Tag: WWE

Possible WWE Contract Ramifications For Sasha Banks And Naomi

WWE reportedly has the option of freezing both Sasha Banks and Naomi’s contracts while they are suspended by the company.

According to Dave Meltzer on the latest edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, this is due to the wording of the contracts both wrestlers signed. Because the former WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions were suspended for failing to perform when they walked out of the building prior to last week’s “Raw,” WWE has the option to freeze their deals. This would mean that the time frame of their contracts would be paused, and they would be stopped from progressing rather than continuing to roll towards expiration. This is normally done when talent is unable to perform, as WWE doesn’t want to lose out on potential dates.

Right now it is unknown whether or not WWE will actually be freezing Banks’ or Naomi’s contracts, but the company has done this in the past when it comes to talent going out with injuries, including cases like Bryan Danielson and Rey Mysterio. Both women’s deals are reportedly set to expire in the near future, though Naomi, at least, was supposedly working on a contract extension prior to the walk-out.

As for Banks, she was spotted this weekend at a Steve Aoki concert, and she has received support online from her cousin, Snoop Dogg. But on Sunday, the WrestleVotes Twitter account, which has provided reliable information in the past, claimed this situation “is going to get worse before it gets any better.”

On WWE “SmackDown” last week, Michael Cole officially announced that Banks and Naomi had been stripped of their Women’s Tag Team Championship and were suspended and that a tournament will be held to crown new ones. No tag teams have been officially announced for the tournament, and no date has been set for it, nor is there any indication as to how long Banks’ and Naomi’s suspension will go on.

Neither Banks nor Naomi has made a public comment since they chose to walk out during WWE “Raw” last week, for what is currently believed to be creative issues. The company had reportedly been planning on Naomi challenging for the “Raw” Women’s Championship at WWE Hell In A Cell, while Banks would get a shot for the “SmackDown” Women’s Title. Both women were set to lose their respective matches.

WWE has also removed both ladies from the, ‘Then. Now. Forever.’ graphic that the company uses before the shows, with Cody Rhodes taking their place. On top of that, online merchandise for them has been removed from WWE Shop, but they were still available physically at live events over the weekend.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Some Current WWE Stars ‘Wish They Had The Guts To’ Walk Out Like Naomi And Sasha Banks [Reports]

The WWE locker room is divided after the Women’s Tag Champs upped and left – but some are thinking of following suit.

While Naomi and Sasha Banks are getting trashed by commentary on RAW and SmackDown for walking out of the company following a booking dispute, reports suggest that there are those who wish they could do the same.

The Women’s Tag-Team Champions weren’t happy with the creative direction for their titles exacerbated by the booking of a Six Pack Challenge to main event Monday Night RAW, that would see the tag-team used more as singles wrestlers going forward – something neither Naomi, nor Banks approved of.

Although they have received the backing of many fans online, the duo have been slated by the company. Since it happened Corey Graves and Michael Cole have criticized the pair for their actions. WWE even released a statement completely breaking kayfabe which labeled the women unprofessional for not wanting to work with other Superstars.

Despite the slating they’ve received from Vince McMahon’s business, Wade Keller made a recent PWTorch.com audio update and indicated that the locker room is divided on how it feels about the situation and how it was handled.

I can say there are people who in that locker room – colleagues of theirs [including] active wrestlers, and otherwise, who are disappointed and not sympathetic to the way Sasha and Naomi handled this,” Wade Keller said. (h/t Sportskeeda)

Clearly some current stars are aggrieved at their colleagues for walking out, but Keller would go on to say that others are supportive and some even wish they could do the same thing.

He added: “And there are others who, yes, think this is a cool thing that they did. And they sort of wished that they had the guts to do something like that and take a stance.”

The situation between Naomi and Sasha Banks and WWE is ongoing.

Source: TheSportster

Triple H’s WWE Office Duties Have Reportedly Changed

In the wake of Stephanie McMahon’s shocking announcement that she was taking a leave of absence from WWE yesterday, many have been wondering what this means for the status of her husband, retired WWE star and Executive Vice President of Global Strategy & Development Triple H, with the company. The answer is he’s still around, in a way.

A new report from Fightful Select noted that Triple H is officially back working at WWE offices full time following his cardiac event last year that forced him to retire. But despite his return and retaining his current corporate role, sources told Fightful Select that Triple H’s current duties are drastically different than they were before his absence. It was not reiterated further what that means.

