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“We Didn’t Speak Negatively”: Recently Released Star Buries the Hatchet on Having Legitimate Heat With LA Knight and Others Backstage

Published Sep 23, 2023 | 8:30 AM EDT

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During his initial days at SmackDown, LA Knight tried to reinvent his persona. Prior to being the LA Knight that we know and love, Shaun Ricker tried to reinvent himself under the ring name Max Dupri. While the Dupri era was shortlived, the star still managed to make a few on-screen connections, whether it be through stablemates or rivals.

Notable, Knight’s stablemates during this era were The Maximum Male Models tag team, Mace and Mansoor. With the two recently released from WWE, some have claimed that the duo spoke ill of Knight. However, one of the duo recently took to social media to clear the air.

Mansoor apologizes to LA Knight

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After their release from WWE, The Maximum Male Models went live on Twitch to discuss things with their fans. During the stream, the discussion drifted towards LA Knight. Knight’s character of Max Dupri acted as a manager to The Maximum Male Models. The duo decided to talk about their time with Dupri as their manager.

But some fans misinterpreted their words on the live stream. Word began to spread that post their firing, they were speaking ill of their former colleagues. To this Mansoor took to X (formerly Twitter) to clarify things. He addressed the rumors by saying, Also want to address some really bizarre and untrue claims about what was said on last night’s stream.” He then said, “We didn’t speak negatively of any former coworkers” implying there were no ill intentions behind what was said.

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He continued by saying, “We were always treated respectfully and got along with pretty much everyone except that conniving snake @maxxinedupri,” speaking about Knight’s kayfabe sister, Maxxine Dupri, who had betrayed the stable.

The stars were released along with numerous other stars on Friday. In their stream, Mace and Mansoor dropped a lot of hidden facts. This also included a few things regarding Max Dupri.

Mansoor on Max Dupri

Mace pointed out the fact that all three of them had started off together. They all were a part of the team. However, Knight has managed to up to the duo, even going on to have a main event match with The Miz at the WWE Payback this year. According to Mace, they both headed in the wrong direction. To this Mansoor added, he could have been fired by Vince McMahon but was eventually saved.

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Mansoor added that McMahon never liked Knight’s iteration of Dupri. Considering his physique, he was not the right fit for the character. According to Mansoor, he could have done a better Max Dupri. But he never got the chance to play it. In the end, Mansoor added that Knight took the best out of the situation. And when the time was right, he made his way in the right direction.

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With that being said, if Mansoor had done the role of Max Dupri, maybe it would have seen a different fate. What do you think about Dupri’s fate if Mansoor had played it?

Watch this story: Every WWE Superstar Who Attacked Vince McMahon

Written by:

Shaikh Aerajuddin

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Shaikh Aerajuddin is a WWE writer at EssentiallySports. With a Masters degree in Sports Science, Aeraj always carries a keen eye for detail and understands the various nuances of pro wrestling beyond the ring. Being a pro wrestling fan from his childhood, Aeraj now uses his analytical mind to tell a story in his articles for ES.
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Edited by:

Donna Eva