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August 22, 2022

‘Road Dogg’ Brian James Returns To WWE As SVP Of Live Events

“Road Dogg” Brian James has reportedly returned to WWE in an executive position.

Mike Johnson of PWInsider reported that James will be the company’s new Senior Vice President of Live Events. Jeff Jarrett previously held the role until he departed the position this past week.

James previously spent several years with the company, and he was on Triple H’s team throughout the black-and-gold era of WWE NXT. James, among other officials, was released in January 2022. Before that, he had been a producer, and he was the co-head writer of WWE SmackDown at one point until he left the position and shifted to NXT. He also taught classes about promos and character development at the WWE Performance Center.

WWE remains in the early stages of a substantial regime change. Vince McMahon retired on July 22, and Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan were subsequently named co-CEOs. Triple H was named as the head of creative on July 25, and James’ return marks the first member of his inner circle to be brought back to the company as part of this new era.

August 19, 2022

Kevin Nash Comments On Triple H’s Eye For Talent, WWE Dismantling The NXT He Created

Kevin Nash doesn’t mix words on his feelings regarding what WWE did to Triple H‘s NXT brand during his absence.

On the latest episode of In The Kliq: The Kevin Nash podcast, the WWE Hall of Famer spoke about the great eye that Triple H has for talent. This is something that frustrated him to watch WWE ruin his NXT Superstars when they were called up to the main roster. He also touched upon what they did to the NXT brand following his heart episode.

“He’s got an eye for talent, that’s for sure. Look at the people that he’s kind of hand-picked and pushed up on the WWE product on RAW,” Kevin Nash said. “And every time one of them went up there, it was just like, how quick can we dismantle what got him over and f*ck this dude up? It was just like when he got sick. He had the heart episode. They couldn’t f*cking get down there and dismantle what he had built in NXT quick enough. That was f*cked up, man.”

When Nash was asked what the impetus for that was, he didn’t have a good answer. He tried to talk to Shawn Michaels about it, but he seemingly didn’t get the answers he was looking for.

“I don’t fucking know,” Kevin Nash said. “I asked Shawn about it, you know, Shawn Michaels, and he was just like, you know… [long, awkward pause] Shawn has changed. He’s just not a shit disturber anymore. He just does his job. He does it well, and he does the best he can, and he goes home to his family.”

August 18, 2022

WWE to launch NXT Europe in 2023, NXT UK to make impact at upcoming event

WWE has its sights set on a larger international market in the coming year.

The NXT brand is set to grow even more come 2023 with the creation of NXT Europe. According to the company on Thursday, NXT Europe will "reimagine the brand and talent pipeline" with a renewed focus on Europe.

NXT UK, the company’s initial foray into Europe which launched in December 2016, will go on hiatus for a few months. WWE will run the premium live event Worlds Collide featuring the current crop of NXT and NXT UK superstars. Tyler Bate, the NXT UK champion, confronted NXT champion Bron Breakker at NXT Heatwave earlier this week while Gallus came out and ambushed Diamond Mine.

Shawn Michaels, the vice president of talent development creative for WWE who oversees some creative aspects of the NXT brand, told Fox News Digital he was "pretty excited" about NXT Europe.

"Given the success of NXT UK, we felt like it was time to expand beyond that," Michaels said.

The planned launch of NXT Europe means NXT UK will go on a "brief hiatus," Michaels said, adding the final NXT UK event will be at Worlds Collide. Michaels said the company will work with the staff and talent to launch NXT Europe "bigger and better."

There are currently 22 male wrestlers, 12 female wrestlers and at least two on-air personalities on the NXT UK roster. Michaels divulged what will happen to the crop of talent.

"So some of it, like everything with the WWE and NXT, that pipeline is always fluid. It’s going to be one of those situations where we’re going to have a lot of representation going into Worlds Collide," Michaels told Fox News Digital. "It’s what NXT has always been and that is to be a pipeline for the WWE in support of RAW and SmackDown. That process is going to continue. We’re going to use the UK talent that we can to go into Worlds Collide and keep that representation out there for as long as we can. And as we move things over here in the process, we’ll make all those decisions in 2023 about who’s a part of NXT Europe and who continues to stay here in NXT in hopes of getting a main roster call up."

