Stevie Richards reveals how ex-WWE star reacted to Chris Benoit kicking him out the locker room
Stevie Richards worked for WWE when Chris Benoit became one of the company's most featured wrestlers. The former ECW star recently gave an insight into the behind-the-scenes feeling after Benoit kicked Matt Striker out of the locker room.
Striker, a former high school teacher, worked for WWE as a commentator and wrestler between 2005 and 2013. The 50-year-old garnered backstage heat after Benoit overheard him telling road agents that RAW had a better roster than SmackDown.
On The Stevie Richards Show, Richards said Striker's calm reaction to the situation likely annoyed other wrestlers:
"I was a big fan, I mentioned the movie earlier, Shawshank Redemption, he's walking through the prison yard, everybody's scowling at him, and he's walking like Andy Dufresne, not a care in the world, and I was envious. They're mad because he probably thought, 'I was a teacher, I'm an adult, I'm a man. I played this game in high school. I'm not gonna play it now.'" [10:18 – 10:45]
Striker has worked as an announcer for several wrestling companies outside of WWE, including AAA, Lucha Underground, MLW, and TNA.
Stevie Richards addresses WWE backstage politics issues
Between 1998 and 2008, Stevie Richards wrestled more than 400 matches in WWE. During that time, he witnessed several instances of wrestlers playing mind games with less experienced roster members backstage.
Richards added that two wrestlers would sometimes settle their real-life issues before new problems would arise:
"Then they go back to treating you like cr*p. That's probably what Matt had done too. Pulled aside somebody, maybe Benoit, and said, 'Hey, man, what's the issue? Can we squash this?' 'Oh, no, there's no issue at all,' and then they go to treating them even worse. That kinda sums up pro wrestling." [11:09 – 11:26]
In the same episode, Richards revealed how Rey Mysterio tried to stop an on-screen personality from quitting after an alleged bullying incident.
What are your thoughts on Richards' story? Hit the discuss button and let us know.
Please credit The Stevie Richards Show and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.