For the past month, Vince McMahon has been under a lot of scrutiny over alleged inappropriate behavior by the now former-WWE Chairman.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that McMahon had had an affair with a female paralegal who left WWE this year, and had arranged a $3 million payout.
It was later added that McMahon had allegedly slept with several women and paid them off to keep quiet, including reportedly forcing one female wrestler to perform oral sex.
More Accusations
The former CEO of WWE has been embroiled in scandals before, and this one shows no sign of slowing down.
PW Insider reports that the Wall Street Journal has plans to release another report on McMahon within the coming weeks.
This new report is said to include even more accusations against the pro-wrestling icon, and the Journal is said to have reached out to several former Superstars to learn more about McMahon’s alleged behavior.
PW Insider did not name any of the Superstars that the Wall Street Journal has spoken to.
A Wider Audience
The Wall Street Journal is working on another piece about Vince McMahon, but they’re not the only ones interested in him.
The same PW Insider report adds that wrestlers are being contacted for HBO’s “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.”
Other media outlets like “Variety” have jumped on the story, running a piece this past week that focused on how the scandal may affect the company’s business dealings.
A biopic produced by Netflix about McMahon’s life and rise to the top of the pro-wrestling industry has already been cancelled.
Vince McMahon has gotten at least one good news amid all the controversy surrounding recent allegations made against him. A lawsuit he was facing has officially been settled.
The WWE chairman had been sued by former XFL Commissioner Oliver Luck. This lawsuit came shortly after the premature end of the XFL’s second incarnation.
Luck claimed that his $25 million contract guaranteed him full pay in case it was terminated without cause. He sued McMahon and Alpha Entertainment for $23.8 million remaining in his deal as well as other damages.
Vince McMahon Gets Good News
The lawsuit was set to go on trial on July 7. It was revealed a few weeks ago that both the parties have agreed to a settlement outside of court.
PWinsider is now reporting that a Judge has officially dismissed the lawsuit against Vince McMahon. They noted that the two parties have come to a confidential settlement. Neither to them will have to pay the legal fees of the other.
This is a good news for Mr. McMahon, who has faced multiple waves of accusations in the last few weeks. The latest of the allegations claimed that the boss has paid over $12 million in hush money to former employees.
Though despite receiving a lot of heat from the fans over the allegations, Vince McMahon is said to be under ‘no real pressure’ to leave WWE.
Last month, Vince McMahon stepped down as CEO and Chairman of WWE due to the ongoing investigation into alleged behavior.
The initial allegation was that McMahon arranged a $3 million ‘hush money’ payout to a female paralegal who it is reported he had an extra-marital affair with.
Since then, a second article from the Wall Street Journal alleges that McMahon has been inappropriate with several women over the years, paying approximately $12 million in NDAs.
No Pressure
The allegations against McMahon are very serious, and the ex-Chairman has vowed to respect the result of the investigation against him.
Writing in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Dave Meltzer notes that WWE is in no hurry to get rid of the man who made the promotion a multi-billion dollar franchise (via ITR Wrestling.)
“From the outside, you would read the article and think they have no choice but to make a change, but there is no indication at all that will happen. And there doesn’t appear to be any real pressure for it to happen.”
Dave Meltzer.
The Other Investigations
Vince McMahon is under investigation on behalf of WWE’s board of directors, but the board themselves are also under the microscope.
Several investigations have been made at WWE’s board, arguing that the company breached its fiduciary duties.
The argument is that WWE knew of the investigation into McMahon, but did not inform shareholders before the investigation was reported by the Wall Street Journal.
Investigators believe that shareholders should have been informed given that WWE stock took a fall after the McMahon article came out.
WWE has revealed when tickets will go on sale for fans looking to attend WrestleMania 39 next year.
After the success of WrestleMania 38, fans have wondered when WWE will announce the date WrestleMania 39 tickets will be available. The event has also sparked interest as The Rock is rumored to have a match with Roman Reigns on the card.
The company shared a press release on July 14th that WrestleMania 39 tickets will go on sale to the public on Aug. 12 at 1 pm EST/10 am PST on Ticketmaster.
The show will also be a two-night event taking place on April 1 and April 2 at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, California.
The press release also states that fans could buy tickets for both shows as a combo. It’s unclear if WWE will give a special discount for fans looking to see both shows.
(via WWE)
Will The Rock Appear at WrestleMania 39?
