What’s the story?
As reported by Cagesideseats, Newsweek was working on a major story on the Mauro Ranallo-JBL situation before Ranallo and WWE management reached a settlement.
This resulted in a new story being put together with quotes from all parties involved, and as of today, the Ranallo-JBL bullying saga is close to being resolved with everyone hoping to move on.
In case you didn’t know...
Mauro Ranallo is one of the most well-known commentators in the combat sports industry and worked for the WWE’s SmackDown brand from 2015 until his sudden absence from the blue brand’s announcer table in March of this year.
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Several pro-wrestling industry insiders have attributed Ranallo’s sudden disappearance from WWE to the alleged backstage bullying he suffered at the hands of JBL, which is rumoured to be encouraged by the WWE higher-ups. Ranallo and John Bradshaw Layfield have taken subtle shots at one another over the past few weeks. However, no accusations or claims have been proven as of yet.
The heart of the matter
As we reported previously, Ranallo and a WWE official have confirmed his upcoming departure from the promotion. They also noted that although his contract with WWE is valid until August 12, 2017, he won’t return to the company’s broadcasting booth anytime soon.
Also read: Impact Wrestling takes a shot at the JBL-Mauro Ranallo controversy
Newsweek, one of the oldest media outlets in the United States of America, are rumoured to have been working on a major story surrounding the aforementioned bullying controversy. However, the story is said to have been scrapped after Ranallo and the WWE reached a settlement and subsequently decided to part ways mutually. Newsweek put together a new story with the following PR statement from a WWE spokesperson regarding the Ranallo-JBL situation:
“As part of our commitment to creating an inclusive environment, in April 2011, WWE launched our anti-bullying campaign, Be a STAR, which encourages young people to treat each other with tolerance and respect.”
“As a publicly traded company, that mantra carries forward in our corporate culture. As such, we fully investigate any allegations of inappropriate behaviour including the recent alleged situation with John Layfield (aka JBL), despite no formal complaint having been submitted.”
What’s next?
Ranallo has been working the commentary booth in several MMA as well as pro-boxing events such as the recent RIZIN FF fight card and the Porter-Berto boxing showdown, besides featuring on the Rutten & Ranallo podcast.
His contract with WWE expires on August 12th and considering the PR statements issues by both WWE and Ranallo, fans can expect all parties involved to try and move on from what is to date, a heated topic of debate in the professional wrestling community.
Author’s take
Several pro-wrestling fans have been accusing WWE management of hushing up this situation involving JBL’s alleged bullying, however, in my opinion, we must refrain from blindly blaming the WWE in this situation and instead let the whole deal play out in the weeks to come.
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