Where's Shelton Benjamin?

[Guest Jack Potts]

I stopped watching any WWE product for about a month or so, due to disinterest. Is Shelton injured or have the writers run out of ideas for him already? Even if he is injured, bringing Shelton back to defend Flair and ultimately revive his feud with HHH would have been a smart way to go. Shelton could have talked about his Carolina connection with Flair, and been a skilled apprentice to the Nature Boy.

[Guest Fook_Theta]

He got jobbed out a few weeks ago to I don't even know who. Had a nice high profile match with HBK a few months ago but they never made anything of it.

 

Sadly it looks as though Shelton's best time to make it was back when HHH was jobbing to him on a regular basis. Then he fucked up his hand/wrist. Eight month IC reign produced some entertaining matches but utterly forgettable. I'll be surprised if they even give him another push for the rest of his WWE career.

[Black Lushus 0]

he's been tied up in a stupid fued with Kerwin White...check Heat, that's where he's usually been wasting away...they could have done so much with the guy: fued with HHH, fued with Angle, bring Haas to Raw and fued with him... *sigh* guess there's always TNA whenever his contract is up...

[Guest Jack Potts]

That is such a shame. Remember how the crowd was completely behind Benjamin when he outwrestled HHH in his Raw in-ring debut? WWE could have made a HUGE star out of Benjamin after that. They could have established a young, entertaining, top-tier main eventer for the future.

 

Shelton, and so many of the WWE roster, deserve better.

[Guest Amy Ace]

hes in de-pushed purgatory, lost his spot to the con-man

[Guest *KNK*]

We are still waiting to find out if he did anything to warrant this. He didn't get over enough to threaten anyone's cushy spot and even with his "highlight reel" antics, they were still somewhat pushing him by keeping him in the mid-card with the occasional brush with the main event but he suddenly vanished.

 

Even Chris Jericho, who threatend HHH's spot and was godly over didn't get shoved out of the card all together. He got buried but not eliminated. RVD was at least stuck into tag teams to limit his "threat".

 

Benjamin didn't even get buried or tag-teamed.

 

I'm not sure if that is a good or bad sign for Shelton.

[alfdogg 0]

We are still waiting to find out if he did anything to warrant this.

Yes.

 

He's black.

 

That's reason enough for WWE

[Guest Jack Potts]

Tragic. McMahon just "FEMAed" Benjamin's push for nothing.

 

Any other workrate junkies get the DT's just thinking about the missed opportunity of a Benjamin-Haas feud?

[Rendclaw 0]

That would have been an excellent feud. The story practically writes itself, but no, were stuck with the usual fare. The six-man was pretty decent, but these kind of things should have been taking place well before they started feeling the heat of TNA's success.

 

I hate to beat the dead horse, but this is what it takes for the quality of matches to go up... and they haven't gone up all that much.

 

The only thing holding Shelton back in his ability on the mic, and that's fairly average. He has wrestling talent galore, as well as the athleticism to make his wrestling ability look that much better. I hope he is socking away every cent he earns, because people aren't really seeing how good he is, and the prolly won't until he joins TNA.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

The problem with Benjamin is they gave him high-profile wins over HHH and a lengthy IC title reign and he din't get over at all. He may be good in the ring but they can only give a guy so many opportunities without getting any results.

[Guest *KNK*]

The problem with Benjamin is they gave him high-profile wins over HHH and a lengthy IC title reign and he din't get over at all.  He may be good in the ring but they can only give a guy so many opportunities without getting any results.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

What high-profile win? He went over him in a *fluke* finish(This is how it was protrayed), beat him again by DQ and then jobbed to him.

 

The victory over Hunter was forgotten the next week. A lengthy title reign that wasn't even pushed or acknowledged until, the day he jobbed the title to Carlito with very little fanfare.

 

Has he really gotten opportunites? Not really. He went over, albeit with a "fluke" reaction, Triple H and was promptly very over but failing to establish something with that, they let Shelton linger about doing nothing.

 

Still over enough they included him in the occasional main event in tag team situations. They tossed him a bone by giving him the "honor" of a long title reign that went un-noticed and was treated like nothing.