The Rock potentially having a match at WrestleMania 39 against Roman Reigns is something that WWE fans have speculated. The Rock has also teased the thought of him facing the current Undisputed WWE Universal Champion on his TV Show Young Rock.
However, WWE hasn’t shared if that is their plan for WrestleMania 39.
Another potential problem WWE may have in getting The Rock to appear is the current investigation that WWE Chairman Vince McMahon is having. The Chairman is under investigation by the Board of Directors for an alleged $3 million hush pact with a former employee.
The situation worsened when The Wall Street Journal revealed that he had a non-disclosure agreement with four other women to hide allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity.
As the situation seems to be worsening and WWE is receiving negative press, it’s possible that The Rock could distance himself from the company until the investigation is complete.
Although, we don’t know how long the investigation will take or if more information about McMahon will come out.
Some backstage notes from the July 8 episode of WWE SmackDown have surfaced.
The latest edition of the blue brand’s show emanated from Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, TX. Fans got to see the return of WWE Undisputed Universal Champion Roman Reigns, who received quite the pep talk from his Special Counsel Paul Heyman.
Also featured on the show was a rematch between Ronda Rousey and Natalya. Shinsuke Nakamura took on Ludwig Kaiser, while Drew McIntyre mixed it up with Butch.
There were some key things to note behind the scenes.
Vince McMahon Avoids Controversial Topic
(via WWE)
Hours before SmackDown went on the air, The Wall Street Journal reported more hush pacts involving Vince McMahon and four other women.
One female is allegedly a former WWE talent who was coerced into giving Vince oral sex, demoted, and then wasn’t re-signed in 2005 once she declined further sexual advances.
PWInsider reports that while backstage at SmackDown this week, Vince didn’t address the latest report. Sources told PWInsider that the feeling behind the scenes was Vince avoiding the “elephant in the room.”
Budget Cuts Negatively Impact SmackDown
WWE producer Jason Jordan wasn’t backstage for SmackDown as he and his wife are expecting a baby any moment now. Adam Pearce filled in for him.
Budget cuts have also made it difficult for producers. Joe Hennig (Curtis Axel) and Ariya Daivari haven’t been brought in for work due to the budget cuts. They had been appearing on a probationary basis.
This has caused a lot of strain on producers as the workload is mounting.
Other Notes
Triple H and Stephanie McMahon were not backstage for SmackDown this week. Bruce Prichard returned after spending some time away to recover from surgery.
Following two reports by the Wall Street Journal in the last month, Netflix has reportedly scrapped a documentary planned about the life and career of Vince McMahon.
Denise Salcedo reported Friday evening that the McMahon Netflix documentary has been pulled and is off the programming spreadsheet at Netflix. One source at Netflix confirmed it is no longer being listed on their spreadsheet, while another source at Netflix said, “that s**t’s out of here.”
Another source indicated the project had already been “deep” in post-production with several talent interviews conducted months ago, and millions were spent on the project.
Another source indicated that the project was already “deep” in post-production & that several talent interviews had been done months ago & that millions were spent. I spoke to one of the producers on the project, however they declined to confirm nor deny this story to me. (2/2)
— Denise 'Hollywood' Salcedo (@_denisesalcedo) July 8, 2022
WWE first announced during its third-quarter 2020 financials call that they’ve teamed up with Netflix to air a docuseries on the life and career of McMahon.
Bill Simmons served as the executive producer, while Chris Smith, best known from Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened, was the director. At the time, WWE touted it as the highest-budgeted Netflix docuseries of all time.
The first report by the Wall Street Journal came out about McMahon allegedly paying a former $3 million in a settlement to stay quiet regarding their sexual relations. The Board of WWE is also investigating other nondisclosure agreements involving misconduct claims made by former female WWE employees about McMahon and WWE’s head of talent relations John Laurinaitis.
McMahon was in the headlines again after The Wall Street Journal reported he paid $12 million in hush money to four women in the past 16 years.
The status of Vince McMahon for tonight’s episode of WWE SmackDown has been revealed.
Vince has once again found himself in the headlines as The Wall Street Journal has issued another report revealing more nondisclosure agreements. McMahon allegedly paid $12 million in hush money to four women over the last 16 years.
The report notes that one former WWE talent allegedly refused further sexual advances after Vince coerced her into giving oral sex. The star in question was then said to have been demoted and WWE didn’t renew her contract in 2005 once sexual relations with Vince stopped.
