Vince McMahon made resigned from WWE in July. The 77-year-old made the announcement on Twitter as the company launched an investigation into alleged hush money payments to former female employees. John Laurinaitis was also involved in the scandal and was dismissed as the company’s EVP of Talent Relations.
Following Vince McMahon’s departure, Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan were named co-CEOs. Triple H took over as EVP of Talent Relations and was also given the title of Chief Content Officer. The reported sentiment backstage within WWE is that it would be a step back for the company if the former CEO were to return.
Michael Cole joined his SmackDown commentary partner Pat McAfee on his show today. McAfee is currently not on the SmackDown broadcast after signing a full-time deal with ESPN for College Gameday. He presumably will return to the blue brand after the college football season.
Speaking on the Pat McAfee show, Michael Cole said that everything has been great following Vince’s exit and the show must go on.
Everything has been great. It’s been a great change of scenery the past couple of months. Things are going wonderfully. Ratings have been good, stories have been great, it’s a different world.
I worked under Vince for 25 years and I knew nothing else. He’s a second dad in many ways, I grew up in the company. It was a shock when it first happened and we’ve all settled in and realized the show must go on. The show is going on and we’re doing well.
WWE superstar Natalya thinks we will see the all-women’s Pay-Per-View Evolution again under the leadership of Stephanie McMahon.
Wrestling fans have wanted to see WWE hold another Evolution event since its inaugural PPV in 2018. Although fans have shown interest in another all-women’s PPV, WWE hasn’t shown any signs of doing it again. However, Natalya is optimistic fans may see it return now that McMahon has taken over the company after her father retired.
In an interview with Faction 919’s Darren Stone, Natalya shared she does think Evolution PPV will return and her reason why.
“I definitely see Stephanie wanting to do more with women’s wrestling,” said Natalya. “Stephanie always wanted women to have more representation. She doesn’t want a show where it’s like, okay, we have 75 percent male matches, and we’ve got 25 percent women’s matches. She wants a show where it’s half men and half women. She wants equality for the women in WWE.”
Triple H & Stephanie McMahon’s Leadership
Natalya believes that WWE’s future is bright under the leadership of McMahon and Triple H. She shared that both McMahon and Triple H’s thoughts on women wrestling could bring more opportunities for more female wrestlers in the company.
“One of the first things I thought about all these new changes, especially with Stephanie, is that Stephanie and Triple H, they really care about women’s wrestling, and you know the thing is that when you’re in that position of authority, you’re never going to please everyone,” said Natalya.
(WWE)
She continued, “…I know how hard that was for Vince McMahon because we wouldn’t have had any of this without Vince and so I always expressed so much gratitude to Vince because we wouldn’t have this company with to do our work and I wouldn’t have the dreams that I have without Vince McMahon having allowed those dreams come true because he built all this.”
Although Natalya expressed gratitude to the former chairman, she is looking forward to the new changes. She also shared in the interview that she hopes to have an opportunity to win the Raw Women’s Championship and become a Grand Slam Champion.
The future of WWE does look promising, but it’s unclear if that means we will see an all-women’s PPV again. Although, WWE superstars like Natalya are optimistic that fans will get to see the event make its return.
Could Vince McMahon return to WWE now that the investigation into him is over? Don’t bet on it.
In June, it was reported that McMahon had paid a total $12 million in NDA pay outs to female employees who it is alleged he had extramarital affairs with.
After an investigation into the matter was set up, McMahon retired from all roles with WWE in July with his role as Chair of the company going to Stephanie McMahon.
As part of the filing, it was said that “Mr. McMahon can effectively exercise control over our affairs,” leaving some to speculate on a return.
That isn’t the case, as a spokesperson from WWE who spoke to Fightful Select said that McMahon is “done, done” with the promotion.
Another WWE higher-up said that the morale in WWE post-McMahon has been the highest they’ve seen it in over a decade that they’ve been around.
Another longtime WWE employee said that rehiring the former Chairman would be a major step backward, and that the company’s success since his retirement proves it.
Still Paying
McMahon is alleged to have paid a total $12 million across 16 years to women it is reported he slept with to keep hush-hush about what happened.
In their statement on the matter, WWE disclosed that the investigation into the allegations totaled an estimated $19.4 million.
McMahon, who has a net worth of $2.7 billion, has agreed to pay the costs of the investigation.
WWE announced today in its third quarter 2022 earnings report that the investigation into alleged misconduct by Vince McMahon “is now complete, and the Special Committee has been disbanded.”
McMahon resigned from his duties as Chairman and CEO of WWE amid the WWE Board investigating him for alleged sexual misconduct and hush money. The investigation cost WWE $19.4 million.
WWE’s Statement
“As previously announced, a Special Committee of independent members of the Board of Directors was formed to investigate alleged misconduct by Vincent K. McMahon, the Company’s former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, who resigned from all positions held with the Company on July 22, 2022 but remains a stockholder with a controlling interest, and another executive, who is also no longer with the Company. The Special Committee investigation is now complete and the Special Committee has been disbanded. Management is working with the Board to implement the recommendations of the Special Committee related to the investigation. For the three and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2022, the Company’s consolidated pre-tax results include the impact of $17.7 million and $19.4 million, respectively, associated with certain costs related to the investigation. Please see the Company’s SEC filings, including, but not limited to, its annual report on Form 10-K/A and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q/A and Form 10-Q for further details and ongoing risks regarding this matter.”
