Shelton Benjamin

At 48 years old, Shelton Benjamin has this physical status:

Shelton Benjamin (born July 9, 1975) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE on the Raw brand.

He is also known for his work in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and Pro Wrestling Noah, as a result of their working relationship under Shelton X Benjamin's ring name and American promotion Ring of Honor (ROH) under his real name.

He was a two-sport athlete in college before turning into a professional wrestler.

Benjamin was the NJCAA champion in both track and field and collegiate wrestling.

He earned his degree from the University of Minnesota after attending junior college. Benjamin began his professional wrestling career in WWE's rural territory, the Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), where he competed for the Southern Tag Team Championship four times (three times with Brock Lesnar, and once with Rodney Mack).

He was then moved to the main roster in 2002, where he formed Team Angle with Kurt Angle and Charlie Haas, which later became the World's Best Tag Team with Haas).

He has won the Intercontinental Championship three times, the United States Championship three times, and the WWE Tag Team Championship twice with Haas during his time with the organization.

On smackdown to team up with Chad Gable in 2017, he returned to WWE.

In 2019, Shelton Benjamin became the king of the Ring.

In the first round, he lost to Chad Gable, his ex partner.

He won the Universal Heavyweight Championship once before being banned from the World Wrestling Council (WWC).

Personal life

Benjamin is a fan of video games. He won the THQ Superstar Challenge, a video game tournament that took place every year during WrestleMania weekend, four years in a row, before he pulled out of the tournament in 2007. He holds the Guinness World Record for "wrestler who has captured the most WWE THQ Superstar Challenges." Benjamin jokingly advised parents via Twitter in April 2020, despite younger players beating their records.

Since 2002, Benjamin has had a close friendship with Charlie Haas, who often refers to him as his "brother." He was the best man at Haas and Jackie Gayda's wedding and is the godfather to Haas' oldest daughter. Benjamin is also a close friend of Brock Lesnar, having met him at the University of Minnesota and shared a bed with him. When Lesnar was out of money, he let Lesnar stay in his basement. Benjamin is also the godfather of Lesnar's daughter. Benjamin traveled to Four Dwellings Primary School in Birmingham, United Kingdom, in 2004, to teach students about reading week.

At the 2008 Democratic National Convention, Benjamin, along with Candice Michelle, Dave Bautista, and Josh Mathews all represented WWE in the attempt to encourage people to vote in the 2008 presidential election.

Benjamin has two children, according to Lilian Garcia's podcast Chasing Glory.

Benjamin has confirmed he has vertigo, which can make his in-ring appearance quite difficult if it occurs.

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Professional wrestling career

Benjamin signed a World Wrestling Federation (WWF) deal on January 10, 2000 and was sent to its developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). While Benjamin was "exciting," OVW booker Jim Cornette paired Benjamin with his former college roommate Brock Lesnar after he felt Lesnar was "boring" as a wrestler and had "no personality." They were known as the "Minnesota Stretching Crew" together, and they competed for the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship on three occasions. During February and July 2001, the first two reigns took place. For the third time from Rico Constantino and The Prototype, they captured the title on October 29, 2001. Benjamin founded "The Dogg Pound" with Redd Dogg Begnaud in November 2001 and defeated the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship on July 17, 2002. Lesnar was called up to the main roster in November 2001. Benjamin appeared on various house shows for the main WWE roster before eventually becoming a celebrity on Sunday Night Heat as a star.

He joined WWE's SmackDown!

The pair won the WWE Tag Team Championship just a month after losing the champions, Los Guerreros (Eddie and Chavo Guerrero Jr.), on the February 6 episode of SmackDown! They continued their feud with Benoit until No Way Out, when Benoit joined Brock Lesnar to defeat Team Angle. The two then continued to compete in their first WrestleMania match against Los Guerreros, Chris Benoit and Rhyno. Eddie Guerrero and his new partner Tajiri then lost the WWE Tag Team Championship in a ladder match on Judgment Day. When Angle confronted Benjamin and Haas and expelled them from Team Angle, the storyline came to an end on the June 12 episode of SmackDown! On the SmackDown episode, they started referring to themselves as "The World's Greatest Tag Team" and claimed the WWE Tag Team Championship back from Guerrero and Tajiri. After Benjamin sustained a legitimate knee injury during the game, the team lost the titles to Los Guerreros on September 18 of SmackDown! Benjamin was out for about a month, but the pair met again in a Fatal Four-Way match for the WWE Tag Team Championship in WrestleMania XX.

