It's been reported on multiple sites that WWE has taped all of its post WrestleMania content for Raw, SmackDown and NXT through April 10th and did it over the course of the past week, including taping much of WrestleMania. However, the Coronavirus pandemic has forced a number of changes to the show, aside from taking place in the WWE PC without fans in attendance, that include some matches. For instance, Rey Mysterio is under quarantine and was pulled from the show where he was supposed to face Andrade for the US title. So, Andrade was paired with Angel Garza to take on the Street Profits for the Raw Tag Team Championship but Andrade was pulled from the show due to the virus. Murphy also wasn't at the tapings due to being sick and even though he didn't have a match, he'd have probably been ringside for Seth Rollins' match against Kevin Owens. The Miz wasn't at the tapings due to being sick, Roman Reigns pulled out of WrestleMania due to concerns of contracting the virus as he has a compromised immune system due to his cancer treatments, etc..
If you spend any time watching the news, this thing isn't going away anytime soon. Anthony Fauci, one of the top men on the White House Coronavirus Task Force, said today that he expects millions of Americans to contract the virus and expects casualties between 100,000 and 200,000 before things finally get under control. I don't know how many others, if any others, share this opinion but it's certainly not comforting.
Over the past few days, there've been stories out stating that really the only one that's wanted WrestleMania to go forward is Vince McMahon himself. Various writers have stated they've talked to a number of employees including wrestlers, commentators, agents, producers, etc. and all have said Vince is really the only force that's pushed for WrestleMania to go on. Of course, nobody's spoken up as they're worried about losing their spot or essentially committing career suicide by outright refusing to work until this virus is gotten under control.
So, should WWE shut itself down until this thing is licked? Considering that just about every other sports league has, considering that production on blockbuster films & TV shows have been postponed along with numerous other businesses from all walks of life, it may be increasingly irresponsible for WWE not to as time goes by. If cases of the virus continue to go up, that's just that much more of a chance of the wrestlers contracting it while they're traveling to and from WWE TV tapings. If things keep going in this direction, it may well be taken out of Vince's hands altogether if the local and state governments in Florida step in. Of course, it'd also be difficult to go on if the wrestlers themselves grew some balls and said they're not working until the situation is under control; that is, if they're legitimately that concerned. I mean, that's especially true for wrestlers like Reigns, Lesnar, Taker, Rollins, Bryan, Charlotte, Becky, Styles, Anderson, Gallows and a few others. Reigns makes a few million a year, Taker probably makes somewhere around a million per match, Lesnar probably makes double that, Rollins & Bryan both probably have downside guarantees in the high six figures and probably make well over a cool million a year. Charlotte & Becky both signed deals worth $1.2 million per year, which is probably a downside guarantee as well. Braun Strowman has the same deal as Charlotte and Becky. Anderson & Gallows both have $700,000 downside guarantees, Styles probably gets around a million, etc.. If the top talents refuse to work, that'd be encouragement to the ones who aren't making as much. I mean, Vince can bluster, whinney, bleat and moo all he wants but he can't put on a show with no talent.
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by #RicSolarFlair