NXT has been known for some incredible Takeover events across the North American brand and the UK brand. The UK brand hasn’t seen a Takeover event since January 2020 when WALTER, now known as GUNTHER, faced off against Joe Coffey for the NXT UK Championship.

More than ever, NXT Europe could get creative with where it holds future major events. Fox News Digital asked Michaels whether dream matches at the Colosseum in Rome or outside the Louvre in Paris has been thought about.

source: fox news

August 17, 2022

WWE discovered Vince McMahon paid $5 million to Donald Trump’s foundation

Former World Wrestling Entertainment boss Vince McMahon paid $5 million of around $20 million previously unrecorded expenses to Donald Trump's foundation in 2007 and 2009, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal.

The report comes weeks after McMahon retired as CEO of the company amid investigations into hush payments he made related to alleged sexual misconduct. WWE has since said its board's independent probe into the matter is "substantially complete."

While the majority of the $20 million in payments went to women who accused McMahon and another WWE executive of sexual misconduct, another $5 million was used for unrelated purposes, according to a recent securities filing.

The $5 million represented charitable donations to the now-dissolved Donald J. Trump Foundation, the Journal reported, citing sources. The donations were given during two years that Trump made appearances on televised WWE events.

The WWE didn't immediately return a request for comment.

Trump dissolved this foundation as part of a settlement with the New York state attorney general's office in 2018, when a lawsuit alleged Trump had misused the charity's funds for his 2016 presidential campaign, to pay legal settlements and promote his business.

This news comes less than a month after the Securities and Exchange Commission and federal prosecutors launched probes into the $14.6 million in payments made by McMahon to settle allegations of sexual misconduct.

The $5 million in contribution payments should have been cataloged as business expenses, because McMahon was a principal shareholder and the payments benefited the company, an attorney for WWE told WSJ.

The first of the two appearances resulted in a $1 million fee for Trump and a personal contribution from the McMahons of $4 million to his foundation. For his second appearance, Trump was paid $100,000 and McMahon and his wife, Linda, donated $1 million to the foundation.

While the $5 million was listed on the foundation tax returns as coming directly from WWE, the company said in its security filings this month that the payments came directly from McMahon personally.

Vince McMahon is still the top shareholder in WWE despite having left the company. His daughter, Stephanie McMahon, is now working as co-CEO, along with executive Nick Khan.

Linda McMahon served as Small Business Administration chief in Trump's Cabinet. Trump, who hosted two Wrestlemania events in Atlantic City in the 1980s, is enshrined in the WWE's Hall of Fame.

source: cnbc.com

August 16, 2022

Vince McMahon Misconduct Investigation ‘Substantially Complete,’ WWE Says

WWE said its board’s investigation into alleged misconduct by ex-CEO and chairman Vince McMahon is “substantially complete.” The company restated earnings going back to 2019 to account for personal payments McMahon made during his tenure, including $14.6 million allegedly to women in return for their silence about affairs and other misconduct.

However, the McMahon investigation may continue to have a financial impact, WWE said in regulatory filings.

“While we currently anticipate spending approximately $10 million during the remainder of the year related to this investigation, the related costs could exceed this estimate,” the wrestling entertainment company said in its 10-Q filing for the second quarter of 2022. As previously disclosed, WWE also has “received, and may receive in the future, regulatory, investigative and enforcement inquiries, subpoenas or demands arising from, related to, or in connection with these matters,” the company said

In addition, WWE said, “Although we believe that no significant business has been lost to date, it is possible that a change in the perceptions of our business partners could occur as a result of the investigation.”

WWE also noted that until McMahon resigned from the company on July 22, he had led the creative team that develops the storylines and the characters for its programming. Taking over as co-CEOs were Stephanie McMahon, previously chief brand officer, and Nick Khan, previously president and chief revenue officer. WWE’s creative is now led by Paul “Triple H” Levesque, EVP of talent relations and creative and Ms. McMahon’s husband.

“Although Mr. Levesque has extensive practical experience with many of our revenue streams and, with Ms. McMahon, has been critically involved in our business transformation over the past several years as well as our continuing brand development, these collective changes at the top of our organization are extensive and recent, and it is therefore possible that the loss of services of Mr. McMahon could have a material adverse effect on our ability to create popular characters and creative storylines or could otherwise adversely affect our operations and/or financial performance,” WWE said in its amended 10-K filing for 2021.

