Right after the WWE brand split this summer, Shelton Benjamin was announced as returning to Smackdown Live. Benjamin left WWE in 2010 and has spent the past six years making a second name for himself in Ring of Honor, New Japan and Pro Wrestling Noah. Unfortunately, his WWE return was put on hold almost as soon as it was teased, because the 41-year-old had to undergo shoulder surgery. He’s been quietly rehabbing since August, but we finally have a bit of an update.
On Tuesday, Benjamin announced via Twitter that he is still dedicated to coming back to WWE at full strength, but his recovery timetable still has him a minimum of four months away from returning.
For the record. I will make moves to return to @WWE when I am back to 110% physically. Anywhere from 4 to 6 months by my doc calculation.
— Shelton J. Benjamin (@Sheltyb803) November 22, 2016
This, of course, means that Benjamin won’t be back in WWE until likely after WrestleMania, but the good news is that Money in the Bank is its own pay-per-view now. Good news for wrestling fans, anyway. Probably not the best news for someone recovering from shoulder surgery.
What, you think they’re NOT going to put Shelton in Money in the Bank at the first opportunity when he comes back? He was practically synonymous with the match for years. It’s his specialty match, much like how Kane is always set on fire in HIS specialty match.
(Please don’t get figuratively set on fire, Shelton.) (Please don’t literally get set on fire, either. Let’s just cover all our bases while we’re spitballing here.)