It should be noted that Triple H was part of WWE’s annual meeting with shareholders yesterday, where he took questions on WWE’s NIL (Next In Line) program and WWE’s overall approach to developing talent. He also stated that WWE was continuing to explore plans to expand the WWE Performance Center, both domestically in the US and abroad.

WWE sources also denied to Fightful Select that marital issues played any part in Stephanie McMahon’s decision to take a leave of absence from her duties as WWE Chief Brand Officer. Rumors had emerged of potential marital strife between McMahon and Triple H, who have been married since 2003 and have three daughters, after photos of McMahon without her wedding ring from WrestleMania 38 weekend emerged on the internet recently. One of which, featuring GCW owner Brett Lauderdale, can be seen below.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Sasha Banks & Naomi Suspended Indefinitely, Women’s Tag Team Titles Now Vacant

Last night’s edition of “Smackdown” included a huge announcement regarding Sasha Banks, Naomi, and the future of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship.

At the announce desk, Michael Cole stated that Banks and Naomi had “let us all down”. He recounted the statement WWE had put out on social media earlier this week. He says the pair have both been suspended indefinitely and a tournament will be held in the coming weeks to crown new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions.

Banks and Naomi had walked out of “Raw” on Monday night. The pair were reportedly not pleased about the creative plans for them. A “6 Pack Challenge” match was announced at the beginning of “Raw”, which included Banks and Naomi.

WWE said Banks and Naomi walked out during the broadcast. According to WWE’s statement, they went into Head of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis’ office, gave him the women’s tag team titles, and left the arena.

The main event match was hastily changed to a one-on-one match between Asuka and Becky Lynch. Asuka won the match to earn a title shot against “Raw” Women’s Champion Bianca Belair at the upcoming “Hell In A Cell” event.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE SmackDown Preview 5/20/22

A title unification match that’s been anticipated for weeks is being promoted for tonight’s WWE “SmackDown”.

Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton and Riddle) will face the SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos. The match is being promoted as “winners take all”.

The match was first announced for the WrestleMania Backlash event. However, Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre were later added to the match, making it a 6-man tag team contest. Reigns and The Usos went on to win the match.

RK-Bro reissued their challenge for a title unification match during the show-closing segment on last Friday’s SmackDown. The Usos accepted and the match was officially announced.

As of the time of tis posting, that is the only match announced for tonight’s “SmackDown”.

Stephanie McMahon Announces Leave Of Absence From WWE

In a shocking turn of events, WWE Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon announced yesterday that she is stepping away from WWE for the foreseeable future. McMahon released a statement on Twitter announcing the move, while also signaling she would eventually return to her post.

“As of tomorrow, I am taking a leave of absence from the majority of my responsibilities at WWE,” McMahon tweeted. “WWE is a lifelong legacy for me and I look forward to returning to the company that I love after taking this time to focus on my family.”

McMahon gave no reason for her leave of absence at this time, nor did she provide a timetable for her eventual return. It is unknown at this time who will fill McMahon’s role as CBO during her absence.

Stephanie McMahon began her business career in WWE as an Accountant Executive before becoming WWE’s head writer in 2000; she would eventually be promoted to the position of Senior Vice President of Creative Writing in 2006 and then later Executive Vice President of Creative in 2007. She would continue in that role until being promoted to Chief Brand Officer in 2013, which she held until this week.

McMahon’s husband, WWE legend and Executive Vice President for Global Talent Strategy & Development Triple H was forced to retire from wrestling and cut down his workload after he suffered a serious cardiac event last year. Whether Triple H’s health issues played a part in McMahon’s decision today is unclear. The couple has three daughters together, one of whom has already begun training for wrestling.

UPDATE:

Dave Meltzer reports that Stephanie’s leave of absence was absolutely her choice and the decision to step away from WWE for a while had been made some time ago. This is not something Stephanie decided to do yesterday nor does it sound like she was forced or pressured to relieve her duties.

Although Stephanie was contemplating taking a break for some time, it was also noted that virtually no one within WWE knew about Stephanie’s impending exit except for a few who remained tight-lipped until Stephanie released the info on Twitter. This echos reports from yesterday about who within WWE knew this was coming.

