Jonathan Coachman is clearing up exactly what he meant when he claimed Road Dogg was fired from WWE over his support for Chelsea Green. Road Dogg insists he quit, but Coachman says that doesn’t really change his point — because he believes Brian James was pushed to leave by how WWE treated him.
Speaking on The Coach and Bro Show, Coachman addressed his comments after they went viral and Road Dogg publicly pushed back. Coach admitted the headlines made it sound like he was simply claiming WWE directly fired James because he supported Green, which he says wasn’t exactly what he meant.
“Well, I do need to address Road Dogg, because we went viral today. Because, you know, the clippers, they took the headlines and they say, ‘Coach says he was fired.’ What I said was, ‘I don’t care what anyone says, he was fired because of his support.’ That’s how he was supportive. I didn’t say he was fired just because of that, but that’s how it reads online.”
But Coachman wasn’t exactly retreating either. Once Road Dogg responded by saying “I quit,” Coach immediately questioned why James decided to quit in the first place. According to Coachman, Road Dogg left because of how he was treated behind the scenes. He also continues to believe Chelsea Green and James’ support for her played a role in why he’s no longer with WWE.
“Then he puts out, ‘I quit.’ Well, why did you quit, Road Dogg? You quit because of how they treated you in that room. You can say it however you want. The bottom line is, you’re not there because of her, and we supported that, and a lot of other people did too. That’s it.”
Road Dogg had responded to the controversy on November 11 by making his version of events pretty damn clear. He said he resigned while simultaneously making sure nobody mistook that for him changing his opinion of Green.
“I quit!!!
“@ImChelseaGreen is a national treasure NO MATTER THE NATION!!! I saw the writing on the wall I’m hearing others are being pushed out too lol Growth hurts sometimes But just the ones YOU HURT during it.”
There’s also reporting supporting Road Dogg’s claim that he resigned. Fightful Select previously reported that at least six sources familiar with his departure said James quit rather than being fired. Road Dogg’s support for Green has never really been in question either. After she captured the Interim WWE Women’s Championship at SummerSlam, he openly wondered why it took WWE so long to recognize her potential.
“So congratulations, Chelsea Green. The hard part for me is, why did it take so long for others to see?”
He also criticized the way some wrestlers can get overlooked depending on who is making decisions at the top.
“‘Top guys vision’ leaves a lot of talent underutilized. Not a knock, just the truth.”
Coachman clearly isn’t interested in arguing over whether the paperwork says “quit” or “fired.” He wants to know what happened before Road Dogg reached the point where leaving WWE felt like the better option.
Do you think Jonathan Coachman’s clarification changes how his original comments should be interpreted? Let us know what you think in the comments.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