 

For instance, his title was less important then a chance to get a World title shot.

 

Never once did Shelton explain why he was going after the title shot, despite already having the IC title. They simply inserted him into the Six Man ladder match because he was a mid-carder who could pop the crowd with his antics.

 

After that spectactular display @ Mania, how did the follow up? Nothing. They gave him 15 minutes with shawn, with no build and no hype and he put Shawn over despite being the IC champion and never asked for a re-match, even though Shawn offered him one in passing during a short promo the next week. It showed Shelton didn't care enough to try again and was lesser then Shawn.

 

Right there it showed "Benjamin can do high flying but he can't beat Shawn" and it quickly devalued the IC title even further, it reached it's lowest point by Carlito taking the title in a cheap finish.

 

Look at past long IC Title reigns...

 

HTM lost the title to the Warrior in a virtual yet famous squash @ MSG

Mr. Perfect lost the title to Bret Hart in a classic match @ MSG

The Rock lost the title to HHH in a semi-famous ladder match at MSG

 

Benjamin jobbed the title to a debuting Carlito(his first raw) via the cheapest of finishes and...left the face of earth after that, only to appear a handful of times since, only to primarily job.

 

How exactly has Shelton been given "chances" when he's had the rug yanked from under him countless times.

[alfdogg 0]

Are Shelton's mic skills legitimately bad, or is it just a matter of the writers giving him horrible material.

 

"That sounds just like your breath smells"

 

...WTF.

[Guest *KNK*]

Are Shelton's mic skills legitimately bad, or is it just a matter of the writers giving him horrible material.

 

"That sounds just like your breath stinks"

 

...WTF.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

That's the problem these days, we can never honestly gauge if they are as bad or as good as they appear because it's all scripted unless you are an established name like Shawn, 'Taker or Hunter.

[Carnival 0]

The possibility of HBK vs Shelton is interesting. That feud could have made Shelton a certified Upper-midcarder. I think the matches could have made it a pretty hot face vs face feud.

[Guest *KNK*]

The possibility of HBK vs Shelton is interesting. That feud could have made Shelton a certified Upper-midcarder. I think the matches could have made it a pretty hot face vs face feud.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Not really because Shawn would have to go over. A series of good matches is nice but when the old guard ultimately goes over, it doesn't do anything.

[Black Lushus 0]

I don't know if a HBK/Shelton fued would have been the answer, but the door slammed shut on Shelton when they decided not to follow up on that fantastic match...that was a case of being put over without actually winning, and regardless of the HBK hate, he really did a great job of putting Shelton over in that match...but you know, Benoit, Guerrero, Cena, Orton, Batista, etc. all toiled around in the midcard for awhile before, sometimes disappearing completely before getting their big shot so, there's always that slim hope...

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

The problem with Benjamin is they gave him high-profile wins over HHH and a lengthy IC title reign and he din't get over at all.  He may be good in the ring but they can only give a guy so many opportunities without getting any results.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

What high-profile win? He went over him in a *fluke* finish(This is how it was protrayed), beat him again by DQ and then jobbed to him.

 

The victory over Hunter was forgotten the next week. A lengthy title reign that wasn't even pushed or acknowledged until, the day he jobbed the title to Carlito with very little fanfare.

 

Has he really gotten opportunites? Not really. He went over, albeit with a "fluke" reaction, Triple H and was promptly very over but failing to establish something with that, they let Shelton linger about doing nothing.

 

Still over enough they included him in the occasional main event in tag team situations. They tossed him a bone by giving him the "honor" of a long title reign that went un-noticed and was treated like nothing.

 

For instance, his title was less important then a chance to get a World title shot.

 

Never once did Shelton explain why he was going after the title shot, despite already having the IC title. They simply inserted him into the Six Man ladder match because he was a mid-carder who could pop the crowd with his antics.

 

After that spectactular display @ Mania, how did the follow up? Nothing. They gave him 15 minutes with shawn, with no build and no hype and he put Shawn over despite being the IC champion and never asked for a re-match, even though Shawn offered him one in passing during a short promo the next week. It showed Shelton didn't care enough to try again and was lesser then Shawn.

