“The Mountie” Jacques Rougeau Opens Up Personal and Financial Turmoil – Former WWE and WCW star Jacques Rougeau, best known as “The Mountie,” has revealed the personal and financial turmoil he’s endured over the last four years—and how he’s determined to make a comeback.
Speaking candidly on Wrestling Life with Ben Veal, Rougeau detailed a series of hardships that forced him to the brink, including bankruptcy, the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, and supporting his partner Nathalie during an intense 16-month battle with cancer.
Rougeau looked back on his prosperous wrestling career and how his confidence at the time blinded him to the realities of life after the ring. “My father always told me, ‘Save your money for the hard days.’ I looked at him and said, ‘There’s never going to be hard days!’ I was so confident, so arrogant. And then… now, life hit me,” he said.
His financial downfall began when the pandemic forced him to shut down his wrestling school and cancel his popular one-man shows. “When COVID hit… they closed all the venues down. And wrestlers don’t have insurance,” he said. To survive, he took out a $40,000 government loan, only to face even greater adversity soon after.
“My partner, Nathalie, was diagnosed with cancer,” he shared. “She was doing treatments for 16 months… three days a week at the hospital. And the other days you could work, you don’t want to leave her. So I put my work aside and just took care of my lady.”
After she entered remission, Rougeau launched “Wrestling Academy,” a talent competition aimed at reinvigorating his career. However, the project drained him further financially. “I didn’t want to lose face, so I borrowed money and paid the wrestlers,” he explained. “I ended up about $70,000 down. Just last week, I had to declare bankruptcy on my company that I’ve had for over 40 years.”
He emphasized that the bankruptcy involved only his numbered company, used to clear government debt, and not personal assets. “I never screwed anybody over,” Rougeau stated, noting that after explaining his situation to the press, the public and media rallied behind him.
Still facing financial pressure, Rougeau remains hopeful. “The most important thing is, everybody falls in life. But the most important thing is to get back up,” he said. With Nathalie now five months in remission, Rougeau has resumed his one-man shows and believes the worst is behind him.
“I’m definitely going to get back on my feet!” he declared.
“The Mountie” Jacques Rougeau Opens Up Personal and Financial Turmoil
