MVP has opened up about how the former Hurt Business faction ultimately made the jump from WWE to AEW, revealing he was the driving force behind the group’s transition into what is now known as the Hurt Syndicate.
Speaking on Marking Out with MVP and Dwayne Swayze, MVP detailed his frustrations with WWE management, particularly his experiences with Paul “Triple H” Levesque, while explaining why he pushed Bobby Lashley and Shelton Benjamin toward AEW.
According to MVP, the turning point came after Shelton Benjamin’s WWE release following his second stint with the company.
“When the Hurt Business was broken up, and then Shelton, after 20 years, was unceremoniously released. Just like, okay, you’re done. They didn’t offer him a job as a trainer, as a producer. Like, yo, Shelton is one of the all-time greats. He’s underappreciated. And he doesn’t get the flowers he deserves. But legitimately, Shelton is great.”
MVP explained that while he and Bobby Lashley were still under WWE contracts at the time, he had already begun questioning whether he wanted to remain with the company long term.
“So, having said that, they just released Shelton. So, me and Bobby were still under contract. At this point, I was with Omos and Bobby was doing his thing with the Pride. And I made up my mind, my contract was coming up, me and Bobby had contracts at similar times. And I made up my mind that I don’t want to be here anymore.”
He then spoke candidly about his opinion of Triple H and claimed communication between management and Lashley became increasingly difficult.
“And if Triple H is in charge, then I definitely want to be here. Because I don’t like Triple H. I don’t respect Triple H. I think he’s a coward and a liar.”
MVP continued by alleging there were repeated situations where Lashley was unable to get direct answers regarding his WWE direction.
“There have been many situations where he was dealing with Bobby, where he didn’t tell Bobby the truth creatively what he wanted to do. There are multiple times that I tried to talk to him. And he would always, I’ll get with you in a little bit or the few times that I got a chance to get him in his office alone, he would call somebody to come in. He didn’t want to deal with me. I don’t respect that. Tell me. I’m a professional. Tell me how you feel. We’re doing business.”
MVP said those experiences convinced him there was little future for the group in WWE under the current leadership structure.
“So, having said that, when I saw the political horizon, I told Bobby, Triple H ain’t for us. Triple H won’t even talk to you. You’re a two-time WWE champion, one of the most decorated champions in wrestling. Triple H wouldn’t give Bobby one-on-one time.”
The veteran manager then revealed the conversation he had with Lashley while the pair were sitting backstage in catering.
“So, I told Bobby when we were sitting in catering, ‘Dog, I’m not going to re-sign. Don’t resign. You and me get Shelton and let’s go to AEW. Let’s go.’ Bobby was like, ‘Man, I don’t know.’”
While Lashley was initially hesitant due to the lucrative nature of his WWE contract, MVP said he eventually came around to the idea after observing the atmosphere backstage.
“So, after a few weeks, Bobby started to kind of see the environment for what it was, and he was like, ‘Yeah, your right. When our contracts run out, let’s stop re-signing. Let’s get with Shelton. And let’s take this show up across the street.’”
MVP also disclosed that he had already started putting plans together for the group before Lashley officially committed.
“And I already knew what I was doing cuz I had already put in a trademark for the Hurt Syndicate.”
He added that conversations between himself, Lashley, and Benjamin had already begun well before their WWE deals expired, with the trio even considering opportunities outside the United States if AEW had not worked out.
“Even if we didn’t go to AEW, we could go to Japan. We could do it. Dude, MVP, Shelton Benjamin, and Bobby Lashley. There’s no way it’s going to work.”
Once all three men officially became free agents, MVP said their representatives reached out to AEW President Tony Khan to begin negotiations.
“So, at the end of the day, unfortunately, once our contracts were done, we had our conversation about what we wanted to do. We had our representation reach out to Tony Khan. Meetings were had. Tony Khan was like, ‘Yes, I want you guys here.’”
MVP closed by saying the move was always part of a bigger plan the group had mapped out together.
“And we had a great conversation with Tony Khan, and we were able to take the Hurt Business to AEW as the Hurt Syndicate. So, that whole thing came about because we knew where we wanted to go.”