In Stephanie’s tweet, she mentioned that she was taking time away to focus on her family. Although that is a big part of the reason for her departure, it was also stated that there is likely more to it and the few people who knew weren’t saying much except that some of the basic reasons being given are not accurate.

As far as what Stephanie’s decision means for the future of WWE, at this point, there’s only speculation.

The newsletter also confirmed what Wrestlenomics reported last night, that WWE President & Chief Revenue Officer Nick Khan will be taking over most of Stephanie’s duties with immediate effect. Furthermore, all those who previously reported to Stephanie will now be reporting to Khan.

Stephanie McMahon has been the public face of WWE for nearly two decades. Besides being the CBO, she is a member of the WWE’s Board of Directors and aside from Vince McMahon, she remains the only original McMahon family member actively working for the company. Stephanie also owns 2.5 percent of the WWE stock which is valued around $116 million.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Backstage Details On Why WWE Won’t Fire Sasha Banks Or Naomi [Report]

A new report explains why we shouldn’t expect WWE to fire Sasha Banks or Naomi. Both talents walked out of this week’s episode of Raw.

WWE reportedly isn’t planning to fire Sasha Banks or Naomi despite their decision to walk out of Monday Night Raw together this week.

As previously noted, Banks and Naomi walked out of this week’s Raw taping due to unhappiness over the show’s main event plans.. WWE posted a statement on the matter, claiming that the two placed the Women’s Tag Team Championships on the desk in John Laurinaitis’ office. The statement added that Banks and Naomi “claimed they weren’t respected enough as tag team champions” before departing with suitcases in hand.

It’s easy to speculate that WWE will simply release one or both talents from their current contracts, but that apparently won’t be the case.

Speaking on Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Ringside News), Dave Meltzer explained that WWE won’t release Banks and/or Naomi with the obvious reason that they don’t want AEW landing either star. Meltzer also brought up the infamous title exchange incident between Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch, noting that The Queen wasn’t fired despite her actions

“If it was another time and another place, it’s very possible that they would have been fired, but it’s this time and this place,” Meltzer explained. “I remember when the Charlotte Flair thing happened with Becky Lynch and I was talking to people there and it was kind of, like, if it was another time and another place, yeah, they would have fired Charlotte Flair for what she did on live TV screwing up the angle on purpose. But it’s, like, do you want to send her to AEW? No. And essentially nothing happened and they don’t want to send either of them to AEW. Then you’ve got the whole Naomi married to Jimmy Uso…It’s just a waiting game to see what happens next.”

Source: TheSportster

The Latest On Why Naomi And Sasha Banks Walked Out Of WWE RAW

 A new report is providing insight as to why the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions made their decision to walk out of WWE Monday Night RAW.

Early yesterday morning, PWInsider revealed that several sources had told them that the original plan for Banks and Naomi on RAW, a six-pack challenge for the right to face Bianca Belair for the WWE RAW Women’s Championship at Hell in a Cell, would have seen Naomi pin Sasha Banks to win the match and receive the title shot.

Furthermore, Banks and Naomi were to have been featured in several segments building to them facing off in the match. Post-main-event, the partners would have celebrated Naomi’s victory.

Sources say Naomi would go on to lose to Belair at Hell in a Cell. Though not confirmed, it was also noted that some sources believed that Sasha Banks would go on to face WWE Smackdown Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey at the same event, with Banks also losing.

It was also noted that this led to concerns from Banks and Naomi regarding creativity over the WWE Women’s Tag Titles, and later in the afternoon, an alternative idea was pitched that would have seen Banks and Naomi lose a short tag match to set up their next challenges. While PWInsider couldn’t confirm it 100%, they noted one source told them the planned opponents were Doudrop and Nikki A.S.H., who were at one point also scheduled for the six-pack challenge.

The report goes on to say that Sasha Banks and Naomi were told before RAW by producer Molly Holly that WWE was going forward with plans for the six-pack challenge. This then led to Banks and Naomi informing WWE Executive Vice President of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis that they were leaving, giving him the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships in the process. The report echos WWE’s statement regarding the matter during Monday Night RAW last night.

From there, it was said that Vince McMahon was informed of Banks and Naomi’s departure either shortly before or shortly after RAW began. A backstage vignette between Becky Lynch and Adam Pearce setting up Asuka and Lynch as the main event was pitched on the spot, with McMahon approving of it. One source suggested it was Lynch that came up with the idea for the segment.