The Wall Street Journal broke the news earlier this year about the WWE Board of Directors investigating McMahon over a $3 million settlement that McMahon had agreed to pay a former employee with whom he allegedly had an affair. McMahon allegedly paid them more than $12 million to four women formerly with the company to “suppress allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity.” WWE later found more payments that were made.
McMahon resigned from WWE as Chairman and CEO. Since Vince’s resignation, Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan have been named co-CEOs, while Triple H has been named Head of Creative.
WWE says the investigation into alleged misconduct by Vince McMahon "is now complete and the Special Committee has been disbanded."
The investigation cost WWE $19.4M. My reading is that that's separate from the $19.6M in previously unrecorded payments made by Vince McMahon. pic.twitter.com/YewJQxQxBE
Another one of Vince McMahon’s rules has seemingly been scrapped, judging by what happened on last night’s Monday Night Raw.
McMahon retired from all roles with WWE in July, following allegations of misconduct with female employees.
The 77-year-old billionaire is alleged to have paid millions in non-disclosure agreements to multiple women who have worked for WWE.
Scrapping the Rule
During last night’s Raw, the main event saw Alexa Bliss and Asuka win the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship from Damage CTRL.
Before the match begun, referee Shawn Bennett was mentioned by name, something that was banned under the previous regime.
McMahon infamously banned the use of referee names years before his retirement, after hearing a name he did not recognise during a WWE Live event.
Speaking on Talk is Jericho in 2020, former WWE official Mike Chioda explained how McMahon made his decision.
“He was like, ‘Who is this? Whose name is this?’ And they said, ‘Oh it’s the referee.’ He goes, ‘Goddammit, I am done hearing the referee’s name. I don’t want to hear the referee’s name no more.”
The win this week marks the third Women’s Tag Titles for Bliss and Asuka, albeit with different partners.
Asuka now holds the record for the most tag partners, having won the titles with Kairi Sane, Charlotte Flair, and now Bliss.
More Changes
WWE has undergone several changes since McMahon’s retirement, including ending some of his long-standing rules.
Not long after his departure, WWE began using the term Hospital again, while McMahon had preferred the vague ‘Local Medical Facility.’
According to former WWE head-writer Brian Gewirtz, Vince McMahon once declared a WWE Superstar had picked the “worst name” he had ever heard. McMahon made his disdain for former Superstar Al Snow known during a conversation with Gewirtz many years ago.
First arriving to WWE in 1998, Al Snow widely made himself known for carrying around a mannequin head named “Head.” Amidst his run, Snow notably captured the European Championship, and acquired six Hardcore Championship reigns. In addition, he created a strong bond with writer, Brian Gewirtz — who went on to develop multiple creative pitches for Snow’s on-screen character.
Then WWE Chairmen Vince McMahon was not a fan of those repeated pitches, as Gewirtz recently revealed on Notsam Wrestling. Gewirtz said he fell into a common “trap” of “becoming friends with wrestlers too quickly,” that ultimately lead an outburst by Vince McMahon.
“There’s no name in professional wrestling worse than Al Snow.”
Vince McMahon
“In my case, I’m buddying up with Al Snow. I hit it off with him when we were shooting these vignettes with him and Steve Blackman back in the day. Al’s a great guy and he’s very funny and personable. I would push Al and Al Snow matches to the point of being very detrimental to Al himself because it’s like, ‘Oh, this fucking guy and his Al Snow obsession’ to the point where it was just like, ‘would you please stop pitching Al Snow?’
“I think the fact that I was pitching Al Snow so much probably, somewhere in Vince’s head as we were making a drive in the Carolinas, I think was like, ‘what is this guy’s obsession with Al Snow? Al Snow, [it’s a] stupid name anyway.’ Then just blurting out loud after the conversation about Al that ended 20 minutes ago, [he said] ‘there’s no name in professional wrestling worse than Al Snow.’”
I was like boy, ‘I have done a disservice to this person I’m trying to help,'” Gewirtz recalled.
Creative Pitches
Gewirtz continued on to discuss some of the ideas he initially pitched for Snow when he came on board as a writer:
“Al Snow, basically, he still had the ‘What Does Everybody Want?’ theme music and everything. But when I started, ‘Head’ was still part of his gimmick, but we were trying to do other things with him. That’s why the stuff with Steve Blackman, Head Cheese [happened]. I pitched the idea of him coming out in a different European outfit every time he was defending the [WWE] European title.
“Again, just to make it entertaining, it’s like a cold match between Al Snow and Viscera, let’s say, on SmackDown. ‘Well, what can we do?’Well, what if Al is celebrating Luxembourg because he is European Champion, All right. Then we like, ‘let’s get all these props and magic and let’s have them come out in lederhosen one day’ and all this type of thing. And Al always played it to the hill perfectly. In the midst of accidentally torpedoing his ending with Vince, that we could actually sneak in some good stuff along the way.”