Her settlement was for $7.5 million.
Vince McMahon’s WWE SmackDown Status
(via WWE)
PWInsider is reporting that Vince McMahon is inside Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, TX for tonight’s (July 8) edition of Friday Night SmackDown.
Vince will be at the helm for his usual creative duties. There’s no word on whether or not he will be appearing on TV.
McMahon stepped back as the CEO and Chairman of WWE amid the board’s investigation into his first reported $3 million hush pact. While Stephanie McMahon is the interim CEO and Chairwoman, Vince has retained his duties on creative.
SEScoops will be providing live coverage of tonight’s episode of WWE SmackDown, so be sure to keep it locked on the homepage for updates throughout the evening.
Vince McMahon is set to meet with John Cena just a few weeks after the former WWE Champion made an appearance on Monday Night Raw.
Over the next few months, Cena is set to begin filming the second season of HBO Max’s “Peacemaker” in Vancouver, BC. Fightful Select reports that McMahon is scheduled to travel from Fort Worth, TX, to Vancouver later tonight after WWE SmackDown.
The word is McMahon flying to the city likely has something to do with Cena, and the word going around backstage at SmackDown is that Cena is the reason for Vince’s planned travel.
During Cena’s return on Raw for his 20th Anniversary celebration, he did not set up his match with Theory at SummerSlam, which had been speculated about due to the stars publicly teasing a match. Instead, nothing was announced regarding his WWE future, as Cena stated he wasn’t sure when he would wrestle again.
WWE has since announced Theory vs. WWE United States Champion Bobby Lashley for SummerSlam. As of last week, Cena wasn’t confirmed for SummerSlam, but there had been rumblings the company wanted to lock him in for a WrestleMania 39 match in Hollywood next year.
WWE has sent an internal memo to their employees following another bombshell article by the Wall Street Journal.
The Journal reported in May 2022 that McMahon allegedly arranged a $3 million payout to a female paralegal with whom he had an affair.
Today, a second report from the WSJ claims that McMahon has had four affairs over the past 16 years in WWE, with close to $12 million being paid in ‘hush money.
The Memo
WWE shared the following message within the company:
“The Wall Street Journal has published a second story with expanded details on its initial WWE report last month. We want to reiterate that we and our Board of Directors take these allegations seriously.
We’ve been cooperating fully with the investigation led by our Board of Directors and will continue to do so until its conclusion. Please note that upon its conclusion, WWE leadership will make itself available to answer any questions you may have.
Thank you.”
What’s Next?
While many believed that McMahon would survive the scandal when it was just one woman he is alleged to have had an affair with, the three new claims against him change everything.
In the case of one of the women, a former WWE Superstar who departed in 2005, it is reported that she was coerced to perform oral sex on the Chairman despite not wishing to.
McMahon has said he will respect the result of the investigation no matter what the findings may be.
As he has stepped down from the role of CEO and Chair of WWE, Stephanie McMahon has filled both positions on an interim basis.
Vince McMahon has found himself in more hot water.
Back in June, it was reported by The Wall Street Journal that the WWE board was investigating Vince McMahon over an alleged $3 million hush pact with a former employee. Vince was said to have had a sexual relationship with the former WWE worker.
The former employee reportedly saw her salary go up from $100,000 to $200,000 after the relationship with McMahon began.
As a result of the investigation, Vince voluntarily stepped back from his role as WWE Chairman and CEO for the time being. Stephanie McMahon is now the interim CEO and Chairwoman.
New Hush Pacts Revealed
(via WWE)
A new report from The Wall Street Journal claims that Vince McMahon also secured nondisclosure agreements involving four women to hide allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity.
It’s been said that these NDAs have been put in place over the last 16 years.
Two accusations against McMahon are quite serious. The report claims one settlement for $7.5 million was for a former WWE talent who was allegedly coerced into giving McMahon oral sex.
It’s also alleged that when she shot down further sexual advances, she was demoted and the company declined to renew her deal in 2005.
The WSJ report also notes the following:
“A WWE contractor presented the company with unsolicited nude photos of Mr. McMahon she reported receiving from him and alleged that he had sexually harassed her on the job”
WSJ report
Time will tell how this will ultimately shake out. For years, Vince McMahon has come across as bulletproof but in 2022, things like this don’t slide very often.
We’ll continue to provide updates on the Vince McMahon situation as more details continue to trickle in.
