Mike Bennett praises Ring of Honor for their handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking with Spencer Love of Love Wrestling, the ROH Star talked about his return to the promotion and his experience inside their taping bubble. He says that he feels fortunate for the opportunity to work and do the thing he loves in a safe environment. Bennett also shared his belief that no company has handled this unprecedented situation better than Ring of Honor. Here is his full comment on the matter:
"You know it's funny, I love it [being in the bubble]. First of all, just because I love the camaraderie of wrestling, I love being around like-minded individuals. But it's also a small price to pay for the fact that we get to go and continue to work. I mean that genuinely, right now in this world that we're living in, the fact that I can still go and work but not only work but do something that I love to do, I'm incredibly blessed.
It was funny the first time I was in the bubble they kept apologizing. They're like, yeah, you can't go do this and then you can't go do that and then you know, if you want to go to the gym in the hotel, you gotta ask. I was like, why are you guys apologizing? I have a family. I have people in my family that are higher risk. I have two kids. I have a 2-year-old and I have a toddler. I want to keep them safe and you guys are doing that so I can work, which can provide for them, and you're going to keep me safe so I don't take anything home to them. To me, it's not even a price to pay. To me, that's just what you do.
I haven't seen a company handle this pandemic better than how Ring of Honor's handled it. Between not firing anyone, hiring new people, keeping everyone safe, continuing to work... I said it in a video I posted the other day, they made the decision pretty early on to put people in front of their profits, and I think we're gonna look back at this time and look at the companies that did that and they're gonna get the recognition that they deserve. This is an unprecedented time were living in, and the companies that are putting philanthropy and putting good, you know, putting these good things into place and taking care of their employees when there's a pandemic, I think that should be talked about more."
Bennett would later comment that AEW has also handled the pandemic wonderfully. He wants people to be talking about the places that took care of their talent rather than those with a more laissez-faire attitude.
After working for ROH from 2008-2015, Bennett made stops in New Japan Pro Wrestling and IMPACT before debuting in WWE at Money in the Bank 2017. After a less-than-memorable run, Mike and his wife, Maria Kanellis, were released on April 15, 2020. He returned to ROH in November and is currently teaming with Matt Taven.
If you use any of the quotes above, please credit Spencer Love with a h/t and link back to Fightful for the transcription.
