Shelton Benjamin Says One Key Moment With Vince McMahon Made Him Realize He Didn't Have A Future In WWE

It was one key moment and conversation with Vince McMahon that made Shelton Benjamin realize he didn't have a future in WWE.

During an interview with Chris Jericho on the Talk is Jericho podcast, Benjamin spoke about leaving WWE and said that the Hurt Business disbanding was the straw that broke the camel's back for him.

Benjamin then detailed a conversation with Vince McMahon that pushed things over the edge and made him realize he needed to leave.

Things were going extremely well over in WWE — and I like to say this because people say WWE. Not WWE, Vince, for whatever reason, he decided that the money was with Bobby and MVP as his manager and he was just done with it, the Hurt Business. We never gotten a straight answer as to why. When I initially got the news, I went to Vince and was like — I’d been there for a few years with nothing happened and I was like, I finally have something that we can actually work with and elevate me that benefits the company, especially during the pandemic era because in my opinion, the Hurt Business and Roman Reigns carried WWE during the pandemic era.
Shelton Benjamin (h/t Fightful)

He added:

I felt a bit betrayed because I come here every week, I never complain, I risk my life just like everybody else. When other people wanted to stay home, you never had to question whether or not I’d come to work. So, for us to bear that burden — and mind you, obviously we’re not the only ones. We’re not the only people, but the fact that we were always willing and we were actually producing, for you to just immediately turn around and just kill it, what the f*** man?
Shelton Benjamin (h/t Fightful)

Benjamin continued:

His comment to me was, ‘We’ve gone as far as we can with the Hurt Business.’ The Hurt Business was around for eight months before he pulled the plug. When he said that, it was almost like you want to cry inside because nothing I can do for this person seems to help. Nothing’s good enough. I knew then, I don’t really have a future here. At this point, this is just a job where I’m just collecting a check. I want to care, I’ve never been a guy who wants to just sit on the bench and ride the wave that everyone else has created.
Shelton Benjamin (h/t Fightful)

The Hurt Business held down a lot of television time for WWE during the pandemic. In that group, Benjamin became a tag team champion with Cedric Alexander. The other members of the group were Bobby Lashley and MVP.

Benjamin made his debut in AEW at the end of last year and once again linked up with MVP and Lashley. On this week's episode of AEW Dynamite, Lashley and Benjamin will challenge Private Party for the AEW World Tag Team Championships.

The Latest On WWE, AEW & More

AEW Dynamite Preview (1/22/25): Start Time, Match Card, How To Watch & Live Stream

Corey Graves Returns To Commentary On Tuesday Night's WWE NXT

Stone Cold Steve Austin Recovering From Total Knee Replacement Surgery