WWE Hall of Famer Mark Henry wants this AEW star presented like a monster.
After his release from WWE in September of 2023, speculation swirled that Shelton Benjamin was headed to All Elite Wrestling. Sure enough, Benjamin made his AEW debut and joined MVP on the October 2nd episode of Dynamite.
Bobby Lashley joined Benjamin and MVP on the October 30th episode of Dynamite, and the former WWE allies are now known as The Hurt Syndicate.
While many were excited to see The Hurt Syndicate come to All Elite Wrestling, some WWE Hall of Famers aren’t impressed with the presentation of Shelton Benjamin since his arrival in the company. Speaking on a recent edition of Busted Open Radio, Bully Ray criticized Tony Khan for prioritizing wrestling matches over building megastars, saying:
“If I had the pencil, there is no way in hell Shelton Benjamin would have been treated the way he has been treated since the day he came here.”
Bully Ray especially took the company to task for booking Benjamin in a 10 minute match against Lio Rush, saying the former Intercontinental Champion should have been brought in as one of the “baddest mothertruckers” in the company. Ray continued:
“Shelton is in the same position — almost same position — that he was in the WWE.”
Co-host Mark Henry, however, doesn’t believe all is lost when it comes to Benjamin and The Hurt Syndicate. While he agreed with the majority of Bully Ray’s points, Henry said he doesn’t believe Benjamin can be considered “damaged goods” just yet and that he can still rise to prominence. Continuing, Henry pointed out that Bobby Lashley is now the leader of the group, and booking him like a monster would go a long way to help. He said:
“Now you gotta give a reason of why he should be feared. Swerve — they need to find Nana bloodied up and Bobby wiping his hands off. Bobby needs to walk around there like a living, breathing horror movie, and if they do that? Then everything is fixed.”
Mark Henry Once Lost A Legitimate Wrestling Match To Shelton Benjamin
On a previous episode of Busted Open, Mark Henry recalled wrestling Benjamin for real in OVW and ending up on his back for his trouble. According to Henry, facing Benjamin in real life is “a world of pain.”
Recently Mark Henry was critical of AEW’s use of Kazuchika Okada.
h/t WrestlingInc