McMahon temporarily stepped down from his position while the Board of Directors continued their probe. However, since he stepped down, wrestling fans have wondered what the ramifications of the alleged settlement and investigation would be.
WWE shared today that Board of Directors member Connor Schell has resigned. While fans may speculate that this has to do with the company’s current issue with McMahon, WWE said it’s not the case.
“On July 6, 2022, Connor Schell resigned from the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (the “Company”), effective immediately.
“Mr. Schell resigned from the Board due to an increased slate of responsibilities resulting from his new, expanded role at the newly formed The North Road Company, a global, multi-genre content studio.
“Mr. Schell’s decision to resign from the Board was not due to any dispute or disagreement with the Company, its management or the Board on any matter relating to the Company’s operations, policies or practices.”
(via WWE)
What’s Next for Vince McMahon?
WWE is remaining silent on the process of McMahon’s investigation. Although he stepped down as Chairman, he has appeared on Monday Night Raw and Smackdown and remains at the helm creatively.
Wrestling fans attending the shows he showed up to have also cheered for him, so it doesn’t seem like he lost support.
It’s unclear what the outcome of the Board of Directors’ investigation of McMahon will be. Schell’s resignation could have nothing to do with McMahon’s situation.
However, with little information coming from the company, people quitting the company during these times are worth looking into.
This year’s WWE Money in the Bank was a memorable night with several notable moments. It was also successful for the company.
Fightful Select posted a backstage update on last Saturday’s event in Las Vegas as an internal document that has been making the rounds in the company to executives to tout the event’s success.
The memo noted the event was the “most-viewed” Money in the Bank show in history and drew the second-highest gate in the event’s history.
Merchandise sold at the show is said to have increased 95 percent from last year’s Money in the Bank show, which was previously the highest-selling merchandise for the event.
The event didn’t start to a strong start, as it was originally announced at Allegiant Stadium. After weak ticket sales, WWE pivoted and moved the show to the MGM Grand Garden Arena. After moving to the arena, the event sold around 12,000 tickets.
The event featured three championship matches and the two traditional Money in the Bank ladder matches for both men and women. Theory won the men’s bout while Liv Morgan won the women’s match and later cashed in to win the SmackDown Women’s Championship from Ronda Rousey.
Gerald Brisco has shared some details on the first-ever meeting between Vince McMahon and Brock Lesnar.
Brisco was recently interviewed by Sportskeeda where he detailed the meeting between the three, where McMahon was extremely impressed with the former NCAA Division I Heavyweight Champion.
Lesnar’s physical appearance certainly impressed McMahon, but it was his determination in his voice that also seemed to get “The Chairman Of The Board” excited about the potential of “The Beast.”
“We’re at a PPV. Brock has on one of those tight T-shirts for that pull real tight and his bicep looks huge. Vince can’t resist a good bicep. All of a sudden, he (Vince) stopped in his tracks, walks over to Brock, and shakes his hand.
“Vince said, ‘’Young man, congratulations on winning the national championship. Are you ready for showbiz?’ Brock Lesnar looked him right in the eye and said, ‘I’ve been ready all my life.’ What an answer to give the boss. I see that smile come on Vince. That really showed Vince that this guy is ready to do this and wants to do this,” Brisco said.
In terms of financials, Lesnar’s asking price was high. So high, in fact, that Brisco claims that WWE’s budget guy would complain that signing Lesnar would kill their entire developmental budget.
Brisco was of the belief that it was worth the investment, recognizing that Lesnar is a once in a generation talent. As it turns out, he was right.
“Vince and I got together and he said. ‘What’s it going to take?’ I said, ‘I don’t know. That’s J.R.’s department. I got the guy here, now you guys do your job.’ There was resistance. I know Brock was asking for a lot of money. Looking back, it seemed kind of silly with the numbers. I mean, he’s just looking for a six figure number to sign on.
“I would get complaints from the budget guy that this guy is going to kill our entire developmental budget with one guy. I kept telling him, ‘He’ll make you more money than that. Overlook this one year. This guy is one of those guys that comes along once in a lifetime’, and sure enough he was.
“So they threw all that stuff aside and said, ‘Okay, let’s figure out what it’s going to cost and how we can manipulate it into our budget.’ They figured that out and they finally came to an agreement with Brock. It was probably a two or three month negotiation period back and forth.”