Benjamin was drafted to the Raw brand as part of the 2004 WWE draft lottery on March 22, 2004. Since arriving, Benjamin became a star when he defeated Triple H. Benjamin unexpectedly, tying him three times in total: once by countout, once by disqualification, and once by disqualification. Benjamin then feuded with the other members of Triple H's stable Evolution as part of the storyline. In an Intercontinental Championship match at Bad Blood, Benjamin defeated Ric Flair at Backlash and lost to Randy Orton.

Benjamin punched Cade's knee brace during a match with Garrison Cade on Heat, breaking his hand during the process and briefly suspending him from action for a brief period of time. Benjamin returned to fight Randy Orton in the fall of 2004 as a result of Evolution and was later selected by the fans to compete for the Intercontinental Championship in a match against then-champion Chris Jericho at Taboo on Tuesday. Benjamin won the competition, earning him his first singles title in the company. Benjamin maintained his status against opponents like Christian, Maven, New Year's Revolution, and Backlash by Chris Jericho. On the 19th episode of Raw (Carlito used the ropes during the pinfall), Benjamin lost the title to Carlito, the longest Intercontinental Championship reign of the decade at 244 days.

Benjamin was then portrayed as having a "losing streak" over the next few weeks, which culminated in Benjamin's "Momma" (played by comedian/actress Thea Vidale) appearing in Raw to confront Benjamin. Every time he lost a match, Momma slapped and yelled at Benjamin. She aided Benjamin in his matches before long, often intervening on his behalf. Benjamin turned heel for the second time in his career. Benjamin formed a rivalry with then-Intercontinental Champion Ric Flair in 2006. Benjamin won his second Intercontinental Championship after momma faked a heart attack, causing enough of a distraction for Benjamin to cheat and win the title. Benjamin continued to feud with Flair, but Momma was no longer accompanied him to ringside. Benjamin explained her absence by claiming that she was undergoing heart surgery in the hospital. She left due to being sexually assaulted by someone in WWE.

Benjamin Benjamin was the second in the second Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 22. Benjamin then engaged in a feud with Rob Van Dam, the game's winner, in an attempt to steal Van Dam's Money from the Bank. Benjamin emphasized his new heel persona by wearing shades, jewelry, and occasional colored shirts when entering the ring. On the April 17 episode of Raw, Benjamin was defeated by his longtime tag team partner, the returning Charlie Haas. Benjamin was forced to defend the Intercontinental Championship after losing, despite the fact that he was shot at Van Dam's deal, which means at Backlash it will be a "Winner Takes All" match. Van Dam won at Backlash and became the Intercontinental Champion. Benjamin regained the title from Van Dam in a Tornado Tag Team match against Van Dam and WWE Champion John Cena on May 15, and both the WWE Championship and WWE Intercontinental Championship can be decided by whoever pinned the appropriate champion. In his third Intercontinental Championship, Benjamin pinned Van Dam. Benjamin feuded with Carlito and others over the Intercontinental Championship before losing the title to Johnny Nitro in a Triple Threat match involving Carlito at Vengeance.

After beating Super Crazy on December 4th, Benjamin's longtime tag team partner Charlie Haas came out to celebrate with Benjamin. Benjamin revealed that The World's Greatest Tag Team was back in a segment with Cryme Tyme on the December 11 episode of Raw. They defeated The Highlanders in a match later that night. They then embarked on a feud with Cryme Tyme, but they were largely unsuccessful in defeating them, with a tag team tumultuous match at New Year's Revolution on January 7, 2007, where they were defeated by Cryme Tyme. Benjamin attempted to compete in the Royal Rumble match but Shawn Michaels disqualified him. On the January 29 episode of Raw, they finally won over Cryme Tyme, snaping an undefeated streak.

The World's Greatest Tag Team was unable to defeat Ric Flair and Carlito's crew on April 2, but they rematched Carlito the next week, allowing Benjamin to gain the pin over Flair. They secured the World's Greatest Tag Team to win by counting out two weeks later when Carlito turned on Flair, attacking him and allowing them to win by countout. They then qualified for the World Tag Team Championship at One Night Stand in a ladder match, but they were unsuccessful.

Following this loss to the pair in their first match on Raw's June 18 episode, The World's Greatest Tag Team rekindled a feud with Paul London and Brian Kendrick. On the other hand, London defeated Benjamin in a singles match, but on the July 23 episode of Raw, The World's Greatest Tag Team, The World's Greatest Tag Team defeated London and Kendrick, putting an end to the rivalry.

