a full recovery and returns to WWE in the near future. Our thoughts are with Jerry and his family."
Lawler, who is 62 and began his wrestling career in 1970, had participated in a tag-team match earlier in the program Monday and then returned to his broadcast position. During a subsequent match, Lawler collapsed and was rushed to the backstage area where medical staff attended to him. He later was taken by ambulance to a Montreal hospital.
Announcer Michael Cole later said that Lawler was receiving oxygen but breathing on his own en route to the hospital.
As the show went off the air, Cole said in an update that Lawler was "breathing on his own and his heart is beating on its own" as hospital personnel prepared to run tests. He said Lawler's condition had "stabilized."
No one could be reached at Lawler's Memphis home or on his cell phone.
