During an appearance on Saraya’s “Rulebreakers” podcast, AEW’s Marina Shafir detailed a physical incident she had with an unnamed male former AEW co-worker at a gym.
“I was in the gym and I do my warm-up on the treadmill… Somebody I used to work with hopped onto the treadmill next to me, tried to copy my workout. When he went to go backwards, slips, takes a back bump into the ****ing treadmill. I stopped my ****ing treadmill and I’m like, ‘Are you good?’ He’s like, ‘Oh yeah, I definitely can’t be doing that.’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, man, just don’t do that.’”
Shafir explained that the situation escalated later while she was stretching.
“So I go into this other room to do my mobility and I’m just leaning against the wall and all of the sudden, I get shoved from behind. I’m taking a sip of my water bottle, it wasn’t a soft shove, I felt like I just got tackled. My water bottle hits the wall, cuts me in the gums, like my gum is bleeding. Water is just everywhere. I just pause for a second and I turn around, he’s just standing over me like, ‘Come on, come on.’ He’s being ‘playful,’ I did not invite that. I had my ****ing headphones in and I’m minding my own ****ing business… I just went from Marina in reality to Marina seeing red… I got up, I stood southpaw just to fuck with him. I faked a ing left, took a big step and just hooked the fuck out of his chin. He goes to shoot for a double, I stuffed that motherer. Grabbed him from the front face lock, chucked him. He tried to pop up for a double and I stuffed it again. My headphones pop out and the last thing I remember saying is, ‘I will ****ing take your money, don’t ever ****ing touch me ever again.’”
She then described the immediate aftermath.
“As soon as my headphones popped out… I just stood up and I was like, ‘Oh my god.’ I’m like, ‘Dude, you can’t put your hands on me like that, I don’t know you like that.’ I understand we have people that we know that we have in common, but you can’t put your hands on me, I’m never available for that s–t.’ As he stood up, he’s ****ing bleeding. I go over to grab a towel and I’m like, ‘I’m so sorry.’ He’s like, ‘Oh, it’s okay, my lips are chapped.’ I just couldn’t believe that just happened. I was so shaken up. But that’s the thing, when you’re nice and you’re professional, people take that as a ****ing invitation and I had to literally draw the line.”
H/T to Fightful for the transcription