Benjamin and Haas then played against the teams of Hardcore Holly Rhodes, Cody Rhodes, Super Crazy, and Jim Duggan until November, when the team was disbanded due to Benjamin's departure from the ECW roster.

Elijah Burke, the newest ECW celebrity, revealed Benjamin on the air on November 20, 2007. Benjamin, who had dyed his hair black before leaving Raw, began wearing gold wrestling gear and referring to himself as "The Gold Standard." Benjamin Benjamin debuted on ECW for the first time in his debut, defeating Tommy Dreamer in his first appearance. Benjamin qualified for the Royal Rumble match and gained an advantage over the top rope preview. Benjamin appeared in the Royal Rumble match at the Royal Rumble, starting at number 17, but Shawn Michaels denied him. On the January 29, 2008 episode of ECW, he suffered his first loss since moving from ECW to Kane by count-out. Benjamin defeated Jimmy Wang Yang in a qualifying match for the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania XXIV, which was won by CM Punk on February 22. After wrestlingMania, Benjamin briefly feuded with Punk before he began an on-screen feud with Kofi Kingston, who beat Benjamin on the April 22 episode of ECW. Benjamin defeated Kingston on ECW's 100th episode, snapping the latter's undefeated streak. Kingston then defeated Benjamin in an Extreme Rules match to bring an end to the feud.

Benjamin was introduced to the SmackDown brand in 2008 as part of the 2008 supplemental draft. Benjamin defeated United States Champion Matt Hardy in a non-title match on July 11 of SmackDown, guaranteeing him a future championship shot. Benjamin defeated Hardy once more to win the United States Championship at The Great American Bash. He regained the title many times against R-Truth and Hurricane Helms during his tenure as champions. Benjamin lost his United States Championship to Montel Vontavious Porter on March 20, 2009, snapping Benjamin's tenure to 240 days. Benjamin participated in the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 25, but lost for the second year in a row. Benjamin was sold to the ECW brand on June 29, 2009. Benjamin returned to the store following a losing bid to debuting Yoshi Tatsu on a Saturday night. On ECW, he defeated Tatsu in a rematch the next week. Benjamin turned Benjamin face after a tag team match ended, but Benjamin screamed for Zack Ryder during a tag team match, leaving him frustrated. Over the coming weeks, he and Ryder and Sheamus will feud. On ECW and Superstars, Benjamin and Sheamus began feuding with and traded victories against each other, and the feud lasted until Sheamus was shifted to the Raw brand on October 26. Benjamin lost in Sheamus' last match on ECW in Sheamus' last match on the brand, according to the next night.

In a ladder match, Benjamin fought Christian, but he came up short. Benjamin entered the Royal Rumble match at entry number 20 on January 31, 2010, but was stopped by John Cena in under a minute. Benjamin formed an alliance with Vladimir Kozlov on the last episode of ECW. They defeated three members of the ECW roster, including Vance Archer, Caylen Croft, and Trent Barta. Benjamin returned to SmackDown brand and became eligible for the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania XXVI on February 26, defeating CM Punk. Benjamin, on the other hand, did not win the game. In his last match at the SmackDown tapings on April 20, he defeated returning Joey Mercury in a dark match. Benjamin was fired from his WWE deal on April 22, on April 22.

Benjamin made his solo circuit debut against Scorpio Sky on July 24, 2010. Benjamin defeated Ray González to win the WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship in Puerto Rico on July 31, 2010. Benjamin lost the Universal Heavyweight Championship to Carlito at Crossfire on November 27, 2017.

Benjamin competed for the American Wrestling Rampage in November 2010. He made his debut with Haas in La Résistance on November 10 on November 10 on Monday. In a steel cage match against Shawn Daivari during his AWR tour, he defeated Shawn Daivari. He also played tag team matches with Haas, against Booker T and Scott Steiner. Benjamin wrestled in a dark match in Houston, Texas, before the SmackDown tapings, defeating Curt Hawkins. Benjamin won the MWF Heavyweight Championship on March 9, 2011 and then lost it on June 4.

Haas, Benjamin, and Angle reunited for the first time in 11 years at the JAPW 18th Anniversary Exhibition. Benjamin and Haas defeated Chris Sabin and Teddy Hart in the main event.

