Vince McMahon‘s resignation has been met with “relief and happiness” in WWE.
On January 25th, former WWE employee Janel Grant filed a new lawsuit against McMahon. The suit contains shocking allegations of sexual assault, emotional abuse, and sex trafficking by both McMahon and the former Executive Vice President of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis.
Grant had previously signed an NDA with an agreement that McMahon would pay $3 million. However, after an initial $1 million payment, no more installments were received. The new suit seeks to void the previous NDA and seek unspecified financial damages.
On January 26th, one of WWE’s biggest sponsors, Slim Jim, announced they would no longer be involved in the Royal Rumble and were pausing their relationship with the company. Fightful Select later reported that another major sponsor had decided not to work with the company amid the allegations.
That same evening, Nick Khan informed staff that McMahon had resigned from his position as TKO Executive Chairman. McMahon himself later issued a defiant statement, reiterating that he believed Grant’s statements to be “replete with lies” and claiming he was stepping down “out of respect for the WWE Universe” and TKO.
Vince McMahon’s Departure Met With Relief In WWE
According to a new report from PWInsider Elite, the initial response to McMahon’s resignation was “a mix of relief and happiness” in WWE. It was also noted that some felt the former Chairman “got what was coming to him.”
According to PWInisider, it was widely thought that McMahon would have no choice but to go after the Slim Jim announcement, but the move was said to have come much faster than anyone expected.
Additionally, McMahon was seen to be a “black cloud hanging over everything even though he wasn’t involved in anything”, so his exit is a positive for the company.
Some hope the door is now open for Stephanie McMahon to return to the company, however, it was noted that she might not fit in under the new structure created after the Endeavor takeover.
With McMahon now out of the picture, many are said to be hoping the focus will now return to more positive news, such as WWE’s new deal with Netflix, and the upcoming Royal Rumble.