WWE superstar suffered dangerous and almost catastrophic health scare on live TV
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Former WWE superstar Shelton Benjamin was left terrified when he suffered from vertigo in the middle of a match on live television.
The 48-year-old wrestling veteran, whose second eight-year spell with the company ended when he was shockingly released in September 2023, has recalled a memorable match against Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels when things took a ‘scary’ turn.
Speaking exclusively to Metro.co.uk, he explained: ‘I was having issues [with vertigo] – there’s one spot where Shawn’s behind me, I give him a couple of elbows and I jump to the top rope and give him the flying forearm.
‘Well, at some point while I was giving him the elbows, the room started spinning.’
The match aired on Monday Night Raw with the world watching, and Shelton – who will be wrestling in Camden this weekend at PROGRESS Wrestling’s Super Strong Style 16 tournament – was in a dangerous predicament.
‘When I went to look at the top rope… You can see me, I am trying to find the rope because to me, it looked like there were three ropes,’ he said.
Shelton Benjamin has recalled the terrifying moment (Picture: WWE)
‘I was like, “Okay, I’ll just jump for the middle rope”, because it can’t be that high and, you know, just muscle memory of typically how high I have to jump.’
He decided to take a literal leap of faith, and it was only as he landed on the mat that things started to get back to normal again – but both wrestlers amazingly emerged unscathed.
‘The room didn’t start spinning until I made contact with Shawn, and I took the bump and rolled to my stomach and that’s when the room stopped spinning,’ he added.
‘So that was that was scary – and at least no one got hurt, you know? The match came out great. But yeah, that was scary.’
Surprisingly, the vertigo didn’t hit during Shelton’s famous daredevil appearances in the Money In The Bank ladder matches, and he felt it in more unlikely situations, including a bout against La Resistance members Rob Conway and Sylvain Grenier.
‘Sly wanted to give me like the reverse DDT,’ he recalled. ‘But every time he would tilt my head back, the room would just start spinning, and I didn’t understand what was going on.’
However, there have been far scarier moments, including travelling to a warzone in Afghanistan as part of WWE’s first ever Tribute To The Troops event in 2003.
‘I did not want to go over there,’ he laughed. ‘We were flying to these outposts. And we’re going to these places where most celebrities refuse to go. We were in war zones.’
Shelton first signed for WWE in 2000, debuting in 2002 and enjoying two successful spells (Picture: WWE)
It was ‘terrifying’ for Shelton, although it gave him a fresh perspective seeing troops in such dangerous environments, and the way people could use their fame to help others.
‘They gave us a briefing before the show started. And I remember him saying if there’s an explosion, get behind something solid,’ he recalled. ‘Luckily, everything went great. But that was a scary moment.’
He added: ‘I looked at that I like, I had to deal with that for four days. There are people there, this is everyday for them. And I liked it. I gave so much more respect for the armed forces in the military.’
Over two spells with WWE – from 2002 to 2010, and 2017 to 2023 – Shelton has seen the world and achieved a lot, including three stints as Intercontinental Champion.
The former IC Champion was released in September 2023 (Picture: WWE)
However, getting released and spending time at home away from the ring for a little while has been ‘oddly relaxing’, even if there has been ‘a few adjustments’ to be made.
‘I’ve been traveling, I’ve been able to spend more time with my, with my family. I just attended my, my oldest daughter’s graduation and she just got a masters,’ he beamed.
‘I actually missed her high school graduation ceremony, so I was so happy to be able to be there for this moment.’
He’ll be in PROGRESS this weekend, but fans are wondering if he could head somewhere like AEW or TNA Wrestling, or even return to New Japan Pro Wrestling.
Shelton is coming to London for Super Strong Style 16 this weekend (Picture: PROGRESS Wrestling)
Asked about the possibility of landing in those three companies, Shelton teased: ‘I haven’t talked to a lot of these people. But there’s definitely an interest there.
‘I love New Japan because my experience with them was… I have nothing but good things to say about the company, and the talent, and my entire experience in Japan. So, I’m always open to going to New Japan.’
And while he enjoyed more downtime after leaving WWE last year, he’s excited for the future.
‘It’s been a bit of a vacation to be honest,’ he chuckled. ‘But it’s time to get back to work!’
Shelton Benjamin will be at PROGRESS Wrestling: Super Strong Style 16 on Sunday and Monday (May 26-27) at Camden’s Electric Ballroom. Click here for tickets.
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