Global Force Wrestling (GFW) announced Benjamin as part of their roster on May 15, 2015. On June 20, he made his promotion debut by defeating Chris Mordetzky in a main event singles match. Benjamin was a participant in the inaugural tournament of Global Force Wrestling to crown their first GFW Global Champion, the company's first world heavyweight champion. He had forfeited his next match against Bobby Roode due to a storyline concussion after winning a match in the quarter-finals.

Glory By Honor IX, Benjamin, and Charlie Haas made their Ring of Honor debuts in a match in which The Kings of Wrestling defeated them (Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli).

On December 9, Benjamin and Haas returned to ROH for the Ring of Honor Wrestling television tapings, where they defeated the Bravado Brothers (Harlem and Lance). They defeated the All-Night Express of Kenny King and Rhett Titus on the second day of television tapings, teaming with the Briscoe Brothers against the Kings of Wrestling and the All-Night Xpress, resulting in a no contest. Benjamin and Haas, the Final Battle 2010 pay-per-view series, announced on December 18 that they would be fighting regularly for Ring of Honor. Benjamin and Haas defeated the Briscoe Brothers in the main event of the evening on February 26, 2011 in the ROH World Tag Team Championships at the following pay-per-view. Benjamin and Haas defeated the Kings of Wrestling for the ROH World Tag Team Championship on April 1 at Honor Takes Center Stage. Benjamin and Haas successfully defended the ROH World Tag Team Championship in a four-way match against the Briscoe Brothers, the Kings of Wrestling, and the All Night Express on June 26, 2011, the Best in the World 2011. Benjamin and Haas had signed contracts with ROH the following day, according to the ministry's announcement. The Briscoe Brothers' ROH World Tag Team Championship was lost to the Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team on December 23, 2011, during the Final Battle of 2011. Benjamin and Haas regained the ROH World Tag Team Championship from the Briscoe Brothers on May 12, 2012, at Border Wars. Benjamin and Haas lost the championship to Kenny King and Rhett Titus on June 24, the Best in the World 2012 edition.

Benjamin was suspended in early August, ROH, for allegedly hitting Titus and several ROH officials with a steel chair. Although Benjamin was working in Japan, the suspension was used to explain ROH's absence. Benjamin returned to Death Before Dishonor X: State of Emergency on September 15, accompanying Charlie Haas and Rhett Titus during their tag team championship tournament matches. In a Street Fight on December 16 at Final Battle 2012: Doomsday, Benjamin, Haas, and Titus defeated Titus and B. J. Whitmer. Benjamin had requested and was released from his ROH service the following day, according to the next day. Benjamin made one more appearance for ROH on February 2, 2013, when Haas was turned on him during a ROH World Tag Team Championship match against the Briscoe Brothers. Benjamin had been supposed to face Haas on April 5 at Supercard of Honor VII, but he was drafted by Mike Bennett after Haas had parted ways with the organization, defeating Benjamin.

Benjamin will appear at Wrestle Kingdom VI in Tokyo Dome on December 9, 2011. After MVP No. 2 sent Takahashi, Benjamin and MVP were victorious in the match. Benjamin returned to New Japan on June 16th at Dominion 6.16, where he and MVP defeated Karl Anderson and Tama Tonga in a tag team match, with Benjamin pinning Tonga for the victory. Benjamin was announced as a participant in the 2012 G1 Climax tournament on July 8. Benjamin returned to action on July 29 at Last Rebellion, where he, Karl Anderson, MVP, and Rush defeated Suzuki-gun (Minoru Suzuki, Lance Archer, Taichi, Taka Michinoku) in an eight-man tag team competition, with Benjamin pinning Taichi for the victory. Benjamin won four out of his eight matches in the following month's G1 Climax tournament, but he did not progress to the finals. Benjamin will return to participate in the 2012 World Tag League, where he will be teaming with MVP under the tag team name "Black Dynamite" on November 11, New Japan announced on November 11th. Benjamin and MVP concluded their tournament on December 1 with a record of three victories, one over the reigning IWGP Tag Team Champions K.E.S. (Davey Boy Smith Jr. and Lance Archer), and three others lost, with the company struggling to recover from their block. Benjamin became embroiled in a brawl with Masato Tanaka on December 2, the tournament's final day, and earned New Japan the honor of beating Tanaka's NEVER Openweight Championship the following day. Benjamin unsuccessfully challenged Tanaka for his title on January 4, 2013, at Wrestle Kingdom 7 in Tokyo Dome.

