Former WWE star Val Venis has shared a story from his early days in the company involving a training match with Ahmed Johnson that never went as planned.
Speaking in a 2023 interview with Wrestling Shoot Interviews, Val Venis recalled taking part in a WWE training camp before the Val Venis character had been created. During the session, he was booked for an eight-minute training match with Johnson, but said Johnson refused to lose, believing it would reflect badly on him due to his prior appearances on WWE television.
According to Venis, the situation unfolded in front of Pat Patterson, who spoke privately with Johnson before returning with the message that Johnson would not agree to the finish.
“But Pat Patterson was there and they said, ‘Okay, it’s gonna be Sean and Ahmed Johnson.’ He said, ‘Give me eight minutes’ or something like that. And Pat Patterson pointed me he goes, ‘You’re up’ and pointed to Ahmed and said, ‘You’re down, give me eight minutes.’
And Ahmed Johnson put his arm around Pat Patterson and kind of walked off a little bit. And a few minutes later, Pat Patterson comes up and he goes ‘He doesn’t think it’s a good idea that you should hit him with a splash and beat him. Because you haven’t had any WWF TV.’”
Venis said he was stunned by the decision, noting that the match was not being televised, recorded, or performed in front of a live audience. Venis said he could not understand the concern, as the match was taking place in a closed training environment intended solely for evaluation purposes. He recalled questioning the logic of the refusal, given there were no fans present and no cameras recording the bout.
“And I looked at Pat in disbelief. ‘We’re in a friggin television studio performing for you.’ And he goes, ‘I’m just saying.’ He turned around and walked away. I couldn’t believe it. I mean, there’s no fans there. It’s not like it’s getting recorded. It’s literally just a show, right?”
What Is Val Venis Doing Now?
Since stepping away from full-time wrestling, Val Venis has largely remained out of the ring and focused on ventures outside the industry. He has been involved in cannabis-related business projects, hosts podcasts and interviews discussing wrestling and current topics, and makes occasional media appearances reflecting on his career.
Venis no longer wrestles regularly and has not been affiliated with a major promotion in recent years. His last match took place at the ISPW Rock N’ Wrestling event on May 6, 2023, where he was defeated in a match against Danny Doring.
