During a recent appearance on the “Out of Character with Ryan Satin” podcast, Shelton Benjamin commented on his friendship with Shad Gaspard, how he’s stayed involved with his family following his passing, and more.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On his friendship with Shad Gaspard: “When you get in this business, it’s really hard to find friends. You make a lot of acquaintances, you meet a lot of people, but you don’t make a lot of friends. Shad is one of the people that I consider a brother. From the time he got here, we took to each other like ducks to water. Sometimes, Shad would be an acquired taste because Shad is a big – if Shad walked into the room right now, he would probably take over the interview because he’s that guy. He’s also the guy that you can’t hate him, you can’t stay mad at him, and you love him to death. Like I said, we became so close and I was with him when he became a dad. I remember thinking, ‘I’m so jealous, you’ve got this beautiful son, I want a son too.’
On staying involved in Shad’s family’s life: “When he passed away, for me, it was like losing a family member. Just like any other family, I look out for his family, his son, his widow – I stay in very close contact with them. If they need anything, if I have it, they have it. It was such a crushing blow to everybody when he left. The least I can do for my friend, for my brother, is try to keep as close an eye as I can on his son because now you have a child growing up without a dad and that’s – I grew up without a father, so I understand the importance of having that so to have it and lose it so suddenly and so tragically, that kid has a lot of challenges. I want to at least be around to help him. It’s not just me. We have a whole network of really close friends. Myself, MVP, Mark Henry, Big Ryck. We’re close friends. I would hope that if anything were to happen to me, someone would step up for my family as well. Shad was the most proud dad I’ve ever seen. Any time I saw him with his son, he was always teaching him. He wanted to take him everywhere. When you think about that stuff, it’s so heartbreaking to know he doesn’t have that anymore.”
(h/t – 411 Wrestling)
