WWE veteran blasts Corey Graves: "The ego of the wrestler" (Exclusive)

Corey Graves has been the talk of the wrestling world since criticizing WWE on social media. Vince Russo, the company's head writer in the late 1990s, recently shared his thoughts on the commentator's issues.

On January 7, Graves returned to NXT after eight-and-a-half years as a main roster announcer. The former wrestler wrote on X that someone told him he was "not famous enough" for his own job. He later deleted the posts and missed the January 14 episode of NXT, prompting speculation about his future.

Russo appeared on Sportskeeda's The Wrestling Outlaws with host Dr. Chris Featherstone and former WWE star EC3. He explained why the decision to replace Graves with former NFL star Pat McAfee as Michael Cole's new RAW commentary partner made sense:

"Here we go again: the ego of the wrestler. Bro, they are on Netflix. This is huge for them. Pat McAfee has a huge reach. People know who Pat McAfee is. I would dare say a minimum of five times the amount of people know who McAfee is compared to Corey Graves. So, the WWE wants to do a big splash, 'We're going on Netflix, let's put McAfee on there to get his audience and to get his following.'" [3:43 – 4:23]

Watch the video above to hear EC3's thoughts on whether Graves has a right to be annoyed.

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Vince Russo on Corey Graves' failure to understand business

After a week of rumors about Graves' status, he surprisingly returned to the NXT announce desk alongside Booker T and Vic Joseph on January 21.

While Russo appreciates Graves' frustrations, he thinks the commentator should have behaved more professionally:

"It's a business decision. It's not that Corey Graves is bad at his job. This is a business decision. I totally understand it. But, because Corey Graves has an ego, he's taking it personally when it wasn't personal at all. It was freaking business, bro. Period." [4:26 – 4:49]

Graves' unexpected NXT appearance was referenced at the start of this week's episode. Joseph introduced the 40-year-old, who enthusiastically stated, "I am right where I want to be."

What do you make of Graves' recent drama? Hit the discuss button and let us know.

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