Shawn Michaels had the chance to work for Vince McMahon as both an in-ring wrestler and someone working in creative in WWE.
That all changed when McMahon resigned from his duties as Chairman and CEO of WWE amid the WWE Board investigating him for alleged sexual misconduct and hush money.
WWE later confirmed that from 2006 through 2022 (including amounts paid and payable in the future totaling $14.6 million), funds were not appropriately recorded as expenses in the Company’s Consolidated Financial Statements.
Also, WWE identified two additional payments totaling $5.0 million, unrelated to the alleged misconduct by McMahon that led to the investigation from 2007 and 2009, that were not appropriately recorded as expenses in the Company’s Consolidated Financial Statements.
Shawn Michaels on Vince McMahon’s Departure
While speaking on The MMA Hour about NXT, where he oversees creative for the brand, Michaels was asked if he ever envisioned a day that McMahon would not be running WWE:
“No. You can talk about it, but I never envisioned the time when Vince wasn’t there running stuff. All of us who have known him and worked with him for as long as we have, everyone knows, and I mean this lovingly, but he wanted to pass at his desk. That’s who he is. That’s how he’s built. I had every reason to believe that’s exactly what he was going to do. He always made jokes that, ‘If I die at Gorilla position, the show has to go on. Don’t move me. We got to get to seg 10 and 11 and finish the show.” You can talk about it, again, there’s lots of big talk in our line of work, but very rarely you see it get delivered on, but he’s always done what he’s felt was best for business.”
Following Vince’s departure, Triple H took over creative for the main roster while Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan were named co-CEOs.
Vince McMahon will be featured in a VICE TV documentary soon, but fans will need to wait a bit longer before seeing it.
Initially, the project was expected to be aired in October. It’s currently titled “The Nine Lives of Vince McMahon.” The expected air date was planned for October 18 from 8-10 PM ET.
However, F4WOnline reports that VICE is now listing repeats of the first two episodes of “Tales from the Territories” for that slot instead.
It’s unknown when the McMahon documentary will now air, but it’s also expected to be on a Tuesday as well.
The documentary couldn’t come at a more perfect time. McMahon was forced to retire from his position with WWE amidst the ongoing sexual misconduct scandal surrounding him.
(via WWE)
McMahon initially stepped down as CEO of WWE amidst the allegations, with Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan stepping in as co-CEOs to fill the void.
Soon after, McMahon retired as head of creative with WWE, passing the reigns to Triple H. Now, McMahon is fully retired from involvement with WWE, ending a legendary run that resulted in the creation of the largest professional wrestling promotion the world has ever seen.
The Rock is staying busy building his various brands and being a leading man in Hollywood, but the former WWE Champion still pays attention to the company he helped grow.
The Rock has acknowledged The Tribal Chief – Roman Reigns – and recently praised the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion and The Usos. He has seen what his cousins have been able to accomplish and is proud of their success as part of The Bloodline.
While speaking with Chris Van Vliet, The Rock was asked if he acknowledges his Tribal Chief. He also spoke about the unexpected shift in the company with Vince McMahon resigning, Stephanie McMahon, and Rock’s good friend Nick Khan taking over as co-CEOs while Triple H is in charge of creative.
“Of course I do. That’s my family. I think those guys are doing a great job, and I think what an interesting shift the company has gone through this year. Unexpected in many ways, but when unexpectations happen in that kind of way, form, and fashion, especially in that business, you’ve got to have the ability and the agility to pivot, which they have. With Roman, I think he’s doing a pretty good job, and the boys, too, The Usos.”
WWE reportedly wants to have The Rock return to do a match with Reigns at WrestleMania 39 in Los Angeles, but it all comes down to The Rock’s schedule.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit with an h/t toSEScoops for the transcription.
WWE has undergone massive changes this year at the top of the company. Vince McMahon resigned via Twitter due to an investigation into hush money payments made to female employees. Former EVP of Talent Relations was also dismissed due to the scandal.
Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan took over as co-CEOs for the company. Triple H replaced John Laurinaitis as the EVP of Talent Relations and also took over creative responsibilities for WWE as “Chief Content Officer.
WWE has officially elevated Triple H to Chief Content Officer of the company.
As chief content officer, he will now oversee creative writing, talent relations, live events, talent development and creative services.
Seth Rollins was interviewed by Ariel Helwani of BT Sport this week. During the conversation, Seth was asked about former WWE CEO Vince McMahon and his reaction to the 77-year-old’s resignation from the company in late July.
Seth revealed that he and his wife, WWE Superstar Becky Lynch, found out in the airport at the same time and were shocked at the news.
“I was just, I couldn’t believe it. It is one of those things that you will never forget. I was in the airport, we were heading out to a live event. We were flying out on a Friday. The thing went out at like three o’clock central and so I got the text. I was coming through the security line and I got the text ‘check your app for a note from the chairman’.
I click it and sure enough, he just was retired. I was like (shocked face), and Becky (Lynch) was with Rue looking at a statue of a deer in the airport in Iowa. She was looking at the deer statue and I was like, she just saw my face from a distance and she’s like ‘what’s wrong?’.