Since signing with WWE, Lesnar has become one of the company’s biggest names of all time. He’s a 10-time World Champion, a King Of The Ring winner, a Money In The Bank Winner, and a two-time Royal Rumble winner.
He’s currently slated to challenge Roman Reigns for the WWE Undisputed Title at SummerSlam.
WWE has seen its popularity decline for several years since the Attitude Era, but they’ve been able to stop the huge drop that they had been experiencing in recent years. WWE consistently dropped in popularity (TV ratings and attendance) from 2017 to 2021. However, that has largely halted.
Since launching in 2019, All Elite Wrestling has grown rapidly as they were able to secure a television deal with WarnerMedia just months after launching and have been able to draw over 100,000 PPV buys with every event they’ve presented thus far.
Dave Meltzer went into detail about how WWE is getting more interest than usual of late during today’s Wrestling Observer Radio.
“WWE being up was interesting to me. Almost across the board, whatever they are doing… another interesting thing about that is they’re up (and) one of their biggest drawing cards Roman Reigns is not even on these shows other than Nashville (SummerSlam), which is doing pretty well.
Whatever it is, there’s definitely an upswing in interest in the product, for whatever reason. So that was kind of an interesting thing to see. The ratings of WWE have been up… WWE is on an upswing right now, so they’re doing something right, whatever it is.”
Meltzer noted that although AEW’s TV ratings have been down over the last few months, he cited the mega-list of injuries they’re dealing with as several stars are out of action, including CM Punk and Bryan Danielson.
Brandon Thurston of WrestleNomics has posted an article looking at the key performance indicators for WWE and AEW and how they compare.
This report notes WWE still leads in nearly every category in terms of numbers (TV tapings and attendance). It was said, “AEW’s lower profile consistently grew in previous comparisons, and still is growing.”
For WWE, they have yet to reach popularity to the heights of the years following the launch of the WWE Network in 2014, but it was stated the Peacock deal for its Network rights had come at the same time they were seeing stabilization and improvement in multiple areas.
TV Ratings
Raw’s ranking among other programs on Monday remains strong and improved in the second quarter of 2022. SmackDown continues to remain among the most-watched shows on Fridays.
Dynamite’s key demo ranking is up strongly year-over-year, although the show is having its first negative year-over-year comparisons just slightly after several consecutive quarters of growth.
Attendance
WWE averaged higher attendances for TV events than AEW through all four quarters since returning to touring in July 2021.
WWE also has the edge with premium live events/pay-per-views compared to AEW because they run stadium events.
Other metrics such as YouTube views and social media engagement can be found in the complete report here.
Last night was WWE Money in the Bank 2022, the latest Premium Live Event by the company and the first of the Stephanie McMahon era.
The show saw Liv Morgan and Theory capture the two titular Money in the Bank briefcases, with Morgan cashing in hours later to win the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
Even without names like Brock Lesnar, Cody Rhodes or Roman Reigns, Money in the Bank was a huge event, but it wasn’t the only big show around.
The McMahons at UFC
Money in the Bank 2022 aired from Las Vegas, as did the recent UFC 276 show.
Given that the two shows were so close, several names from WWE made the trip and were spotted in attendance for the mixed-martial-arts Pay Per View.
Vince McMahon, Triple H, Interim WWE Chairwoman and CEO Stephanie McMahon and Pat McAfee were all present on camera and seemed pleased to be there.
The UFC Europe account later tweeted about the four WWE personalities at the event.
Stephanie McMahon was at UFC 276, but that was just part of a full night for the WWE Chairwoman.
According to WrestleVotes, McMahon was also present at Money in the Bank 2022, and had a meeting with talent before the show got started.
It’s reported that the Interim WWE CEO met with stars at the MGM Grand Arena to discuss a multitude of topics, though WrestleVotes didn’t confirm what was said specifically.
One source said that the meeting between McMahon and her employees was “generally well-received.”
During a recent discussion with SEScoops correspondent Steve Fall for NBC Sports Boston, Chelsea Green spoke about the creative pitches she made during her time in WWE and the process surrounding it.
Chelsea Green and her husband Matt Cardona have been everywhere on the independent scene after their releases from WWE. On April 15, 2021, Chelsea Green was released from her WWE contract.
Matt was released exactly one year before Chelsea on April 15, 2020.
After her release, Green made it known that she made multiple pitches to Vince McMahon to try and get herself on TV.
