Shelton Benjamin Shelton James Benjamin ( July 9 , 1975 ) is an American professional wrestler and former amateur wrestler best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment . He wrestled for Ring of Honor ( ROH ) for two years , and currently works for New Japan Pro Wrestling . Benjamin has an amateur wrestling background , including wrestling in high school and at the University of Minnesota . In addition , Benjamin has acted as an assistant coach in amateur wrestling . He first spent time in Ohio Valley Wrestling , where he held the Southern Tag Team Championship four times . WWE then moved him to the main roster and put him into an alliance with Kurt Angle and Charlie Haas , known as Team Angle ( and later the World ' s Greatest Tag Team ) . During his tenure with the company , he won the Intercontinental Championship three times , the United States Championship once , and the WWE Tag Team Championship twice with Haas . Amateur wrestling . Benjamin grew up in Orangeburg , South Carolina where he is an amateur wrestler . He began wrestling while in the 10th grade at Orangeburg - Wilkinson High School . While in high school , Benjamin achieved a 122 – 10 win - loss record and was a two - time South Carolina state high school heavyweight wrestling champion , earning the title in both 1993 and 1994 . Benjamin also was a Junior College National Track Champion in the 100 meter and won the junior college national wrestling heavyweight title in 1996 while attending Lassen Community College in Susanville , California . He was then accepted to attend the University of Minnesota , where he achieved a 36 – 6 win - loss record . Moreover , while attending the university , Benjamin was a two - time All - American heavyweight wrestler . After graduation , he served as an assistant coach at the University and trained with future OVW tag team partner Brock Lesnar . In 1997 , Benjamin went 36 – 6 with 12 pins and placed sixth in the Big Ten Championship . Instead of trying to qualify for the 2000 Summer Olympics , Benjamin decided instead to try and pursue a professional wrestling career . Professional wrestling career . World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment ( 1999 – 2010 ) . Ohio Valley Wrestling ( 2000 – 2002 ) . Benjamin was offered and accepted a contract from the World Wrestling Federation ( WWF ) and was placed in Ohio Valley Wrestling ( OVW ) as one half of a tag team with Brock Lesnar , who was a wrestling teammate at the University of Minnesota , Twin Cities . Together they were known as the " Minnesota Stretching Crew , " and they held the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship on three occasions . The first two reigns occurred during February and July 2001 . They were scripted to win the title for a third time from Rico Constantino and The Prototype on October 29 , 2001 . After Lesnar was called up to the main roster in November 2001 , Benjamin formed a tag team with Redd Dogg Begnaud called " The Dogg Pound " and once again won the OVW Southern Tag Team Title on July 17 , 2002 . Throughout the remainder of 2002 , Benjamin wrestled at several house show s for the main WWE roster and eventually on " Sunday Night Heat " as a face character . The World ' s Greatest Tag Team ( 2002 – 2004 ) . Benjamin was offered a full - time World Wrestling Entertainment ( WWE ) contract in September 2002 . He joined WWE ' s Smackdown brand as a villain on December 26 , 2002 , forming Team Angle along Charlie Haas , with Olympic gold - medalist wrestler Kurt Angle as their on - screen mentor . Their first official match together in WWE was on the January 2 , 2003 edition of " Smackdown " against Edge and Chris Benoit . They continued their storyline feud with Benoit until No Way Out , when Benoit teamed with Brock Lesnar to defeat Team Angle . The duo were scripted to win their first WWE Tag Team Championship just a month after their debut by defeating the champions , Los Guerreros ( Eddie and Chavo Guerrero ) on February 6 , 2003 . The two then went on to compete in their first WrestleMania match at WrestleMania XIX , retaining their tag title in a Triple Threat match against Los Guerreros , and Chris Benoit and Rhyno . Team Angle later lost the title to Eddie Guerrero and his new partner Tajiri at Judgment Day in a ladder match . The storyline concluded on the June 12 , 2003 " Smackdown " , when , as part of the scripted events , Angle confronted Benjamin and Haas and fired them from Team Angle . They began referring to themselves as The World ' s Greatest Tag Team and won the tag title back on the July 3 edition of " Smackdown " . They lost the title on September 18 , after Benjamin suffered a legitimate knee injury during a match against Los Guerreros . Benjamin was sidelined for approximately one month , but the pair competed together again , taking part in a Fatal Four - Way match at WrestleMania XX . Raw ; Intercontinental Champion ( 2004 – 2007 ) . On March 22 , 2004 , Benjamin was drafted to the WWE Raw brand as part of the 2004 WWE Draft . After arriving , Benjamin quickly became a face character when he scored an upset pinfall victory over Triple H with the help of then World Heavyweight Champion Chris Benoit . Benjamin then feuded with Triple H , beating him three times in total all : once by pinfall , once by count - out , and once by disqualification . As part of the storyline , Benjamin then feuded with the other members of Triple H ' s stable Evolution . Benjamin defeated Ric Flair at Backlash and lost to Randy Orton in a WWE Intercontinental Championship match at Bad Blood . During a match with Garrison Cade on " WWE Heat " , Benjamin punched Cade ' s knee brace , legitimately breaking his hand in the process and briefly taking him out of action . Benjamin returned in the fall of 2004 and was chosen by the fans to compete for the Intercontinental Championship in a match against then - champion Chris Jericho at Taboo Tuesday . Benjamin was scripted to win the match , giving him his first singles title in the company . During his reign as Intercontinental Champion , Benjamin retained the title against challengers such as Christian at Survivor Series , Maven at New Year ' s Revolution , and Chris Jericho at Backlash . Benjamin lost the title to Carlito when he debuted on " Raw " during the June 20 , 2005 episode , ending the longest Intercontinental Championship reign of the decade . Benjamin ' s next storyline began on the December 5 , 2005 edition of " Raw " , when Shawn Michaels was scripted to give Benjamin a speech to get him " psyched " for their tag match together later in the night . As a part of the scripted ending to the match , Michaels was preparing to finish the match when Benjamin tagged himself in and missed a crossbody , allowing Carlito to pin Benjamin . Benjamin was then depicted as having a " losing streak " over the next several weeks , which led to Benjamin ' s noisy , scolding , and domineering " Momma " ( played by comedian / actress Thea Vidale ) coming to " Raw " to confront Benjamin . Momma slapped and yelled at Benjamin anytime he lost a match . Before long , she assisted Benjamin in his matches , often interfering on his behalf . This led to Benjamin once again becoming a villain . In 2006 , Benjamin had a staged on - screen rivalry with then - Intercontinental Champion Ric Flair . On the February 20 edition of " Raw " , Benjamin defeated Flair to regain the Intercontinental Championship after Momma faked a heart problem , causing enough of a distraction to allow Benjamin to cheat and win the title . Benjamin continued to feud with Flair , but Momma no longer accompanied him to ringside . As part of the scripted events , Benjamin stated that she was undergoing heart surgery in the hospital and that he held Flair responsible . Benjamin competed in the second Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 22 . Benjamin then had an on - screen rivalry with the winner of that match , Rob Van Dam , in an attempt to take Van Dam ' s Money in the Bank contract . During this time , Benjamin emphasized his new villainous persona with a new gimmick : wearing shades , jewelry , and occasional colored shirts while entering the ring . At one point , Benjamin was defeated by his former tag team partner , the returning Charlie Haas , during an episode of " Raw " . A predetermined stipulation added to this loss meant that Benjamin had to defend the Intercontinental Title in the same match as his shot at Van Dam ' s contract , meaning at Backlash it would be a " Winner Takes All " match . Rob Van Dam won at Backlash and became Intercontinental Champion . Benjamin regained the title from Rob Van Dam in a Tornado Tag Team match , pitting Benjamin , Triple H and Chris Masters against Van Dam and WWE Champion John Cena ; both the WWE Championship and WWE Intercontinental Championship could be won by whoever pinned the appropriate champion . After Triple H Pedigreed Van Dam , he turned his attention to John Cena and went for the pin on the WWE Champion . Benjamin got to Van Dam first , picking up the pin and his third Intercontinental Championship . Subsequently , Benjamin feuded with Carlito and others for his Intercontinental Championship before losing the title to Johnny Nitro in a Triple Threat match also involving Carlito at Vengeance . During December 2006 , Benjamin ' s former tag team partner Charlie Haas came out to celebrate with Benjamin after he defeated Super Crazy . The World ' s Greatest Tag Team was officially reunited when they defeated The Highlanders on the December 11 , 2006 episode of " Raw " . The