Benjamin returned to New Japan on April 20, assisting the stable's leader Minoru Suzuki in a key event tag team match against Kazuchika Okada and Shinsuke Nakamura. Benjamin appeared on the following tour under the ring name "Shelton X Benjamin," implying that Suzuki's partner was billed simply as "X" before he was announced as the newest member of Suzuki-gun. Benjamin was unsuccessfully challenging Nakamura for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship on May 3rd. Benjamin was back in New Japan on June 22 at Dominion 6.22, where he and Minoru Suzuki defeated Shinsuke Nakamura and Tomohiro Ishii in a tag team match, with Benjamin defeating Nakamura and Tomohiro Ishii. Benjamin competed in the 2013 G1 Climax, where he finished with a record of five wins and four losses, barely missing promotion from his block. Benjamin had another shot at the IWGP Intercontinental Championship on September 29, but was then defeated by Shinsuke Nakamura. Benjamin and Suzuki participated in the 2013 World Tag League, winning and losing on the final day, costing them a spot in the semifinals. Benjamin was back in New Japan on January 4, 2014, at Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome, where he and Suzuki were defeated by The Great Muta and Toru Yano in a tag team match. Benjamin qualified in the 2014 New Japan Cup on March 15, defeating Yujiro Takahashi in his first round match. Benjamin advanced to the semifinals of the tournament on March 22, defeating Katsuyori Shibata. Benjamin was booted from the tournament by Bad Luck Fale the following day. Benjamin was a champion in the 2014 G1 Climax from July 21 to August 8, where he came in fifth in his block for the fifth time.

Benjamin Benjamin, Jr., Lance Archer, and Takashi Iizuka were defeated by Naomichi Marufuji, Toru Yano, and TMDK (Mikey Nicholls and Shane Haste) in an eight-man tag team match in Tokyo Dome on January 4, 2015. Benjamin's profile has since been removed from NJPW's website.

Benjamin and the rest of his Suzuki-gun were involved in a big storyline on January 10, 2015, where the stable invaded a Pro Wrestling Noah exhibition, attacking Marufuji and TMDK. Benjamin made his in-ring debut for Noah on January 12, when he, Suzuki, Taichi, and Michinoku defeated Marufuji, Atsushi Kotoge, Muhammad Yone, and Taiji Ishimori in an eight-man tag team match. Benjamin appeared at all Noah matches over the next few weeks, assassinating Takashi Sugiura due to his involvement in amateur wrestling. Sugiura and Benjamin eventually met in a tense match on July 18, where Sugiura was victorious. Benjamin made it to the finals of Noah's premier singles tournament, the Global League, in November, but Naomichi Marufuji defeated him there. Benjamin failed to qualify for Noah's highest accolade, the GHC Heavyweight Championship, on June 12, 2016.

On the SmackDown episode of July 26, 2016, a vignette appeared promoting Benjamin's WWE return to action. Benjamin did return to work on August 7, but it was delayed due to a torn rotator cuff, which necessitated surgery. Benjamin announced on Twitter that he was once more medically cleared to compete on March 30, 2017. However, he also admitted that he never signed with WWE prior to his injury and was at that time being a free agent.

Benjamin officially resigned with WWE on August 17, 2017. He was paired with Chad Gable on August 22 of SmackDown as a fan favorite tag team. The pair made their ring debut on August 30, 2017, defeating The Ascension. Benjamin and Gable defeated The Hype Bros in their first appearance at a WWE pay-per-view since 2010. They had their SmackDown Tag Team Championship championship title shot in a crucial four-way tag team competition in which they were disqualified. They defeated The Usos for the titles on January 2, 2018, but the referee reversed the decision after the referee discovered they had mistakenly pinned the wrong twin. The pair turned heel when they insulted the referee of their championship match the week before, demoralized the followers, and accused general manager Daniel Bryan of being biased, resulting in Bryan's suspension of two matches against the Usos in two straight falls. Benjamin participated with Gable in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 34 on April 8, but neither of them won, but neither of them took home the trophy. During the 2018 WWE Superstar Shake-up, Gable will be traded to Raw, effectively ending the team, which would have disbanded the squad.