Finally, those backstage at WWE apparently did not believe Naomi or Sasha Banks took issue with the finish to the six-pack challenge, but rather the duo’s creative going forward as the Women’s Tag Team Champions.

It should be noted that PWInsider’s report seems to confirm a Twitter thread from user @Addidas_Head88 from last night regarding the situation. The thread stated that Banks and Naomi had been upset with WWE for some time due to the promotion’s handling of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships, which the duo won at WrestleMania 38.

As of this time, neither Naomi nor Sasha Banks has commented on their walkout or WWE’s statement regarding their walkout.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE Files New Argument Against MLW Antitrust Lawsuit

WWE filed another argument for a court to dismiss the antitrust lawsuit brought against the company by Major League Wrestling (MLW), according to a report by PWInsider.

World Wrestling Entertainment filed its first motion to dismiss the lawsuit in March, and MLW argued against the motion in April. In response, this latest filing by WWE argues that MLW has failed to provide any evidence that WWE has “monopoly power” over the professional wrestling industry. It also states the allegation that WWE interfered with MLW’s contract negotiations is not supported by facts.

An excerpt from WWE’s court filing reads:

“First, MLW’s monopolization claim(s) remain unviable. MLW has not and cannot plead the core elements of a monopolization claim: (1) a relevant product market, (2) monopoly power, (3) anticompetitive conduct, and (4) antitrust injury. Confronted with WWE’s motion to dismiss and the deficiencies of its own Complaint, MLW now tries to reframe its Complaint through its opposition (Opp.), asserting that WWE’s exclusive contracts with Fox and NBCUniversal foreclose MLW from the “market” by cutting off its access to key distributors or purchasers. However, MLW’s complaint is silent on (1) WWE’s use of exclusive contracts, (2) whether these exclusive contracts substantially foreclose the proposed market, or (3) the existence of “key” networks, cable, and streaming services that control access to this proposed marketplace.

MLW originally filed its lawsuit in January, alleging WWE’s “ongoing attempts to undermine competition in and monopolize the professional wrestling market by interfering with MLW’s contracts and business prospects.” Part of WWE’s most recent argument against MLW’s monopoly claim is that WWE is just one of a vast amount of programming options available to its broadcast partners:

“There is no allegation, nor could there be, that all networks, cable, and streaming services derive 83%, 8.3%, or 0.83% of their revenue from WWE content. NBCUniversal and Fox, combined, only purchase three WWE television programs out of the presumably hundreds (if not thousands) of programs that their networks air per week. Critically, it is never alleged that, if the WWE were to withhold its product, the television networks would stop broadcasting or “go dark.” Instead, and logically, they would fill that “dark time” with alternative programming over whose production WWE has no control. The notion that WWE has monopoly power over some of the largest companies on earth is an economic absurdity, is not supported by allegations in the Complaint, and could never be supported by good faith allegations.”

WWE also argued against MLW’s “cost barrier” claims by comparing the company to All Elite Wrestling (AEW):

Specifically, the Complaint alleged that MLW and AEW both entered the market and produced programming that networks, cable, and streaming services could purchase.

Further, the Complaint alleged that AEW, within a year of entering, sold its broadcast rights for tens of millions of dollars and captured an average 2020 rating of 0.344 compared to WWE Raw’s 0.5075 in the key 18-to-49 demographic. MLW’s own Complaint thus depicts a market with aggressive players vying for market share and finding successes. These allegations alone undercut MLW’s conclusory allegations of monopoly power.”

MLW’s lawsuit claims a WWE executive warned Vice TV in early 2021 that WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon was upset with Vice for airing MLW programming, and that Vice should stop working with MLW. MLW is seeking compensatory, treble, and exemplary damages, an injunction barring WWE from “inflicting further irreparable harm through its anticompetitive and tortious conduct,” and legal costs.

“They’ve got some pretty flippant predatory tactics, and it shouldn’t be tolerated,” MLW owner Court Bauer said during an exclusive interview with Wrestling Inc.’s Raj Giri earlier this month. “It’s incredibly damaging and disruptive to my company, to other companies, to the fans, and the industry as a whole, which is why this is important now.”

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE NXT Preview 5/17/22

Tonight’s WWE NXT 2.0 broadcasts live from the WWE Performance Center.