Lashley was against surgery before WrestleMania.
Coming out of the 2022 Elimination Chamber event, it was first reported by former WWE writer Kazeem Famuyide that Bobby Lashley was facing shoulder surgery and was expected to miss WrestleMania 38. It was noted at the time that Lashley had been hurt since the Royal Rumble where he won the WWE Championship from Brock Lesnar.
Lashley eventually made his return in time for WrestleMania and had a singles match against Omos.
The current United States Champion was interviewed by David Shoemaker of The Masked Man Show following last night’s SummerSlam. He confirmed that he had a 75 percent tear in his rotator cuff and his labrum was torn prior to WrestleMania. It was suggested by former WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon that he undergo surgery but Lashley was against it.
I tore my shoulder two months before WrestleMania. I couldn’t even raise my hand. I kept that quiet. I took like three weeks off and I said, I have to make it to WrestleMania. I called Vince [McMahon], Vince was like, ‘Ah, let’s take off. Let’s go get surgery,’ spend four months off and everything like that. I was like, ‘I can’t do that. There’s no way I’m gonna do that.’ I stayed at home for a couple weeks and when I sat at home for a couple weeks, I started going crazy and I was like, I can’t stay at home. I gotta go to work so I started training and I started getting ready, I started rehabbing and I got back in and then I made it for WrestleMania. I mean there’s no downtime. Every other sport has off-season. We don’t have an off-season.
It circulated [him might not being able to make it for WrestleMania]. I get pissed off about that. Stuff that’s supposed to be inside here, gets leaked out and I don’t know how that got leaked out because I didn’t tell anybody. It was between me and the trainers. The trainers were like, ‘All right, go get an MRI.’ I got an MRI and then the MRI was like, you got a 75 percent tear in your rotator cuff, your labrum is torn and all this and I was like, does that mean I get a day off? [Lashley laughed]
Lashley successfully defended the United States Championship against Theory at SummerSlam. He stated that he wants to come out on the 8/1 Monday Night Raw and issue an open challenge. He highlighted names such as Mustafa Ali, Ricochet, Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin that are waiting on an opportunity.
Monday, I’m gonna come around and put that title down and I’m gonna say, who wants it? Everybody from the roster, anybody from the roster that wants to step up, I don’t even care if you’re a part of the roster. You can be some guy on the street, you can come and write your little resume, hand it in to Triple H and if he gives you an opportunity, you can come on because I’m willing to fight anyone. Any fighter, any wrestler, anyone can come and get some for that title.
I’m welcoming it to any guy, any fighter, any boxer. Tyson Fury came over, he wanted to do some stuff. Not calling anybody out, I’m the one with the title so I’m saying anybody, any fighter, if you guys wanna come over at WWE and challenge for a title, I will put mine on the line because like I said, it’s not the title that makes the man, it’s the man that makes the title so how I look at it, the champion of the United States is the highest you can get around here because I’m willing to fight [for] it and I have it. It’s mine.
I don’t really think we do that anymore. I think Vince [McMahon] — am I supposed to say ‘Vince’?… I think we’re going away with the open challenges. I think everybody’s aware that I’m open for challenges but I don’t think I’m gonna go out there and say, ‘Oh man, open challenge’ and everyone’s like, ‘Oh my God, somebody’s coming out from the –’ no. I don’t think we need that. A lot of guys that are real hungry right now and that need to make a name for their self so I’m just giving them the opportunity. I mean, our roster is so stacked right now. There are guys on our roster that are sitting down right now not doing anything and they’re just so incredible. You have somebody like an [Mustafa] Ali, incredible, Ricochet, incredible. Those are just those guys and then you have Shelton [Benjamin] there, you have Cedric [Alexander] there, you have all these guys that are, you know, haven’t had the opportunity to step up and really have a chance to have that big match. Of course, you know, there’s the Seths and the Kevins and those guys that are on that, I don’t know, I guess ‘different tier’ but we have such a stacked roster right now on Raw and on SmackDown that I think that there are so many guys that are ready to step up and take the challenge and I’m here.
As WWE was in Nashville, Tennessee for the weekend, they hosted tryouts and eight-time NBA All Star Dwight Howard was a participant and expressed that he has interest in pursuing a pro wrestling career. Lashley said he’s open to stepping into the ring with the NBA Champion.
If he steps in the ring, I’ll spear him and chop him in half. He’s like a giant. He’s 10 foot tall. I have experiences with giants. I mean I have Omos and threw him around and he’s like half the size of Omos so, I don’t think he wants to go against The Almighty. He might have to try to go for like a… baby steps, baby steps.
Bobby Lashley is in the midst of his third reign as U.S. Champion. His win over Theory at SummerSlam was his first title defense since winning the belt at Money in the Bank.
If the quotes in this article are used, please credit The Masked Man Show with an H/T to POST Wrestling for the transcriptions.