Benjamin will say his account "got hacked" and started to demoralize Gable on Twitter on April 17 before starting to sue anyone in the locker room. Randy Orton would initially accept the challenge, but instead of getting to the ring, newly drafted United States Champion Jeff Hardy would step out and face Benjamin. Benjamin would face another open challenge this week, first answered by Hardy, but Orton would replace him. Benjamin will face Orton later this year. Benjamin took part in the titular 50-man Royal Rumble in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, at the Greatest Royal Rumble. Benjamin was enlisted number 48 and was barred from the match by Chris Jericho. Benjamin and The Miz lost in a losing battle against Orton and Hardy on May 1 in SmackDown's May 1 episode. Benjamin will make four more televised appearances on SmackDown throughout 2018, losing to Daniel Bryan in June, Jeff Hardy in August, and WWE Champion AJ Styles in October. After interference from The Miz, Daniel Bryan's only victory would come on the October 2 episode of SmackDown.

Benjamin played in the Royal Rumble match on January 27, 2019, but Braun Strowman was disqualified due to a lack of funds at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Benjamin surprisingly appeared and criticized Seth Rollins on the March 11 episode of Raw and lost in a losing battle to Rollins. Benjamin will be mostly off WWE television in the coming months, with only wrestling in two battle royals: the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 35 in April and the 51-man battle royal at Super ShowDown in June; he will win neither match or not. Benjamin was announced in August as one of sixteen competitors in the King of the Ring, where he was defeated by his former tag team partner Chad Gable in the first round on SmackDown Live's August 27 episode. Benjamin was drafted to the Raw brand as part of the 2019 draft. Benjamin participated in the Royal Rumble game and landed at #10 at the namesake pay-per-view website on January 26, 2020, but the WWE Champion and former tag team partner Brock Lesnar, who previously partnered with the Minnesota Stretching Crew, were unable to identify the person.

Benjamin competed against the United States Champion Apollo Crews on June 15, where crews won after using the ropes as leverage. MVP Benjamin promised a rematch with Crews for the United States Championship, hinting at a match between the two teams. Benjamin Bittmann kicked Crews during the VIP Lounge with MVP before their scheduled match on June 22, a special edition of Raw. Despite this, Benjamin was defeated by crews.

Benjamin officially joined MVP and Bobby Lashley's dependable The Hurt Company on July 20 as they helped him win the 24/7 Championship from R-Truth. He would win the 24/7 Championship three times during his time with the stable. Following a postponement of MVP and Lashley's in a non-title match on August 10, Benjamin defeated United States Champion Apollo Crews in a non-title match. This was Benjamin's first victory on Raw in over 14 years. Cedric Alexander joined The Hurt Business after he betrayed Crews and Ricochet during a six-man tag team match on September 7, assisting them in the match and assisting the Hurt Business. Alexander and Benjamin won the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship on December 20, TLC, beating The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods). This will also make him the reigning WWE (Raw) Tag Team Champion. On the March 15 episode of Raw, Benjamin and Alexander will return the titles to Kingston and Woods.

Lashley chastised Alexander and Benjamin for losing the Raw Tag Team Championships and losing to Drew McIntyre in a 2-on-1 handicap match, meaning they would be banned from playing on court against Lashley's WWE Championship match against McIntyre on March 29. Lashley was subsequently accused of assaulting Alexander and Benjamin, effectively leaving them out of the team and kicking them out of the game. They began losing, losing to teams like The Viking Raiders (Erik and Ivar) twice, and RK-Bro (Randy Orton and Riddle) once. Alexander, who was losing to Lucha House Party, became a man of Benjamin on the May 3 episode of Raw. Benjamin defeated Alexander in a match on May 10 episode of Raw, with Alexander losing to Benjamin.

Benjamin and Alexander assisted Lashley in the fight on The New Day and in the process, reuniting The Hurt Company. Benjamin and Alexander arrived in Lashley in January 2022, having not been seen together, assuming they were still a unit, only to be dismissed. This would have prompted the pair to launch a sneak attack that evening, but they were relatively straightforward to deal with.

Benjamin sustained an undisclosed injury and would be out of action on May 14, 2022. In a winning effort against Akira Tozawa, he made his return on the taping of the Main Event on June 13. Benjamin met Cedric Alexander in a losing bid on August 8, 2022, effectively ending the Hurt Company. They hugged each other and shared a moment in the ring that turned Benjamin face for the first time since 2017.

Benjamin began working with R-Truth, with the pair being announced as a tag team in WWE's internal roster, while continuing his appearance on Main Event. Benjamin begged Truth to stop having fun and start taking seriously, arguing that veterans are entitled to be treated with reverence at their table. Benjamin described his various accomplishments in WWE before hinting at a name change.

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