I count on to get lots of hate

Ricochet has become the center of attention for the wrong reasons, as he has been under fire for his recent controversial comments. A former WWE veteran has just come to his defense.

The AEW star recently took his anger out on the fans after losing the National Championship to Jack Perry. He called out a fan and made a comment a little close to home, regarding the real-life health condition they were facing. This led to severe backlash from the fans, which even led to death threats against him and his wife, Samantha Irvin.

During a recent interview with TMZ’s Inside the Ring, Rob Van Dam was asked to give his take on the situation. He mentioned that, being in a similar situation before, he felt like the reaction was too overboard for the comment. He did not fully support Ricochet, but mentioned how the fans may have gone too far this time.

“Um, well, you guys know I have a history with the internet mark community. I think they went too far. I’m not saying I’ve got his back, but I think, you know, it’s like — is it really that much worse than telling someone to f*** off and die? Nobody would care if you said that, right? I just look at it from a different perspective. I’m not always on the side of the wrestlers, but I do see it differently than most people.”

He was fully aware that his take on the situation might upset people, but he did not back down on his words. RVD claimed that the former WWE Superstar may have been trying to get heat as a heel, and did not mean for this to be a personal attack.

“And I expect to get a lot of hate for saying that, but who cares? It’s freedom of speech. What a horrible thing to say — but come on. Why take it that seriously? And who even knows if he was just trying to get heat as a heel? I doubt he truly meant it. I think you should judge things by the intention behind the words.” [H/T RSN]

Another veteran has a different reaction to Ricochet’s situation

Several individuals have addressed this controversial situation, but unlike RVD, Eric Bischoff puts the blame solely on Ricochet.

While speaking on a recent episode of his 83 Weeks podcast, Bischoff claimed that the AEW star was doing a bad job of using social media to get his character over. He criticized him for his behavior, even calling him a “goof”.

“He’s just a goof. I know there are people saying, ‘Oh, he’s just playing a heel character,’ and his responses are because of the role he’s playing — I don’t think he is. To me, if he thinks he’s being creative and he’s using social media to get his character over, he’s really wrong. He’s not doing a good job of getting himself over on social media or otherwise. I just think he’s a goof,” said Bischoff. [H/T: Ringside News]

Ricochet has since then apologized for his comments, but the damage has already been done.