WWE veteran Shelton Benjamin has issued a pointed response to Hulk Hogan, following comments where Hogan misidentified him while promoting his new Real American Freestyle Wrestling initiative.
In an interview with TMZ, Hogan referenced wrestlers who successfully transitioned from amateur wrestling to professional wrestling. While attempting to name-drop Benjamin, Hogan mistakenly referred to him as “Benjamin Shelton,” saying, “all these different guys that I’ve had the opportunity to see adapt to our business.”
The mistake did not sit well with Benjamin, who took to social media to set the record straight—not just about his name, but about his longstanding issues with Hogan stemming from the Hall of Famer’s 2015 racism scandal.
Benjamin wrote:
“You lost me forever with your ‘don’t get caught’… or as you would call it, ‘apology’ speech. So rather than screw up my name and pretend we ever had any sort of camaraderie—which we never had—please do me a favor &”
Message to @HulkHogan. You lost me forever with your “don’t get caught” …or as you would call it “apology” speech. So rather than screw up my name and pretend we ever had any sort of camaraderie which we never had. Please do me a favor & pic.twitter.com/4ccA4I9Qef
— Shelton J. Benjamin (@Sheltyb803) May 6, 2025
Benjamin’s statement refers to the controversial WWE locker room speech Hogan reportedly gave in 2018 after being reinstated to the company. Hogan, who was fired by WWE in 2015 following the leak of audio in which he used repeated racial slurs, allegedly told talent to be mindful of their behavior being recorded, rather than issuing a genuine apology—an approach that drew criticism from several current and former wrestlers, including New Day and Titus O’Neil.
Benjamin’s remarks add to a broader narrative of ongoing tension and distrust between Hogan and portions of the wrestling community, particularly Black performers who felt his apology lacked sincerity.
Stay with PWMania.com for more updates and reactions from across the wrestling world.