Unfortunately, during her main roster debut match on the November 13, 2020 episode of SmackDown, Chelsea suffered yet another arm injury.
Green’s WWE Creative Pitch
Green spoke about the pitches she made and her process for pitching them to Vince.
“No, actually one that was really ridiculous and I get made fun of all the time on the internet still for it, was like this kind of like nun character where- What was Seth Rollins? He had a character and he would come out and be like The Messiah. And, I wanted to come out with him, I always thought that I could be a good valet, but then also be able to be in the women’s division. But I really loved the idea of being like a 90’s style valet.“
“So, I wanted to come out with him as kind of like his follower, his disciple, and just basically be like a yes man to everything that he wanted when he wanted to kind of stir things up in each division.”
Chelsea Green on her WWE pitch
“When I first pitched the character to Vince and I said a nun, I think everyone just has this immediate thought of what that is and how that’s not going to work, and finally he kind of like laughed and was like, ‘I need you to explain this for me.’
“And I explained like the look that I had in mind, the attitude that I had in mind, the fact that it was more of building this following of everyone following Seth Rollins to the ring. Finally, he’s like, ‘Oh, okay,’ and you can see the wheels turning.“
WWE Creative Is Ever-Changing
“A lot of the scenarios that I pitched were like that, like, ‘Okay, how can we make this work? Can we make this work? What’s gonna be-‘ I mean Raw and SmackDown, when I say they’re ever-changing, I seriously mean up until ten minutes before showtime. So, something could work, and then ten minutes before showtime, it doesn’t,” Green said.
“All these ideas are so out of left field and so opposite that they can’t tell you whether it’s a bad idea or a good idea or yes or no because they might need to use it last minute, or they might need to give it to somebody else and have someone else use it because they fit the mold. They’ll never tell you no, but I mean if you have any sort of brain, you can tell what’s hitting and what’s missing,” she said.
Possible Name Change
Recently, WWE has seen many superstars face name changes. It seems that Chelsea was scheduled to get a name change as well. She was asked about working with WWE creative and how they responded to her pitching so many ideas.
Green responded, “I think there’s a fine line where if you don’t do what they want then yes [creative would ignore ideas]. But, I never did that. They gave me, they called me, they said, ‘You’re going to be in this qualifying match for Survivor Series and your name is going to be Victorious.’
“I’m like, ‘Great.’ A lot of people laughed at that name, but I’m like, ‘F*cking awesome dude.’ This is a name I can work with. This is a name people won’t forget.
“It might be so ridiculous and sound like a stripper, but on the other hand you’re not going to ever forget this name. Once I’m Victorious, you’re not going to forget Victorious was Victorious kind of thing.
“I think if I had been like, ‘Well, I have different names for you.’ Do you know what I mean? Like, that is something I would never do.“
Green’s Willingness To Work
“I only suggested things because I was sitting waiting. So, I wanted them to know, ‘Hey, I’m not just sitting here collecting a paycheck.
“I’m sitting here collecting a paycheck because I am every single day thinking about what I can do to get on TV, how I can change my look. Goddamnit, I will dye my hair.’ I will never forget, I said to Cannon before he hired me at NXT, ‘What do you need?
“Do you need me to dye my hair blue? Do you need me to shave my head? I’ll do it. I will do it. Just tell me what you need. Tell me what’s missing, and I will be that missing piece.’ That’s what I was trying to give to the writers.
“So, if they told me, ‘You’re going to be CM Punk’s next person who’s shaving their head and stuff,’ I would’ve done it. “
Green In Impact
Chelsea can still be seen on Impact Wrestling as she recently competed, in a losing effort, for the Knockouts World Championship in a first-ever Queen of the Mountain match at the Slammiversary pay-per-view.
Chelsea was able to have a memorable moment with Deonna Purrazzo when they both fell off of a tall ladder to the outside of the ring and through two tables.
Front row view of the Chelsea/Deonna table spot from #Slammiversary !! Fkng terrifying!!?? Glad they’re both OK.
Stephanie McMahon reportedly acknowledged her father’s ongoing investigation during an “all hands on deck” meeting.
PWInsider reports that WWE held an “all hands on deck” meeting yesterday, in which Stephanie McMahon acknowledged the ongoing investigation into her father, Vince McMahon.
Stephanie is acting as chairman and CEO of WWE after her father stepped down last week. She reportedly said “everyone” is aware of the investigation by the WWE Board of Directors, clarifying her father has “stepped back.”