 

Right there it showed "Benjamin can do high flying but he can't beat Shawn" and it quickly devalued the IC title even further, it reached it's lowest point by Carlito taking the title in a cheap finish.

 

Look at past long IC Title reigns...

 

HTM lost the title to the Warrior in a virtual yet famous squash @ MSG

Mr. Perfect lost the title to Bret Hart in a classic match @ MSG

The Rock lost the title to HHH in a semi-famous ladder match at MSG

 

Benjamin jobbed the title to a debuting Carlito(his first raw) via the cheapest of finishes and...left the face of earth after that, only to appear a handful of times since, only to primarily job.

 

How exactly has Shelton been given "chances" when he's had the rug yanked from under him countless times.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I don't disagree with your assessment. I was merely pointing out that, in the WWE's eyes, he was given opportunities to get over and couldn't. I doubt we see him get a push for a long time.

[Black Lushus 0]

what opportunities? they did nothing with his win over HHH, his athletic abilities that he's displayed time and time again and his match against HBK...those were the only real opportunities he's had and it wasn't HIS fault nothing ever came from them...I blame the WWE for his booking during his IC title run, certainly not Shelton...

[Carnival 0]

The possibility of HBK vs Shelton is interesting. That feud could have made Shelton a certified Upper-midcarder. I think the matches could have made it a pretty hot face vs face feud.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Not really because Shawn would have to go over. A series of good matches is nice but when the old guard ultimately goes over, it doesn't do anything.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Not at all, even if Shawn was to win the last match of the series, HBK putting over Benjamin in 1 or maybe even 2 matches would have made Shelton's stock rise for sure. He doesn't have to win the war, if he could just win a few battles, that puts him over quite well. Not as well as if he were to totally defeat shawn, but it would clearly do something for Shelton.

[Guest Jack Potts]

Shelton's got pretty good mic skills when they give him something to work with. I attended a Smackdown a few years back when he was still part of the World's Greatest Tag Team. They were feuding with APA, so he and Haas came out dressed as Bradshaw and Farooq, respectively. It was a nice comedy bit, where Shelton did most of the talking and singing, while Haas stomped around with a cigar, shouting "Damn!"

 

Shelton seemed comfortable, and had fun with the skit. His delivery is sometimes too "high school thespian, but if the Raw writers are scripting his every word, which I suspect is the case, I don't think they've found the right "voice" for Shelton. He should be a ridiculously easy character to write.

[Fartsauce 0]

I find the guy hasn't been the same ever since his rope dive botch in that one match against Carlito.

[Guest Trecko]

 

It's been a shitty night, I needed this. Thanks.

 

*leaves thread with tears in his eyes*

[Guest NitroJMS]

I've enjoyed Shelton alot since he came to Raw (never really watched Smackdown ever), and thought he could have been definitely in the world title picture at some point down the road. Now I think he just yet another victim of the "glass ceiling." Raw's world title picture is murky and cluttered at best, just look at this past week's Cabana with Shawn, Big Show, Edge, and Angle. Where is there room for Shelton if those four guys alone are cluttering up the main event seen most every month? Add in the other regular "main eventers" who are just returning or on temporary leave such as HHH, Kane, Jericho, and Flair and Shelton ceases to be in even in the top 10 stars on Raw. As much as the fans love him, there's just nowhere for him to go at the moment so he is just naturally falling. Heck, with Vince, Hogan, Piper, and Austin also sucking up time recently, WWE is lucky to be getting any of the undercard on Raw nowadays.