I’m like, ‘did you get the text?’ and she’s like ‘no, what?’. I had her look at it and she was like ‘oh my God.’ I think both of us were just like ‘what?’. I always thought, you know Vince is older, so I thought at some point in my tenure in WWE as I intend to be here for quite a long time, he would retire, be forced out, die on the job, who knows.”
At 77, time for me to retire. Thank you, WWE Universe. Then. Now. Forever. Together. #WWE#thankful
Rollins added that he was emotional after learning Vince was exiting the company because it felt like he was losing a friend and a mentor.
But when it happened, it was so abrupt, I was not prepared. Emotionally, it got me emotional because I love Vince. He’s been like a father figure to me over the past ten years. He’s someone that his approval means a lot to me.
So I kind of was just like wow, is that the last time I’m ever going to see Vince? Am I ever going to see him again?
When you have such a close relationship with someone, ups and downs, it just felt like I was losing a friend, and losing a mentor. I didn’t know whether to be excited or not. It kind of felt inappropriate to be excited about something like that.
Jim Ross signed plenty of big names to WWE during his tenure as the promotion’s Head of Talent Relations, but not everyone was to Vince McMahon’s liking.
JR was appointed Head of Talent in 1997, with a Wrestling Observer Newsletter report at the time calling him the most powerful man in the then-WWF not named McMahon.
Signing the Legend Killer
It was during JR’s tenure as Head of Talent that Randy Orton was signed, the second-ever third-generation WWE Superstar (after The Rock.)
Speaking on this week’s ‘Grillin’ JR’ podcast, Ross spoke about the future World Champion, and how Vince McMahon opposed the idea.
“When Vince found out that Randy Orton was court-martialled, he didn’t want me to hire him. I resisted with good reasons. I said ‘look Vince, everybody deserves a second chance. How many chances have you gotten?’ I’ve gotten plenty and I’m thankful for them.”
” I said ‘look Vince, everybody deserves a second chance. How many chances have you gotten?'”
Jim Ross on defending the hiring of Randy Orton.
Orton would be signed in 2001 and would debut on WWE SmackDown the following year.
The OVW Class
Orton was just part of the esteemed Ohio Valley Wrestling class, which included John Cena, Batista and Brock Lesnar.
Speaking about Cena, arguably the most successful man in the group, JR said that he gave the future Hollywood megastar a chance despite McMahon having no interest in him.
“I hired so many guys that Vince [McMahon] had never heard of. Never seen. He didn’t know who the hell John Cena was.
“He [Cena] wasn’t on the mainstream working in Hollywood. He was working two or three jobs and he was learning to wrestle.”
JR reflected on his tenure as Head of Talent, and highlighted the huge names he would sign to WWE.
“It was a fun job, and we left our mark. Our administration left our mark on the company that’s still being felt today.”
Head of Talent Relations
In 2001, Jim Ross would be replaced as WWE’s Head of Talent Relations by John Laurinaitis, who was fired by WWE earlier this year.
In his absence, WWE has appointed Triple H to the role, in addition to appointing him Head of WWE Creative.
Speaking about the Game, Jim Ross had high praise for the man who once terrorized him on-screen.
“We didn’t have the staff that they utilize now. And I think that’s important for those guys, that you’ve got a leader that understands the business thoroughly in Triple H. And that’s what you’ve got to have.”
“You’ve got a leader that understands the business thoroughly in Triple H.”
Jim Ross on WWE’s new Head of Talent Relations.
“The lead decision maker has got to have product knowledge. I still think and this may be naive, but I believe that you still need to be a fan.”
For use of these quotes please give a h/t to SEScoops.
Kurt Angle recently revealed that he hasn’t been able to get in contact with former WWE CEO Vince McMahon.
Vince resigned from the company on July 22nd after alleged “hush money” payments to former female employees were discovered by the company’s board of directors. He made a couple of appearances before retiring.
Mr. McMahon introduced John Cena for his 20th Anniversary Celebration on the June 20th edition of RAW and retired from the company less than a month later. The 77-year-old announced his retirement on Twitter. He made his first public appearance to celebrate his birthday recently. John Cena, Pat McAfee, and other WWE talent attended the event in NYC.
Vince McMahon celebrated his 77th birthday yesterday with John Cena in New York City. pic.twitter.com/hR8rqtmNo8
Kurt Angle On Trying To Get In Contact With Vince McMahon
WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle was interviewed by AJ Singh on “The Wrassingh Show” and spoke about Vince McMahon. Kurt revealed that WWE had taken away the 77-year-old’s company phone and he has no way of getting in contact with him.
Angle added that he spoke to Stephane McMahon a couple of weeks ago and she told him that Vince would get in touch with him but that hasn’t happened yet.
“I just talked to Stephanie (McMahon) a couple of weeks ago because I couldn’t get a hold of Vince anymore. I’d imagine that he had to turn in his company phone and that was the only way I could get a hold of him. I had his number and I would call him here and there. I’d talk to him and see how he was doing and I texted him a couple of times after he left and he never responded.
I found out that they did take the company phone from him, so I don’t have any way of getting a hold of him. But Stephanie told me she would talk to Vince and he would reach out to me. I’m still waiting though.”