The company on Tuesday announced Q2 earnings. Revenue for the period was $328.2 million, up 24%, and net income was $49.0 million, an increase of 68% year over year. Adjusted operating income before depreciation and amortization (OIBDA), which excludes stock-based compensation, increased 34% to $91.5 million.

Based on “outperformance” in the first half of 2022, as well as WWE’s current expectations for the second half of the year, the company raised its guidance for full-year 2022 adjusted OIBDA to $370 million-$385 million (up from $360 million-$375 million previously).

On the earnings call, Levesque said WWE set a record for first-day ticket sales for WrestleMania 39, to be held at L.A.’s SoFi Stadium in April 2023, with more than 90,000 tickets purchased in the first 24 hours after they went on sale Aug. 12 — more than any event in WWE history and a 42% increase over first-day sales for WrestleMania 38.

source: variety.com

August 12, 2022

Shawn Michaels On Taking Over NXT After Triple H Stepped Back, His Position Evolving

Shawn Michaels recently talked about taking control of NXT after Triple H stepped back due to his health issues. The WWE Hall of Famer spoke with Bleacher Report for a new interview and you can check out the highlights below:

On being able to help talent in NXT: “I pride myself on being one of the guys who’s been around for a long time but also understanding and appreciating the business evolving and changing and being a supporter of that. Like with everything else, the athletes get so much better, whether it’s in our industry or others, and continue to be innovative and push the envelope. WWE never shies away from making those different innovations and merging them with what it is we do.”

On being in charge of NXT after Triple H stepped back: “When Hunter first left, it became all me, and certainly from a television standpoint. Matt Bloom is the head coach and takes care of everything from the PC training standpoint, but when it came to NXT 2.0 television, that’s something myself and my team took over creatively. I know a lot of people thought Vince and Bruce were doing that. I can promise you, they did not have the time to do NXT television. If it’s good or if it’s bad, that’s on me. It’s been a huge joy to run that show and work with these talents. Again, everyone was put in a real tough position, we all were, but that’s where you learn to do things in WWE. That, to me, is a form of talent development, which is understanding that things can always change … around here and you have to adjust to that. The show always goes on. It was trial by fire for a lot of us, but it’s been an absolutely fantastic experience.”

On his position in NXT evolving: “As everyone knows, I came in just as a coach and then slowly moved into assisting in creative and things of that nature. I was always the second guy right behind Hunter [Triple H]. I obviously never envisioned being the guy who had the final say on the show and what we do and don’t do and the overall vision for what it is we’re going to do and how we move forward.”

August 10, 2022

Triple H is righting Vince McMahon's creative wrongs with WWE changes

August 9, 2022

WWE Says Vince McMahon, Under Investigation for Alleged Misconduct, Made Personal Payments Totaling $19.6 Million

Vince McMahon’s off-the-books personal payments that he made while chairman and CEO of WWE were higher than previously reported, the company said.

Last month, the wrestling entertainment company announced that it would revise its financial statements going back to 2019 to account for $14.6 million of “certain payments” that McMahon made while chairman and CEO should have been recorded as expenses. That was three days after McMahon said he was retiring from WWE, which he announced amid an ongoing investigation into allegations that he paid millions of dollars in hush money to multiple women to keep quiet about affairs and other misconduct.

In an SEC filing Tuesday, WWE disclosed that since the July 25 announcement, it had discovered that McMahon made two additional payments totaling $5 million — unrelated to the allegations that led to the board’s special committee investigation — in 2007 and 2009, which also should have been recorded in the company’s consolidated financial statements. WWE did not provide details on what McMahon’s $5 million in payments were for.

WWE had previously aimed to issue the revised financial statements accounting for McMahon’s personal payments by Aug. 9, but said the information that had come to light about the additional $5 million he paid made that infeasible.

WWE said the board’s special committee investigation into McMahon’s alleged misconduct remains ongoing. Last month, the company disclosed that it had received “regulatory, investigative and enforcement inquiries, subpoenas [and] demands” in connection with the ex-CEO’s alleged misconduct.

