WWE missing top stars on RAW; Vince Russo points towards complacency because of "rich contracts" (Exclusive)

Modified Apr 15, 2025 10:22 GMT

Seth Rollins closed the show by hitting Stomps on CM Punk and Roman Reigns [Image: WWE.com]

Former WWE head writer Vince Russo bashed the company for not having the Rock or John Cena on this week's RAW. This week's episode of the red brand was the go-home show before WrestleMania.

The show progressed several storylines heading into the PLE. Top stars including Roman Reigns, CM Punk, Seth Rollins, Gunther, and Jey Uso were on the show. However, John Cena and The Rock were not present for this week's taping.

This week on Legion of RAW, Russo explained that WWE was already selling out arenas long before the PLEs. So, he felt the quality of the shows heading into WrestleMania didn't matter because people had already bought the show. The veteran writer explained that the go-home shows were about selling more tickets back in the day, but the concept is outdated with the company's current contracts and subscription models.

"This is exactly what we talk about week after week. This used to be about enticing people to go in their pocket and spend their hard earned money. They don't have to entice people to do that anymore because they've got these rich, rich, rich contracts. The money is in the bank. So, even the go-home show does not matter. They've already got their money. It doesn't matter if it entices you to watch the show or not. If you don't watch teh show, what do they lose." [From 8:24 onwards]

WWE RAW this week closed with Seth Rollins hitting the Stomp on CM Punk and Roman Reigns as Paul Heyman watched in horror. This angle hyped up their main event matchup scheduled for Night One of WrestleMania.

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About the author

Prityush is a WWE news writer for Sportskeeda Wrestling who started watching wrestling in the later part of The Attitude Era. Although he holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Prityush was a creative writer for his college, and his flair for creativity and love of pro wrestling eventually led him to the journalism field. After an initial stint in 2016-2017, he has been writing regularly for Sportskeeda since 2021.

As someone who loves and respects the business, he prides himself on factual, clean, and ethical reporting, free of plagiarism and AI usage. One of the ways he ensures this is by transcribing videos that he reports on.

Prityush had the privilege of interviewing superstar Matt Hardy in his career so far. Although, his favorite wrestler is CM Punk, as he relates to his Straight Edge philosophy.

When he is not reporting news, he loves reading and collecting WWE action figures. He currently owns over 500 wrestling figures and merchandise.

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Edited by Prityush Haldar