WWE: Concerns continue to grow over the Hurt Business booking

The Hurt Business was established back in June and grew to one of the most popular groups in the WWE, yet recent booking trends give fans pause over the group’s future.

The Hurt Business is one of the best things going on in professional wrestling. As COVID-19 shut down much of the industry, this group was formed in WWE and turned into a stable that fans were excited about. Sadly, the group has not been leveraged as the main event faction that they should. In fact, it seems like WWE is going in the opposite direction, hinting at a potential split in the faction. That would be a horrible decision if made, as the Hurt Business is a group that can be a force across the entire Raw roster.

Bobby Lashley loses to Matt Riddle after the referee misses Riddle tapping out to the Hurt Lock. Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander lose clean to the Lucha House Party after Alexander and Benjamin are caught arguing in the corner. Does this sound like effective booking for a four-man faction that holds multiple titles? The answer is “no,” always “no.”

The formation of the Hurt Business got off to a fantastic start as MVP did all the talking for Bobby Lashley as he was vaulted into the main event program with Drew McIntyre. McIntyre won and Lashley was jettisoned back to the mid-card. While names like Randy Orton, Dolph Ziggler, and others received shot after shot, Lashley got one, loss, and never again. The addition of Benjamin and Alexander built this group up as bullies that tormented people in the ring and both behind the scenes. The Hurt Business is giving off the type of vibes that match Evolution of even the Horsemen, sadly they are not booked in such a fashion.

All factions split. Look back across wrestling and nearly every single group has fallout at some point – other than the New Day. If WWE wanted to book the Hurt Business into a breakup angle after a solid run as a group, no problem. The Hurt Business opened its doors for business back in June. Alexander joined the group in September. They have held the tag team titles for 16 days so far. It is way too early to talk about these types of splits for a faction that fans love. It is even worse because once the split is complete all these men will be shuffled right back into the under-utilized groups of performers, spending weeks on Main Event or worse.

WWE has something in the Hurt Business that fans enjoy every time they are on television. Fans are rightfully concerned about the direction this group is heading. It is unfortunate but another example of how some wrestlers hit a glass ceiling that can never be broken through. The Hurt Business was one of the bright spots on weekly television and WWE seems to be determined to snuff out that light sooner, rather than later.