McMahon remains a stockholder with a controlling interest in WWE. 

source: yahoo money

August 6, 2022

Eric Bischoff Gives His Thoughts On Triple H Taking Charge Of WWE Creative

Eric Bischoff discussed Triple H taking lead of WWE creative during a recent appearance on the Out of Character with Ryan Satin podcast:

“Here’s what I’m excited about. I’m very, very optimistic. Now, I’m not tight with Triple H. We get along, we can be together in a room and it can be very pleasant and borderline fun, but we don’t hang out. He doesn’t drink anyway, but if he did, we wouldn’t go out for drinks. None of that, we don’t chat. So, I don’t know him personally. But I did get a chance, for a very, very brief period of time – four months back in 2019 – get a chance to work with him. Here’s what I think – I think Stephanie has been the creative under Vince, I think Triple H has been the head of creative under Vince. I think both of them know, as phenomenal of a process as Vince McMahon’s process was and what it achieved over the last couple of decades – the fact that it’s a five-billon dollar market cap company with a global footprint speaks to Vince McMahon’s process. If I’m right, there is a whole lot of talented people I did get to work with a lot for a short period of time that I have nothing but admiration for. So, at the same time, you have a new regime, although it came up within the mentorship of one Vince McMahon. That’s a great thing, by the way, but they also see that things have to change.”

August 4, 2022

The Undertaker Comments On WWE Future Without Vince McMahon

The Undertaker was recently interviewed by ESPN during which he was asked for his thoughts on Triple H taking over creative and talent relations for WWE. Check out highlights below:

On WWE’s direction without Vince McMahon:

“They’re loosening the reins a little bit as far as what guys can say and do,” Calaway, a longtime locker room leader, told ESPN. “I think the product will probably be a little more aggressive. I think that’s going to come through in the creative.

On Triple H in charge:

“I mean, he’s brilliant, he really is. I don’t think he gets enough credit for his wrestling acumen. I think he’ll be a huge asset to the development of a lot of guys. And he’s a no bulls— kind of guy too. He’s going to let you know what you’re doing that’s right and what you’re doing that’s wrong. I think it’s going to be a step in the right direction with Hunter [another nickname for Levesque].”

August 2, 2022

Stephanie McMahon Reveals WWE SummerSlam Broke Major Record

WWE has held some massive SummerSlam events in its history, including the 1992 SummerSlam in England’s Wembley Stadium and last year’s SummerSlam in the newly built Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. But as big as those events were, they appear to pale in comparison to the success of this year’s event in Nashville, Tennessee.

In a press release sent by new WWE co-CEO Stephanie McMahon this morning, WWE revealed that this past weekend’s SummerSlam was the most watched SummerSlam in the 35 years the promotion has run the summer extravaganza. Though no figure was provided regarding how many fans watched the PLE on Peacock, the event was attended by 48,449 fans in Nashville’s Nissan Stadium.

WWE also revealed in the release that they had surpassed 90 million subscribers on their YouTube channel, to go along with 70 billion lifetime views of videos and over 18 million followers on social media brand TikTok. The promotion also hyped their crossover with Epic Games’ free-to-play “Fall Guys” game and thanked the fans, Nissan Stadium, the NFL’s Tennessee Titans, and other sponsors for helping make SummerSlam a success.

The most-watched SummerSlam in history was headlined by Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns for Reigns’ Undisputed WWE Universal Championship in a Last Man Standing match. Reigns successfully defended the championship in the face of daunting odds, with Lesnar at one point using a tractor to destroy the ring and knock Reigns to the floor.

Meanwhile, the event included the returns of Bayley, Dakota Kai, and Iyo Sky (Io Shirai), with all three confronting “WWE Raw” Women’s Champion Bianca Belair and Becky Lynch following Belair’s successful defense against Lynch. Other notable moments included Bobby Lashley retaining the WWE US Championship against Theory, Logan Paul defeating The Miz, Seth Rollins laying out Riddle for the second straight show, and the Usos retaining the WWE Tag Team Championships against the Street Profits, with Jeff Jarrett as special guest referee.

WWE Allowing Talent More Freedom On Mic And To Improvise More

According to a report by PWInsider it's being said that WWE is allowing talent to have more freedom while on the mic. They also are allowed to improvise more, and call spots in the ring.

PWInsider were told that a big part of what made the Sheamus vs. Drew McIntyre match so great on Smackdown last week is that it was called in the ring, and not having every single single spot laid out to them beforehand.

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