How Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin Became A Team

Charlie Haas was recently a guest on the Two Men Power Trip of Wrestling, where he spoke about getting paired up with Shelton Benjamin.

“They looked at our background, they knew we were amateur wrestlers. I think what helped Shelton and I and my brother a lot is that we were fans of pro wrestling growing up, big fans, and that's why we got into amateur wrestling, we thought it was pro wrestling, but it was actually amateur wrestling. We didn't read that part in the junior high book with the tryout for sports. I know, but we stuck with it. And I think the work ethic that amateur wrestling teaches you just to take care of yourself and your balance and that mental toughness. You just fight through everything. I think that has a lot to do with why we were so successful. Amateur wrestling is very hard. The practices are hard. So we would show up like Shelton and I, my brother-in-law, we'd show up to wrestle, and we would wrestle and practice. If it was like amateur wrestling, I had to learn to move. I had to learn the technique. I had to learn how to work the arm, how to work the different ways to go to the arm, the leg, the Ridge, the back, the neck, whatever. I had to go in a different way. I had to learn everything I could. So they came in and said, hey, we want to do Team Angle. Kurt's red hot. He was fucking red hot, man. It was unbelievable and it was like how great do you give him guys underneath him, like a tag team, like a faction, kind of like the Varsity Club. That's what they were shooting for. Like a varsity club. Just enhanced.”