Kurt Angle on trying to get in contact with Vince McMahon
Shawn Michaels may have worked with Vince McMahon for decades, but the relationship between the two wasn’t always friendly.
During the mid and late 1990s, Michaels, by his own admission, was battling personal demons, which would be a factor in his four-year retirement from wrestling.
Although Michaels would eventually return to WWE after finding God, the Heart Break Kid’s reputation as difficult to work is still remembered years later.
Traveling
During the New Generation era, the WWF tried to maintain ‘kayfabe’ by keeping heels and baby faces apart at all times, in case fans spotted them outside of an event.
For many wrestlers, that meant keeping away from their closest friends, which Shawn Michaels was not ready to do.
Speaking on the ‘Kliq THIS’ podcast, Kevin Nash recalled Michaels exploding on then WWF head Vince McMahon, who quickly backed down.
“They told Shawn[Michaels] that Scott [Hall] couldn’t ride with us, because they were working the matches together. And Shawn, I mean just zero to one hundred went to ‘Mother f***er! You got me on the road 300 days a year and you’re going to tell me who I can spend my time with?!’
“And Vince just went like [raises hands] ‘Woah. I didn’t realize it was that. Okay. If it’s that much of a deal to you three, jeez. Do what you want to do.'”
When asked why McMahon, traditionally someone who had things done his way, was so quick to back down, Nash said that the quality of the Michaels-Hall feud gave them leverage.
“The match was so good. What are they going to do?”
Kevin Nash on Vince McMahon not punishing Shawn Michaels and Scott Hall.
To the Club
It wasn’t just travel arrangements that McMahon tried to have control over, as Nash also had his share of demands from the then-Chairman of the company.
Speaking about his own experiences with Vince, Nash recalled he and The Undertaker being told to keep out of strip clubs as they were babyfaces, and McMahon believed that a face wouldn’t visit such an establishment.
“Me and ‘Taker got called into the office. Principal McMahon told me and ‘Taker that he didn’t want to see us or hear of us being in any strip clubs. He said it wasn’t a good image for Mark [Calaway] and I because we were both babyfaces at the time.”
Despite the strong warning by McMahon, both men defied the order and had a reunion at a club.
“I look straight across from me in the room, I see this long flicking hair, I see a bandana. I look over and I f**king just see ‘Taker. We’re not gonna sit with each other, we’re just like, ‘Oh, so you didn’t listen either.’ It was just acknowledged, like, ‘F**k that, right, man?’”
Kayfabe
With wrestlers appearing regularly out of character on social media, many have argued that ‘kayfabe’ is dead in the modern day.
Addressing the idea, Nash recalled finding out that wrestling isn’t as legitimate as it is portrayed on TV, and whether kayfabe can still exist.
“I knew this sh*t was a work when I was ten. Don’t have a boom mic when you’re doing the shot. I say ‘oh! Boom mic. I’m watching a movie. Oh, he hit him 45 times in the face, and there’s no blood.’
“You’re selling the disbelief that these two guys are going out there and trying to beat each other’s ass. You can tell when you have the people. When you have a hot angle and you have the people and you work stiff.
“You can say what you want about Bill Goldberg but when he was on his streak… people sat up.”
The former WWF Champion also claimed that Edge Vs. Dominik Mysterio on last week’s Raw was able to “hook me in” with how aggressive Edge was following the latter’s heel turn at Clash at the Castle.
For use of any quotes from this article please give a h/t to SEScoops.
Dave Meltzer confirmed initial rumblings that have been going around about WWE planning something special for McMahon during WrestleMania next year. The story was first reported by The US Sun this past weekend.
The report suggests that current WWE co-CEO/Chairwoman Stephanie McMahon is in the midst of those discussions. It also notes that Vince may not be fully done with the company yet, as WWE is looking at ways to pay tribute to him.
While the report did admit WWE knows there could be some backlash, it’s said that what he’s down for the industry can not be underestimated. There have also reportedly been talks of McMahon being honored at the WWE Hall Of Fame.
This would certainly be interesting, as Vince McMahon never likes to appear on-camera at the WWE Hall Of Fame ceremonies, but only made the exception to induct The Undertaker.
There aren’t any plans set in stone at the moment, but the discussions do seem to be ongoing. Meltzer noted he has heard rumblings of something like this for weeks but has not received official confirmation.
He did add in himself that it makes sense and would be something that he’s expecting.
A couple months ago the pro-wrestling world was shocked to learn that Vince McMahon had decided to retire as the chairman of WWE, a move that many never thought would happen as McMahon’s impact on the industry had been felt dating back four decades.
In his place his son-in-law, WWE legend and former 14-time world champion Triple H had taken over as head of the creative division. The Game had shown his skill for booking in NXT over the years, with the “developmental” brand and their bi-monthly Takeover events being considered the most “can’t miss” shows under the WWE banner.
Since taking over Triple H has brought back a number of previously released talents, including Braun Strowan, IYO Sky, Dakota Kai, Karrion Kross, Scarlett, Hit Row, Johnny Gargano, and Dexter Lumis. There have also been reports that he is in talks with Bray Wyatt, but the Eater of Worlds has yet to make his WWE return.