duo feuded with Cryme Tyme and competed mainly on " Heat " . The Gold Standard ( 2007 – 2010 ) . On the November 20 , 2007 airing of " ECW on Sci Fi " , Elijah Burke introduced Benjamin as the newest ECW superstar . Benjamin , who had dyed his hair blond before leaving " Raw " , began wearing gold wrestling attire and referring to himself as " The Gold Standard " . On ECW , Benjamin began once again receiving more airtime and higher profile matches , defeating Tommy Dreamer in his debut . Benjamin then qualified for the Royal Rumble match and won an over the top rope preview . Benjamin appeared in the Rumble match , entering at number 17 , but was eliminated by Shawn Michaels . He suffered his first loss since coming to ECW to Kane by count - out , on the January 29 , 2008 edition of " ECW on Sci Fi " . On the February 22 edition of " SmackDown ! " , Benjamin defeated Jimmy Wang Yang in a qualifying match for the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania XXIV , which was won by CM Punk . After WrestleMania , Benjamin briefly feuded with Punk , before he began an on - screen rivalry with Kofi Kingston , who defeated Benjamin on the April 22 edition of " ECW " . On ECW ' s 100th episode , however , Benjamin defeated Kingston , thus ending the latter ' s undefeated streak . To end the feud , Kingston then defeated Benjamin in an ECW Extreme Rules match . As part of the 2008 Supplemental Draft , Benjamin was drafted to the SmackDown ! brand . On the July 11 , 2008 airing of " SmackDown ! " , Benjamin defeated United States Champion Matt Hardy in a non - title match , earning himself a future title shot . At The Great American Bash , Benjamin once again defeated Hardy to win the United States Championship . Throughout his reign as champion , he retained the title several times against competitors such as R - Truth and Hurricane Helms . On the 500th episode of " SmackDown ! " , on March 20 , 2009 Benjamin lost his United States Championship to Montel Vontavious Porter , ending Benjamin ' s reign at 243 days . Benjamin then participated in the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania XXV , but failed to win as CM Punk won the match for the second year in a row . On June 29 , 2009 , Benjamin was traded back to the ECW brand . The following night , Benjamin returned to the brand in a losing effort to the debuting Yoshi Tatsu . However , he would defeat Tatsu in a rematch the following week on " ECW " . After a tag team match , Benjamin was attacked by his partner Sheamus after Benjamin was pinned . Over the following weeks , Benjamin and Sheamus began feuding with and traded wins against each other on " ECW " and " Superstars " , resulting in Benjamin becoming a face character . The feud lasted until Sheamus was moved to the Raw brand on October 26 . The next night on " ECW " , Benjamin lost to Sheamus in Sheamus ' final match on the brand . Benjamin wrestled Christian at for the ECW Championship in a Ladder Match , but came up on the losing end . On the final episode of ECW on Syfy , Benjamin formed an alliance with Vladimir Kozlov . Together , they defeated three members of the ECW roster : Vance Archer , Caylen Croft and Trent Barreta . On the February 26th edition of Smackdown , Shelton Benjamin debuted , once again qualifying for the Money in The Bank Ladder Match at WrestleMania 26 , beating CM Punk . However Benjamin failed to win the Ladder match . He defeated the returning Joey Mercury in his last match at the " SmackDown " tapings on April 20 in a dark match . On April 22 , 2010 , Benjamin was released from his WWE contract , along with Jimmy Wang Yang , Kung Fu Naki , Slam Master J and WWE Divas Mickie James and Katie Lea Burchill . Independent circuit ( 2010 – present ) . Benjamin made his independent circuit return on July 24 , 2010 , in San Diego , California against Scorpio Sky . On July 31 , 2010 , during the World Wrestling Council ' s " La Revolución " show in Puerto Rico Benjamin defeated Ray González to win the WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship . At Crossfire , 27 November , Benjamin lost the WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship to Carlito . In November 2010 Benjamin competed for American Wrestling Rampage . He made his debut on November 10 with Haas faced La Résistance . During his tour with AWR he Defeated Shawn Daivari in a steel cage match . He also had tag team matches with Haas taking on Booker T and Scott Steiner On March 8 , 2011 , Benjamin wrestled in a dark match prior to the " SmackDown " tapings in Houston , Texas , defeating Curt Hawkins . On March 9 , 2011 Shelton Benjamin won the MWF Heavyweight Championship and lost it on June 4 , 2011 . At JAPW 18th Anniversary Show , Haas , Benjamin and Angle reunited first time in 11 years . In the