Also, she added that she loves Vince and WWE, and will do “everything she can” for the company moving forward.
It was also noted that Stephanie McMahon has been “actively involved” in meetings that would usually see Vince involved in the past.
Vince McMahon is currently under investigation for sexual misconduct, along with John Laurinaitis, for an alleged payout he made to an employee he was having an affair with.
Although Vince has stepped down as chairman and CEO of WWE, he’s still very much involved creatively backstage on Monday Night RAW and SmackDown Live.
In fact, its been reported several times that he’s been in great spirits backstage.
If that wasn’t enough, even after the allegations surfaced and became public, as well as after his stepping down as chairman and CEO, Vince made brief television appearances on both RAW and SmackDown last week.
WWE Superstar Damian Priest recently spoke with SEScoops correspondent Steve Fall for NBC Sports Boston about his first meeting Vince McMahon.
“The first time I had a meeting with Vince McMahon, you know, I even told him, I was like, ‘You know, you’re very intimidating, it’s because, you know, we have this perception of you.”
“His first thing [Vince] said to me was like, ‘Yeah, don’t believe what you hear.’ He’s a human being, you know, he feels like we do.”
“Don’t believe everything you hear.”
He then humanized the WWE boss, stating that McMahon is human like the rest of us.
Has emotions like we do too, so you know I think there is a perception because of the business, but at the end of the day he’s a human. He’s very friendly and you know I kind of like the guy.”
“I don’t want to give him too much away. I don’t want to ruin his wrath, but I will say, that was his line, he was, ‘Don’t believe everything you hear’, and he said that with a smile and I was like oh…. he’s a cool dude.”
Catch Steve Fall’s chat with Damien Priest here via NBC Sports Boston:
Vince’s duties on the creative side of things remain unchanged, and he hasn’t been shy in letting people know about it.
Internal Reaction to Appearances
(via WWE)
PWInsider is reporting that there is a lot of sympathy for Stephanie McMahon backstage over being brought back in after being buried by executives in the media and wanting to step back.
It’s also been said that there is a lot of “head shaking” over Vince McMahon’s public appearances on Raw and SmackDown after The Wall Street Journal report. The internal feeling is that Vince is “in denial” that this is a serious situation.
The report also notes that a lot of employees have been mum on the Vince news to avoid getting caught up in the mess.
Vince McMahon has had a difficult time as of late, as the ex-WWE CEO is under investigation.
In addition to the investigation into an alleged affair with a paralegal, McMahon’s company is also being investigated by multiple law firms for alleged violations to their shareholders.
In just one week, McMahon has gone from the unquestionable head of WWE to stepping down as CEO and under investigation, but there is some good news for the billionaire promoter.
McMahon and Luck Settle
PW Insider reports that McMahon and former XFL Commissioner Oliver Luck have settled their lawsuit out of court.
This settlement comes weeks before the two sides were set to go to trial on July 7, in Connecticut.
In a statement to Brandon Thurston, an attorney for Luck said the decision had been amicable, and both sides wished the other the best in future endeavors.
The suit claimed that Luck’s contract guaranteed him full pay, an estimated worth of $25 million over five years if his contract was terminated without cause.
Luck claimed he was owed $23.8 million remaining on his deal, other damages, plus his attorney fees.
McMahon’s legal team later responded that Luck had been negligent in his duties as XFL commissioner, giving the league cause to terminate him.
McMahon’s counter-claim focused on Luck’s signing of wide receiver Antonio Callaway, whose 2018 legal issues violated the league’s mandate to not sign players with any off-the-field issues.
Former WCW president Eric Bischoff has offered up his reaction to Vince McMahon stepping down as WWE CEO recently.
Recently, McMahon was put under investigation for sexual misconduct, forcing him to step down as CEO of WWE for the time being. In his place, Vince McMahon’s daughter, Stephanie McMahon, has stepped in to fill his role.
Bischoff recently took to his podcast, “83 Weeks,” to offer his thoughts on the situation. Simply put, Bischoff feels terribly for everyone affected by the recent moves.
“I was dumbfounded. Shocked. I can’t imagine anybody felt any differently. Even though it appears to be very temporaneous and not a permanent situation, at least that’s not the way it’s presented or the way I read it, but nonetheless, it’s a big damn deal and it did shock me,” Bischoff said.