A new report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter has revealed that Triple H is actually planning more surprises for WWE, ones that are apparently not being talked about in the wrestling community. It was noted that this was regarding more talents coming in, but that doesn’t mean it couldn’t also be surprises business-wise.
One surprise that shocked fans this week was seeing NXT 2.0 tease a return to their old Black and Gold persona. 2.0 had become a much more colorful show since the brand got a remake last year. Stay tuned.
AEW star Claudio Castagnoli thinks Vince McMahon’s criticisms of his charisma during his WWE days were wrong.
Back in 2014, Vince McMahon was a guest on WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin’s podcast. During the podcast, McMahon talked on a number of big topics.
Two of the biggest stories that came out of that interview, where the firing of CM Punk, and some criticism McMahon had about Cesaro, now known as Claudio Castagnoli.
McMahon noted that he felt Cesaro was lacking charisma, verbal skills, and a connection with the audience. Many seemed to disagree with McMahon, including Castagnoli himself.
“I thought he was wrong. Yeah, I feel that charisma comes in very different forms, shapes and sizes. Not everybody has that over-the-top Ultimate Warrior shaking the ropes and running around crazy, yelling and screaming charisma.
“Not that I’m sitting here telling you all how awesome my charisma is, but I felt like I had a connection with the fans, with the WWE Universe, whatever you want to call it, in the United States and all over the world.
“While other people were known for long promos that get translated into many other languages and doesn’t necessarily come across, mine was about the in-ring work and people can connect with that. It may take a bit longer, but I did connect with the fans and they were behind me.
“I don’t know if that was not what he was looking for, but the end effect brought me here and you get to see that.”
Castagnoli ran with WWE from 2011 to 2022. During that time, he had one run with the United States Title, five as RAW Tag Team Champion, and two as SmackDown Tag Team Champion. He also won the 2014 Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
Sadly, he never got the opportunity to hold a singles World Title despite many fans supporting him for such a push. Castagnoli would then debut with AEW in June of this year, and currently reigns as the Ring Of Honor (ROH) World Heavyweight Champion.
Many fans have noticed the changes to the product now that Vince McMahon is gone from the company and Triple H is in charge of creative. There have also been changes made behind the scenes in the company.
PWInsider reports that the management (Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan serving as co-CEOs) change has energized the locker room and the production team. The energy at WWE Headquarters in Stamford is said to be much better for a very different reason.
Working Under Vince McMahon
When Vince was in charge, people had to walk on eggshells and there was always a fear that if you put your personal life before the company then you may be expendable because Vince lived and breathed WWE every day and his work hours were insane. As a result, Vince expected employees to work those same hours.
With the new management team, the level of stress has decreased, and people no longer feel guilty about leaving work at a normal hour. The work/life balance is said to be much better these days.
Also, the feeling of keeping your head down that people had when Vince was around is no longer there. They also feel they can converse with management if they run into them, unlike when Vince was in charge.
One staffer noted that people “knew running into Vince was like running into the T-Rex from Jurassic Park. You didn’t want to call attention to yourself.”
Regarding the creative team, there is no longer the feeling that everyone must “hurry up to wait” for hours so Vince can finish his meetings.
Meetings in the company are said to be more streamlined and regimented and the feeling is by not wasting so much time, there is less worry about being “worn out by the grind.”
Triple H has scrapped two longstanding Vince McMahon edicts.
It’s “The Game’s” show now, and he’s certainly making his presence felt. Wrestling Observer Newsletter reports that Triple H first has done away with the notion that, in a tag team match, the illegal man can only attack a legal competitor in the ring when the referee is done.
The long running Vince McMahon rule stated that WWE producers have been told for years that an illegal competitor can’t successfully attack a legal competitor in a match without it being a DQ.
You can get away with doing the five-second double team spot, however, if it’s a straight up attack on the legal competitor from the illegal one, the referee had to be down. That is no longer the case.
The second rule “The Game” has done away with has been banned by McMahon for years, but was a staple in major matches during the Attitude Era.
(BT Sport)
There was a pin spot where the babyface of the match would look like they had the match won, but someone would pull the referee out of the ring from outside to kill the count.
Vince McMahon reportedly banned the spot because “it makes no sense.” However, as Dave Meltzer points out, nothing in pro wrestling makes sense.
The spot is no longer banned and was returned with Solo Sikoa debuting at Clash At The Castle by assisting Roman Reigns in defeating Drew McIntyre.
Mike Chioda worked with WWE for over 30 years, before his release came in August 2020.
Chioda, like many at the time, was cut due to budget cuts, reportedly brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reffing the Chairman
Over his 30+ years with WWE, Chioda was often called upon to officiate matches with Vince McMahon.
McMahon had a total 57 sanctioned matches prior to his retirement in July this year, a month after stepping down as CEO and Chairman of WWE.
Speaking on his ‘Monday Mailbag,’ Chioda recalled how stressful it was to have his boss in the ring (via Wrestling Inc.)
“You’re stressed with Vince in the ring, you don’t want to f*** up. If he asks for a spot or asks for something like, ‘Hey, what’s next?’ you better, you better know it, you know what I’m saying? What I like about Vince is when Vince asks you do something, you say I can get it done.”
