Shelton Benjamin Fires Back at Hulk Hogan Over Name Drop and Fake Respect

Shelton Benjamin is not here for Hulk Hogan’s attempt at flattery—especially when Hogan can’t even say his name right.

After a recent media blitz by Hogan promoting his new Real American Freestyle Wrestling promotion alongside Eric Bischoff, the WWE Hall of Famer gave a shoutout to several amateur wrestlers who impressed him over the years. That list included Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar, and Shelton Benjamin… except Hogan referred to him as “Benjamin Shelton.”

Appearing on The Pat McAfee Show and in a separate clip for TMZ, Hogan said, “Great guys like Kurt Angle and Brock Lesnar, Benjamin Shelton, there are some tough guys.” The moment went viral quickly, with fans mocking Hogan for flipping Benjamin’s name and appearing to fabricate details—like once again falsely claiming he wrestled Lesnar after UFC.

On May 6, 2025, Shelton Benjamin fired back directly on Twitter, and he didn’t hold back. “Message to @HulkHogan. You lost me forever with your ‘don’t get caught’ …or as you would call it ‘apology’ speech,” he wrote. “So rather than screw up my name and pretend we ever had any sort of camaraderie which we never had. Please do me a favor &” — the tweet cut off with a meme of Will Smith yelling, “KEEP MY NAME OUT OF YOUR F**KING MOUTH.”

The context of the tweet references Hogan’s controversial past and perceived lack of accountability following his widely criticized “apology” over leaked racist comments years ago. Benjamin’s public rejection of Hogan’s name drop makes it clear: there’s no love lost between the two.

Hogan’s RAF is set to launch on August 30 in Cleveland, with hints of appearances from figures like Donald Trump. But if he’s counting on the credibility of stars like Shelton Benjamin to sell it—he might want to remember their names first.

Do you think Shelton Benjamin was right to speak out, or was it just a slip-up by Hogan? Let us know your thoughts below and tell us how you feel about Hogan’s new RAF promotion.