Rob Van Dam was able to achieve massive success during his time with WWE as he won numerous championships including the WWE Title. He also got to share the locker room with some of the best wrestlers in the world at the time such as Chris Benoit.
When Rob Van Dam’s contract expired in 2007 he decided to part ways with World Wrestling Entertainment, and during an appearance on the Cafe De Rene podcast he noted that Chris Benoit let him know that many of his peers respected his decision.
“In 2006 or 2007, whenever it was the same situation, but at this time, he said, ‘Rob, I heard you were leaving.’ I said, ‘Yeah when my contract’s up, I’m not going to re-sign. He goes, ‘Hey, a lot of us respect you for that, man.’ I said, ‘Okay, I’m not saying I’m never going to come back.’ Hey, it doesn’t matter! You know when it’s right to leave; a lot of us don’t know that. So we respect you for that, so good on you.”
“I was like, ‘Okay.’ And I brought up, ‘Chris, do you remember, in WCW, you told me, you know, you thought I was stupid for leaving.’ He was like, ‘Well, f*** that, what did I know? Look at you. I was like, ‘Okay, vindicated.’ That’s my Chris Benoit story.”
Rob Van Dam did eventually return to WWE for another run in 2013 which he finished up the following year in 2014. He later went on to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of the 2021 class.
H/T Sportskeeda