“”If he asks for a spot… you better, you better know it.”
Mike Chioda on officiating a Vince McMahon match.
Chioda said that his concerns only grew as McMahon got older and more prone to injury.
McMahon’s final WWE match came at this year’s WrestleMania, where he defeated Pat McAfee.
The ‘match’ saw little offense by McMahon himself, but more by Austin Theory who was the on-screen protege of the then-Chairman at the time.
McMahon’s win at WrestleMania marks his only victory at his biggest creation.
Vince McMahon had some valuable advice to offer when he retired and handed WWE’s creative reigns over to Triple H earlier this summer.
Triple H spoke with Ariel Helwani for BT Sport this week’s to promote Saturday’s WWE Clash at the Castle premium live event from Cardiff, Wales.
During their discussion, he spoke in-depth about Vince McMahon’s retirement. Even though it’s been a few weeks since Vince left WWE, Triple H said it’s still hard for him to fathom.
“In some manner — it’s even hard for me to picture now that he’s not in the equation. And he’s not, in any way, shape or form, but it’s hard to think about that he’s not there.”
– Triple H on Vince McMahon’s WWE Departure
Triple H says it must have been painfully difficult for Vince McMahon to walk away from WWE after decades of building his empire.
Vince did give him some advice, but most of the advice was centered around, ‘This is what you’ve been preparing for all of these years, working alongside me. You’ve got this.’
“Just be confident in your decision-making, listen to people, be open to ideas and collaborate with other people.”
– Vince McMahon’s advice to Triple H
Triple H maintains that Vince McMahon is no longer involved in the day-to-day operations of WWE, but he knows what Vince would encourage him to listen to the people around him. Now that he’s running WWE’s creative team and talent relations departments, he has even more respect for what Vince was able to do.
More of Vince’s Advice to Triple H
Vince told Triple H that he has to chart his own course and not worry about, “What would Vince do?” in certain situations. He knows Triple H will do things differently than he would, but that’s part of being a leader.
“It doesn’t mean it’s right or wrong, we use the term in the business ‘chocolate and vanilla.’ I want chocolate, you want vanilla. One of us has to pick a flavor, he would always pick the flavor. Now it’s my turn to pick the flavor,” Triple H stated.
“It’s all good, it’s all ice cream, but it’s my time to pick the flavor and I have to be confident in those decisions and I can’t look back and say, ‘well what would Vince want to have for a flavor?’ Because it just wouldn’t be authentic then.”
In 2005, WWE embarked on one of their most real feuds ever, pitting Matt Hardy against Edge.
While Hardy was out with an injury, Matt’s real-life girlfriend Lita had started a relationship with Edge, a real-life good friend of Hardy.
When Hardy made the affair public, WWE subsequently fired him, citing ‘unprofessional behavior’ on his behalf.
Summerslam
Weeks later, and after over 15,000 signatures on a petition, WWE rehired Hardy, and made his real-life issues with Edge and Lita into a feud.
At Summerslam 2005, the pair were scheduled to face off, with some unique advice from Vince McMahon.
On the latest episode of his ‘Extreme Life’ podcast, Matt recalled the unique way the then-WWE Chairman tried to motivate him (via Fightful.)
“This might sound crazy, but when two animals — the primal instincts kick in and survival kicks in, and it’s their basic primal instincts, and we all have them, even as human beings,” McMahon said, according to Hardy.
“If you see someone weaker than you, you see someone that’s crippled or in a wheelchair, deep down your primal instinct, you want to destroy them, you want to eat them, you want to eat them alive! […] You want to take the person who’s weaker than you, that is below you in the food chain, and you want to f***ing EAT THEM! Do you understand?! That’s what I want to see out of this match.”
“You see someone that’s crippled or in a wheelchair, deep down your primal instinct, you want to destroy them.”
Vince McMahon motivating Matt Hardy before Summerslam 2005.
Rather than the scrappy brawl McMahon was hoping for, the match went under five minutes long and ended via referee stoppage.
When Hardy was busted open on the ring post, he was unable to defend himself and the referee called for the bell, giving Edge the win.
After Summerslam
Despite the underwhelming Summerslam bout, Matt and Edge would continue feuding, with Hardy getting his win back in a Steel Cage match at Unforgiven.
At WWE Homecoming in October, marking Raw’s return to the USA Network, Edge defeated Matt in a Loser Leaves Town Ladder match for Edge’s Money in the Bank contract, and Hardy was moved to SmackDown.
Despite the ongoing controversies, the Vince McMahon Netflix project is still moving forward.
It was initially reported back in July that Netflix scrapped the project after the sexual misconduct scandal around McMahon came to light. However, a new report from Wrestling Observer Newsletter reports that’s no longer the case.
Netflix is still doing the McMahon documentary with cooperation from WWE. This is one of at least two major documentaries on McMahon’s life that are in production right now. A Vince McMahon book is also slated to be released next year.
The Netflix documentary was first announced during WWE’s third-quarter financials call. Bill Simmons serves as executive producer, with Chris Smith, best known for his work on Frye: The Greatest Party That Never Happened, directing.