[Silence 0]

I've enjoyed Shelton alot since he came to Raw (never really watched Smackdown ever), and thought he could have been definitely in the world title picture at some point down the road.  Now I think he just yet another victim of the "glass ceiling."  Raw's world title picture is murky and cluttered at best, just look at this past week's Cabana with Shawn, Big Show, Edge, and Angle.  Where is there room for Shelton if those four guys alone are cluttering up the main event seen most every month?  Add in the other regular "main eventers" who are just returning or on temporary leave such as HHH, Kane, Jericho, and Flair and Shelton ceases to be in even in the top 10 stars on Raw.  As much as the fans love him, there's just nowhere for him to go at the moment so he is just naturally falling.  Heck, with Vince, Hogan, Piper, and Austin also sucking up time recently, WWE is lucky to be getting any of the undercard on Raw nowadays.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I wonder if that explains why Danny Basham hasn't had a match on Raw yet? He only appeared on Heat one time, and so far, that's it.

[Masked Man of Mystery 0]

I hope he ends up in TNA. Hass and Benjamin reuniting would be very, very cool(I'm assuming Haas will join his wife, not a stretch in my opinion)

[Guest Fook]

The problem with Shelton's IC reign is that they never really did anything with it.

 

Just compare his reign to Orton's.

 

When Orton was champ, he'd be defending the title almost weekly against a multitude of challengers (Jericho, Edge, Shelton, etc.) in high profile matches. Not a week would go by that they wouldn't mention how he was "the longest reigning IC champ in seven years". He developed his character as the legend killer and had a long and successful feud with Foley in which he won the blowoff cleanly. When he lost the belt (in a promoted PPV match to Edge), he was immediately pushed up the card and won the World Heavyweight Title at the very next PPV.

 

With Shelton, they never mentioned how long his reign was until the night he lost the title. He beat Orton's reign, but no mention of it ever came about. He was never given any sort of big feud over the title and really had no credible challengers. He jobbed in pretty much every nontitle match. His character was never developed and all we ever heard was JR praising his athleticism when he came out. It seemed at times the only reason he was still champ was because they had no one else in the IC division.

[The Tino Standard 0]

Shelton's downfall began when he switched from the swank traditional wrestling singlet to the fruity biker shorts.

 

Singlet: Beats Triple H, gets high profile spot on Raw.

Biker shorts: Jobs left and right, disappears from Raw.

[Guest Jack Potts]

Shelton's downfall began when he switched from the swank traditional wrestling singlet to the fruity biker shorts.

 

Singlet: Beats Triple H, gets high profile spot on Raw.

Biker shorts: Jobs left and right, disappears from Raw.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

Fascinating correlation. Hmmmmm.......

I think the singlet suited him better, anyway.

 

Slightly off-topic, but I wish the WWE would go back to the tradition that made holder of the IC belt an immediate contender for the World/Heavyweight championship belt. It elevates the title by putting a tremendous significance to it. If you hold the IC belt, you're less than 3 seconds, three heartbeats from the top spot.

 

Right now, the IC belt is a second-tier belt, and HHH buried it even further this week by disparaging Flair for winning it.

[The Tino Standard 0]

Shelton's downfall began when he switched from the swank traditional wrestling singlet to the fruity biker shorts.

 

Singlet: Beats Triple H, gets high profile spot on Raw.

Biker shorts: Jobs left and right, disappears from Raw.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

Fascinating correlation. Hmmmmm.......

I think the singlet suited him better, anyway.

 

Slightly off-topic, but I wish the WWE would go back to the tradition that made holder of the IC belt an immediate contender for the World/Heavyweight championship belt. It elevates the title by putting a tremendous significance to it. If you hold the IC belt, you're less than 3 seconds, three heartbeats from the top spot.

 

Right now, the IC belt is a second-tier belt, and HHH buried it even further this week by disparaging Flair for winning it.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

While the IC has been a good stepping stone for a lot of guys to get into the main event, holding the belt has never made somebody a de facto No. 1 contender. While IC champs have gotten World title shots, that No. 1 contender stip was more attached to the US title in WCW.

 

I always thought it was kinda stupid anyway. Holding a championship should mean you're the best in your division, not just just a top challenger in another division. Of course, this would mean developing a quality second-tier division and they've shown a lack of ability to even solidify the TOP tier, but now I'm rambling.

[Guest Amy Ace]

We are still waiting to find out if he did anything to warrant this.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes.

 

He's black.

 

That's reason enough for WWE

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

LOL, Vince McMahon doesnt care about black people like George Bush.