main event , Benjamin and Haas defeated Chris Sabin and Teddy Hart . Ring of Honor ( 2010 – 2013 ) . On September 11 , 2010 , at Glory By Honor IX , Benjamin and Charlie Haas made their Ring of Honor debuts in a match , where they were defeated by The Kings of Wrestling ( Chris Hero and Claudio Castagnoli ) . Benjamin and Haas returned to ROH at the " Ring of Honor Wrestling " television tapings on December 9 , where they defeated the Bravado Brothers . The following day , at the second set of television tapings , they defeated the All - Night Express of Kenny King and Rhett Titus , and participated in an eight - man tag team match , teaming with the Briscoe Brothers against the Kings of Wrestling and the All - Night Xpress , which ended in a no contest . On December 18 at the Final Battle 2010 pay - per - view Benjamin and Haas announced that in 2011 they would be wrestling regularly for Ring of Honor . At the following pay - per - view , 9th Anniversary Show , on February 26 , 2011 , Benjamin and Haas defeated the Briscoe Brothers in the main event of the evening to earn another shot at the Kings of Wrestling and the ROH World Tag Team Championship . On April 1 at Honor Takes Center Stage , Benjamin and Haas defeated the Kings of Wrestling for the ROH World Tag Team Championship . On June 26 at Best in the World 2011 , Benjamin and Haas successfully defended the ROH World Tag Team Championship in a four - way match against the Briscoe Brothers , the Kings of Wrestling and the All Night Express . The following day ROH announced that both Benjamin and Haas had signed contracts with the promotion . On December 23 , at Final Battle 2011 , Wrestling ' s Greatest Tag Team lost the ROH World Tag Team Championship to the Briscoe Brothers . On May 12 , 2012 , at Border Wars , Benjamin and Haas regained the ROH World Tag Team Championship from the Briscoe Brothers . On June 24 at Best in the World 2012 , Benjamin and Haas lost the title to Kenny King and Rhett Titus . In early August , ROH , in storyline , suspended Benjamin for attacking Titus and several ROH officials with a steel chair . The suspension was used to explain Benjamin ' s absence from ROH , while he was working in Japan . Benjamin returned on September 15 at Death Before Dishonor X : State of Emergency , accompanying Charlie Haas and Rhett Titus during their tag team championship tournament matches . On December 16 at , Benjamin and Haas defeated Titus and B . J . Whitmer in a Street Fight . The following day it was reported that Benjamin had requested and received a release from his ROH contract . Benjamin made one more appearance for ROH on February 2 , 2013 , when Haas turned on him during an ROH World Tag Team Championship match against the Briscoe Brothers . Benjamin was scheduled to face Haas on April 5 at Supercard of Honor VII , but after Haas had parted ways with the promotion , he was replaced by Mike Bennett , who went on to defeat Benjamin . New Japan Pro Wrestling ( 2012 - present ) . On December 9 , 2011 , New Japan Pro Wrestling announced that Benjamin would be joining MVP for a tag match against Masato Tanaka and Yujiro Takahashi at Wrestle Kingdom VI in Tokyo Dome on January 4 , 2012 . Benjamin and MVP were victorious in the match , after MVP submitted Takahashi . Benjamin returned to New Japan on June 16 at Dominion 6 . 16 , where he and MVP defeated Karl Anderson and Tama Tonga in a tag team match , with Benjamin pinning Tonga for the win . On July 8 , New Japan announced Benjamin as a participant in the 2012 G1 Climax tournament . Benjamin returned to the promotion on July 29 at " Last Rebellion " , where he , Karl Anderson , MVP and Rush defeated Suzuki - gun ( Minoru Suzuki , Lance Archer , Taichi and Taka Michinoku ) in an eight man tag team match , with Benjamin pinning Taichi for the win . In the following month ' s G1 Climax tournament , Benjamin ended up winning four out of his eight matches , failing to advance to the finals . On November 11 , New Japan announced that Benjamin would return to take part in the 2012 World Tag League , where he would be teaming with MVP under the tag team name " Black Dynamite " . Benjamin and MVP finished their tournament on December 1 with a record of three wins , one over the reigning IWGP Tag Team Champions K . E . S . ( Davey Boy Smith , Jr . and Lance Archer ) , and three losses , failing to advance from their block . On December 2 , the final day of the tournament , Benjamin got into a brawl with Masato Tanaka , which led to New Japan the following day naming him the number one contender to Tanaka ' s NEVER Openweight Championship . On January 4 , 2013 , at Wrestle Kingdom 7 in Tokyo Dome , Benjamin unsuccessfully challenged Tanaka for his title . Benjamin returned to New Japan on April 20 , now working as a member of the villainous Suzuki - gun , teaming with the stable ' s leader Minoru Suzuki in a main event tag team match , where they defeated Kazuchika Okada and Shinsuke Nakamura . On the following tour , Benjamin worked under the ring name " Shelton X Benjamin " , playing off the fact that prior to him being revealed as the newest member of Suzuki - gun , Suzuki ' s partner had been billed simply as " X " . On May 3 at Wrestling Dontaku 2013 , Benjamin unsuccessfully challenged Nakamura for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship . Benjamin returned to New Japan on June 22 at Dominion 6 . 