WWE had touted it as the highest-budgeted Netflix docuseries of all time. McMahon was forced to step down from his longtime role as WWE CEO earlier this year amidst reports of sexual misconduct with former employees.
(via WWE)
He was soon replaced by Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan as co-CEOs. Although he remained head of WWE creative for a short while, he was also forced to retire from that role, and any involvement with WWE altogether, after investigations into the allegations begun.
Now, his son-in-law and multi-time WWE World Champion Triple H is filling that void. While it’s unfortunate McMahon is no longer with the company he built from the ground up, the changes under “The Game” have been very well received.
Former WWE CEO Vince McMahon has finally been seen in public following his shocking retirement from the company.
Vince stepped away from the company after alleged “hush money” payments to former female employees were uncovered by an investigation by WWE’s Board of Directors. WWE also reported an additional $5 million in payments by Vince to Donald Trump’s charitable organization in a recent SEC Filing, coinciding with his appearance at WrestleMania 23.
After his departure, his daughter Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan were named co-CEOs. John Laurinaitis was dismissed from the company and replaced by Triple H as the EVP of Talent Relations. The Game has also taken over as Head of Creative for the promotion. In one of his final TV appearances, Vince introduced John Cena to the ring to celebrate his 20th Anniversary with the company on the June 27th episode of RAW.
At 77, time for me to retire. Thank you, WWE Universe. Then. Now. Together. Forever. #WWE #thankful
Vince McMahon
At 77, time for me to retire. Thank you, WWE Universe. Then. Now. Forever. Together. #WWE#thankful
The 77-year-old celebrated his birthday yesterday with 16-time WWE Champion John Cena and his wife, Shay Shariatzadeh. Vince tried to avoid the paparazzi by covering his face as while quickly walking to a car waiting for him.
An unidentified woman accompanied Vince to the Waverly Inn restaurant in New York City. Linda McMahon was not present for the birthday dinner. This was the first public appearance for Vince since he stepped away from WWE on July 22nd.
this is a photo of Vince McMahon out in public for the first time since his retirement but all I care about is the woman holding her purse strap in her mouth??? pic.twitter.com/NDLL43auuj
Roman Reigns finds it “hard to believe” that Vince McMahon is gone from WWE.
“The Tribal Chief” was recently a guest on the Sports Illustrated Media podcast, where he gave his thoughts on the longtime WWE frontman finally retiring.
Reigns said he, like most people, found it hard to believe when he first heard the news.
“You know, it’s just hard to believe [that Vince McMahon is no longer CEO and Chairman of WWE], because I think along with anyone who has followed this business or been in this business that just, Vince is gonna be running this,” Roman Reigns said.
“I’m gonna be long gone. I’ll be 20 years retired and Vince is still running the show, you know what I mean? So I think that was just kind of, ah, okay, we’ll see.
“We’ll see him in six months or something like that I think was kind of the mindset that I initially took and then I think we received, you know, the Talent Relations text message and then obviously, a personal message from him and we talked a little bit and yeah.”
(via WWE)
McMahon was forced to step down as WWE CEO after several allegations of sexual misconduct were made against him. As a result, the duo of Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan stepped up to fill the void as co-CEOs.
Although McMahon had stepped down as CEO, he still served as the head of creative for WWE, heading production of television backstage. However, that all changed when several investigations into the sexual misconduct allegations began.
Shortly after, McMahon took to Twitter where he officially announced his retirement, leaving WWE altogether as day-to-day head of creative. That job then fell into the lap of his son-in-law and former WWE Champion Triple H.
Although the longtime regime of McMahon has seemingly come to a close, there is a ton of optimism for the new direction the company is headed in the aftermath.
On this week’s AEW Dynamite, Jon Moxley became the AEW Undisputed World Champion, defeating CM Punk decisively.
Not only was Moxley’s win a surprise, as Punk had been the favorite to win going in, but he also defeated the Chicago wrestler in mere minutes.
Moxley Takes Aim
Immediately after Dynamite, AEW taped this Friday’s Rampage, which saw an appearance by Moxley.
After the taping, the Undisputed AEW World Champion addressed the Cleveland crowd and had harsh words for WWE.
Moxley implored fans to ask their friends to check out AEW programming if they were watching “that Monday and Friday night crap,” a not-so-subtle nod to Monday Night Raw and SmackDown on FOX.
Not finished, Moxley turned his attention to his fellow Blackpool Combat Club member Claudio Castagnoli.
In 2014, Vince McMahon claimed on ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin’s podcast that Castagnoli, then Cesaro, lacked the ‘It-factor’ required to be a top WWE Superstar.
Addressing the comments, Moxley praised the Ring of Honor World Champion for “ignoring some old crazy man’s” opinions and believing in himself.
What Else?
Moxley’s promo after Rampage wasn’t entirely dedicated to taking shots at his former employer.
The Undisputed AEW World Champion also took the time to praise Wheeler Yuta and Arn Anderson.
Moxley also discussed Dustin Rhodes, who faces Castagnoli for the ROH World Championship this Friday.
Moxley ended his appearance by introducing hometown star and AEW TNT Champion Wardlow before exiting the ring.
