A WWE legend recently shared his thoughts on the controversial segment involving MJF and Juice Robinson on a recent episode of AEW Dynamite.
The segment in question saw Robinson threaten to knock out the current World Champion with a roll of quarters, a reference to Friedman's self-told history of being bullied due to his Jewish heritage.
The angle has faced tons of backlash for exhibiting anti-semitic tones during a period in time of significant conflict in the Middle East. MJF defended the storyline on X, saying that this is his story to tell.
Speaking on his 83 Weeks podcast, WWE Hall of Famer Eric Bischoff expressed his respect and admiration for Friedman but also said that the segment was a lapse in judgment:
“There’s a time and a place and appropriateness. And the judgment, however honest the intentions – and I do believe they are honest, I don’t think this is, like, a ‘cover your ass’ tweet from MJF. I absolutely believe in his heart, he is as sincere as he can be. That doesn’t mean that the judgment was correct. And that the timing associated with it was right.” [01:56 - 02:25]
Did MJF and Juice Robinson cross the line?
"We're on the brink of World War III," Eric Bischoff stated about the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, attempting to relay the magnitude of the situation. The former WWE personality added that professional wrestling should not be the platform to showcase such issues:
“Professional wrestling is a form of entertainment. It’s over-the-top entertainment. It sometimes makes fun of its own lack of credibility. It is not a documentary. It’s not, in my opinion, the format to engage with something as serious and unprecedented as we’re seeing right now. And to use that as the premise for a professional wrestling storyline.” [02:38 - 03:10]
MJF is set to defend his AEW World Championship against Bullet Club Gold's Jay White at Full Gear on November 18.