22 , where he and Minoru Suzuki defeated Shinsuke Nakamura and Tomohiro Ishii in a tag team match , with Benjamin pinning Nakamura for the win . From August 1 to 11 , Benjamin took part in the 2013 G1 Climax , where he finished with a record of five wins and four losses , narrowly missing advancement from his block . On September 29 at Destruction , Benjamin received another shot at the IWGP Intercontinental Championship , but was again defeated by Shinsuke Nakamura . From November 24 to December 7 , Benjamin and Suzuki took part in the 2013 World Tag League , where they finished with a record of three wins and three losses , with a loss against Takashi Iizuka and Toru Yano on the final day costing them a spot in the semifinals . Benjamin returned to New Japan on January 4 , 2014 , at Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome , where he and Suzuki were defeated by The Great Muta and Toru Yano in a tag team match . On March 15 , Benjamin entered the 2014 New Japan Cup , defeating Yujiro Takahashi in his first round match . On March 22 , Benjamin defeated Katsuyori Shibata to advance to the semifinals of the tournament . The following day , Benjamin was eliminated from the tournament in the semifinals by Bad Luck Fale . From July 21 to August 8 , Benjamin took part in the 2014 G1 Climax , where he finished tied fifth in his block with a record of five wins and five losses . Benjamin returned to New Japan on January 4 , 2015 , at Wrestle Kingdom 9 in Tokyo Dome , where he , Davey Boy Smith , Jr . , Lance Archer and Takashi Iizuka were defeated by Naomichi Marufuji , Toru Yano and TMDK ( Mikey Nicholls and Shane Haste ) in an eight - man tag team match . On January 10 , Benjamin , along with the rest of Suzuki - gun , took part in a major storyline , where the stable invaded a Pro Wrestling Noah show , attacking Marufuji and TMDK . Benjamin made his in - ring debut for Noah on January 12 , when he , Suzuki , Taichi and Michinoku defeated Marufuji , Atsushi Kotoge , Muhammad Yone and Taiji Ishimori in an eight - man tag team match . Over the next weeks , Benjamin worked all Noah events , while starting a feud with Takashi Sugiura due to him also having a background in amateur wrestling . Global Force Wrestling ( 2015 ) . On May 15 , 2015 , Global Force Wrestling ( GFW ) announced Benjamin as part of their roster . Pro Wrestling Noah ( 2015 – 2016 ) . On January 10 , 2015 , Benjamin , along with the rest of Suzuki - gun , took part in a major storyline , where the stable invaded a Pro Wrestling Noah show , attacking Marufuji and TMDK . Benjamin made his in - ring debut for Noah on January 12 , when he , Suzuki , Taichi and Michinoku defeated Marufuji , Atsushi Kotoge , Muhammad Yone and Taiji Ishimori in an eight - man tag team match . Over the next few weeks , Benjamin worked all Noah events , while starting a feud with Takashi Sugiura due to him also having a background in amateur wrestling . Benjamin and Sugiura finally met in a grudge match on July 18 , where Sugiura was victorious . In November , Benjamin made it to the finals of Noah ' s premier singles tournament , the Global League Tournament , but was defeated there by Naomichi Marufuji . On June 12 , 2016 , Benjamin unsuccessfully challenged Go Shiozaki for Noah ' s top title , the GHC Heavyweight Championship . Withdrawal of return to WWE ( 2016 ) . On the July 26 , 2016 episode of " SmackDown " , a vignette aired promoting Benjamin ' s WWE return . However , on August 7 , Benjamin announced that his return had been put on hold due to a torn rotator cuff , which required surgery . Personal life . Benjamin is an avid video gamer , winning WWE ' s THQ Superstar Challenge , a video game tournament that takes place every year during WrestleMania weekend , four years in a row before retiring in 2007 . He spends time every day playing . Benjamin is also proficient in art , creating comic book level work and paying close attention to detail . He almost considered a career in the field . Benjamin , along with Dave Batista and Josh Mathews , represented WWE at the 2008 Democratic National Convention in an effort to persuade fans to register to vote in the 2008 Presidential election .