During WWE's Ruthless Aggression Era, Mr. Kennedy stood out as one of the best heel talkers in the promotion and quickly made waves by capturing the United States Championship and incorporating the Money in the Bank briefcase into his gimmick. However, his run with WWE was unfortunately brief and in 2009, he was released from the promotion.
Kennedy's last match with WWE took place on an episode of"Monday Night Raw" back inMay 2009, where he teamed up withBatista, Jerry Lawler, John Cena, and MVP in a successful clash against the team ofCody Rhodes, Randy Orton, Ted DiBiase Jr., The Big Show, and The Miz. While his team walked away with the win, Kennedy made the mistake of botching a move and dropping Orton in a dangerous position on the back of his neck. Naturally, Orton didn't take kindly to having his career put in jeopardy, and took the matter to Vince McMahon. Orton also allegedly got Cena to take his side in the altercation, calumniating to Kennedy's release a few days after.
While he was initially filled with animosity following his firing, Anderson has since made amends with Orton, and taken responsibility for his departure fromWWE. Earlier this year, Anderson even admitted that he would be open to working with WWE, even after purposely going the distance to burn bridges between him and the promotion. The veteran's attitude toward WWE has shifted dramatically in the years since his release, which he claims happened after he finally came to terms with his role in his WWE career failing while he made a name for himself in TNA.