“I feel bad for a lot of people. I still have a lot of friends in WWE that I do care about a lot. Regardless of how this ends up, it’s going to adversely affect a lot of people.
“How do you feel anything other than bad for people that you know and have affection for that are having to go through this? I feel bad for Bruce (Prichard).
“I sent Bruce a text Friday night during the show going, ‘Brother, one hell of a ride.’ To be sitting in that seat, to be there in the eye of that fu**ing hurricane, man I feel for a lot of people.”
McMahon is accused of paying $3 million in hush money to a paralegal his allegedly had an affair with. Last month, Stephanie McMahon announced she would be taking a leave of absence from WWE to spend more time with her family.
However, just a few weeks later, she finds herself returning to fill her father’s role as he steps away amidst the investigation.
The Company and the Board do not expect to have further comment until the investigation is concluded.
Vince McMahon opened this week’s episode of SmackDown with a short promo. While many expected him to address the allegations made against him, the boss just welcomed the fans.
Fightful revealed that he talked to a number of current and former WWE stars about the appearance. The reactions to it range from ‘confused to enraged’.
An unnamed WWE talent told the site that Mr McMahon’s promo was ‘tone-deaf and embarrassing.’ Furthermore, a former WWE star claimed that it shows that Vince McMahon does not have any accountability:
“I’m happy it didn’t last long, so I didn’t have to sit through whatever bullshit he was going to say. But it shows that he has no accountability, especially when something is directly his fault.”
– Unnamed WWE source, to Fightful
The public reaction to Vince McMahon’s promo has largely been negative. Though the WWE owner himself seems unfazed by the opinions against him.
It’ll be interesting to see how the announced McMahon appearance affected the SmackDown viewership and if it helped give the show a boost amid all the speculations about his future.
For more on the developing Vince McMahon situation…
Vince McMahon has stepped down from his role as WWE CEO and Chairman, in the biggest shift in power the promotion has seen in decades.
While McMahon is under investigation for an alleged affair and $3 million hush-money arrangement, many have said that he is safe, given that he’s the voting majority on WWE’s board of directors.
McMahon has survived scandals in the past, but this is a new battle for the Sports-Entertainment promoter and he could lose his job after all.
The Conditions
According to Brandon Thurston of WrestleNomics, McMahon’s contract does give the board power to remove him if certain conditions are violated.
While most have nothing to do with the ongoing investigation, there are two that stand out (via eWrestlingNews.)
(a) the Executive’s theft or embezzlement, or attempted theft or embezzlement, of money or property of the Company or its affiliates.”
McMahon’s contract
While the investigation has yet to be concluded some have argued that McMahon could face allegations of embezzlement given their relationship.
It has been claimed that the paralegal was promoted rapidly, from a $100,000 contract to a $200,000 deal after beginning the alleged physical relationship with McMahon.
Given that the payment would have come out of WWE’s pocket, an embezzlement claim could be made.
“(c) the Executive’s willful and intentional material misconduct in performance of his duties or gross negligence of his duties (other than due to the Executive’s Disability), including an intentional failure to follow any applicable Company policies or directives.”
McMahon’s contract
Having an affair with an employee could certainly be considered misconduct in the performance of his duties.
What’s next for McMahon?
Vince McMahon appeared on last night’s SmackDown but did not address the allegations against him.
In his absence, Stephanie McMahon will serve as interim CEO and Chairwoman of WWE until the investigation is concluded.
McMahon has promised to respect the result of the investigation no matter the result.
Many were expecting Vince McMahon to address the allegations against him during his appearance on tonight’s SmackDown episode.
Though the boss did not say anything about the rumors surrounding him during his TV appearance. He also apparently no-sold the accusations behind the scenes as well.
Per reports from PWInsider, there was nothing unusual with the proceedings at SmackDown. You wouldn’t have figured out that Mr McMahon was under investigation by just being backstage at the tapings.
As for the boss, the site notes that he was not selling anything. Vince McMahon was described as being in ‘great mood’ and he was ‘joking around’ during the production meeting before the show.
There were whispers among people that the WWE owner will be addressing the talents before the episode but nothing was said.
Several sources described the pre-show meeting as ‘weird’ given the circumstances, especially because nobody knows when more details on the allegations can surface.
Some people were wondering how many more NDAs were uncovered during the investigation and how many others could be out there.
Stephanie McMahon has been named the interim chairwoman after her father voluntarily stepped down from the role. You can check out the backstage reaction to this change here.
