Former WWE star Jinder Mahal, aka Raj Dhesi, has discussed his exit from WWE and how he anticipated it.

Mahal was let go by the promotion for the second time in his career in 2024, and in a recent conversation on the “DJ Sanj Podcast,” he attributed his exit to new management as well as wrestling being a younger man’s sport.

“It was time to go, bro. On my end and theirs, like, I just wasn’t doing anything, bro. It’s a young man’s game, bro. It’s a younger generation. Management changes, bro. Everything changes. New management came, and some guys benefit, some guys don’t, just like any other company. I just wasn’t being used.”

While he didn’t expand on his thought, he said that the moment he shared with The Rock was a dream moment for him, but he knew then that he would be leaving WWE soon.  

“Like my first indication that I got to get going was I did the thing with Rock. It was huge. Big moment, bro. Killed it,” he said. “When you’re a performer, it’s a different type of pressure. You can’t view it as a fan.”

The former WWE star also revealed that he is winding down his in-ring career due to the numerous injuries that have taken a toll on his body, disclosing that he is set to undergo yet another knee surgery.

“So, actually, that’s one of the reasons, bro, I’m kind of winding down wrestling now. I have surgery coming up here. This will be my fifth surgery on this knee alone. I have pretty bad arthritis. But  I do a lot of rehab work. I maintain my body,” added the former WWE Champion.

Mahal has featured in the indie scene since his WWE release in 2024, and even filed a trademark for the name “The Maharaja” late last year, indicating that he may still have some plans in the pro wrestling world. 

Prior to his run with The Hurt Syndicate in AEW, MVP was closely associated with WWE for years, and spent time working there as a producer in addition to his onscreen role. Back in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, MVP took part in a feud with one of his co-stars that he now says had its origins in a bet he made backstage.

“The very-talented Apollo Crews was kind of floundering,” MVP said on “Marking Out.” “I remember meeting Apollo and working with him a little bit, and seeing [that] this guy’s got some skills, man. Great personality, impressive look. Short for the WWE universe, for Vince’s [desired] stature, but I saw something there.”

Someone who didn’t see Crews the same way was John Laurinaitis, the former producer whose WWE career ended when he was named in the Vince McMahon sex trafficking scandal. According to MVP, Laurinaitis didn’t think the company could do anything worthwhile with Crews, so MVP bet him a steak dinner that he could have a feud with Crews that gained traction with the WWE audience.

“I said, ‘You’re on. I bet you a steak dinner. Give me Apollo Crews, I bet I get something out of him,'” MVP continued. “So I talked to Apollo and I said, ‘Hey, man, I’m gonna tell you straight up. This is a conversation I had with Laurinaitis. They say ain’t nothing in you, you ain’t got it. I disagree.”

MVP gave Crews some tips as they were building out their feud, including to make his in-ring aggression more visceral so the viewers (and management) can see it in his performances. The former WWE star said that Crews took his advice, and it led to a successful program between the two. In the end, MVP said Laurinaitis bought him dinner, during which he chose an especially expensive steak.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Marking Out” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

WWE Hall of Famer Jimmy Valiant is set to step into the ring for the final time on Saturday, April 25, headlining an event titled “Boogie’s Last Dance” for NAWA Championship Wrestling in Lancaster, South Carolina. The bout will bring the curtain down on a remarkable career that began in 1964 and has stretched across seven decades.

At 83 years old, Valiant confirmed in a statement sent to wrestling media that this will mark his true farewell after decades of competing.

“Yes, this will be my final dance. I’ve retired before but this is truly my last dance,” he said. “I’m honored to hang up my boots after 62 years of wrestling pro. I had over 15,000 matches and drove 6 million miles on U.S. highways, plus flying getting to those matches.”

He added that he hopes to make one last memorable entrance, saying he wants to walk down the aisle to his theme “Boy From New York City” one final time, bringing his journey from 1964 to 2026 full circle.

NAWA promoter Michael Elliott praised the significance of the occasion, calling it a historic night for the promotion.

The event will take place at Buford High School in Lancaster, with doors opening at 6 PM and the first bell at 7 PM. Ticket prices have been set at $10 for general admission and $15 for front row seats, with the show open to fans of all ages. Valiant’s opponent has not yet been revealed.

Known to generations of fans as “The Boogie Woogie Man,” Valiant rose to prominence as one of wrestling’s most beloved babyfaces throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Alongside his storyline brother Johnny Valiant, he held the WWWF World Tag Team Championship for an impressive 370 days. Over the years, he shared the ring with legends such as André the Giant, Bruno Sammartino, Pedro Morales, Jerry Lawler, and Dusty Rhodes.

Valiant was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 1996 as part of a class that included Johnny Valiant, Vince McMahon Sr., Jimmy Snuka, and Killer Kowalski.

Throughout his career, he captured multiple championships, including the WWWF World Tag Team Championship, the NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Championship, and five AWA Southern Heavyweight Title reigns. His most recent match came in September 2023, when he competed in a six-man tag for NAWA at age 80.

While he previously had what was promoted as a retirement match in 2005 at WrestleReunion, teaming with Roddy Piper and Jimmy Snuka, Valiant returned to the ring in 2006 and continued making sporadic appearances for years. Outside the ring, he has remained active running a training school in West Virginia, where he has helped develop talent including Hangman Adam Page.

When he competes in April, Valiant will surpass Ric Flair in age at the time of a final match, as Flair was 73 during his widely publicized last bout in 2022.