How WWE Once Punished LA Knight for Showing Up Late to SmackDown

LA Knight’s journey to WWE is one filled with hardships and many changes over the years, as he had to work very hard to get to his current position in the company. In fact, Knight has revealed how WWE punished him for showing up late for SmackDown in the past.

While speaking on The Getting Over podcast, LA Knight shared a story from 2008 when he got a chance to work with WWE as an extra. He was in a tag match against Cryme Tyme, which was a big opportunity for him. Even though he was just an extra, he had a lot of time in the ring to show his skills and get the crowd excited and WWE wanted to bring him back the next week.

“Back in 2008, I had a great opportunity. I was brought in as an extra and ended up getting a really good spot in a dark match. It was a tag match with Gene Snitsky against Cryme Tyme, which was unusual for them to do. I actually got a lot of time in the ring, it wasn’t a squash match. I got to show off a lot of offense and got some heat. It was a cool experience, and they wanted to bring me back the next week.”

However, he showed up an hour late for SmackDown the following week. This caused problems, and as a result, WWE didn’t contact him for three years, even though he tried reaching out to people like Paul Bearer. Back then, WWE was strict about people not showing up on time, and they didn’t tolerate mistakes.

“Well, for one reason or another, I showed up an hour late to SmackDown the next week, and I got a lot of heat for that. They didn’t want to talk to me for probably the next three years or so. I was reaching out to Paul Bearer and others, saying, ‘Man, I can’t get a phone call, no one’s answering emails.’ The point is, that one mistake really cost me. Back then, WWE had that mentality—if you’re not taking it seriously, they’re not going to take you seriously.”

Knight explained that he was late because he had hurt his shoulder. He had trouble getting proper treatment at first, and by the time he found a therapist, he was running late. When he arrived, WWE asked if he was still hurt. He admitted that it was his fault for being late and learned a valuable lesson from the experience as it was a very heavy punishment.

“Part of the reason I was late was that I had separated my shoulder a few weeks before. I was walking around in pain and kept trying to get it checked out. I went to an emergency room, but the wait was too long. Then I went to another place, waited 45 minutes, and they told me their x-ray machine was down. So, I gave up and thought, ‘I’m just going to the gym and get a pump.’ In 2008, there were a lot of big guys in WWE, like Batista as champion, so I didn’t want to show up looking flat.

I ended up finding a little physical therapy place nearby, and the therapist worked on me for about an hour. It ended up taking longer than I expected. By then, it was already 1:30, and call time was 2. I figured they’d barely notice if I showed up a little late. But they did, and when I got there, they asked if I was injured. I told them, ‘No, I’m not injured, but I was just getting checked out.’ I got painted into a corner, as I should have. It was a dumb decision, and I recognize that now. That was one time I shot myself in the foot, and the punishment of not hearing from them for three years was heavy. It taught me a big lesson.”

This experience taught LA Knight valuable lessons about professionalism, being on time, and not giving up in wrestling. Although it was a tough lesson, Knight used it to his advantage and has found success in WWE despite the challenges early on in his career.

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