Pitch Made For “F*** You Pat McAfee” Campaign By WWE Veteran
Pat McAfee’s recent return has started a controversy in the WWE world, and a veteran has suggested WWE capitalize on it.
McAfee made a shocking return to WWE on the April 3, 2026, episode of WWE SmackDown, where he aligned with Randy Orton. During Orton’s in-ring brawl segment with Cody Rhodes, McAfee showed up and attacked The American Nightmare with a low blow, officially turning heel.
McAfee then took the microphone and cut a controversial promo, saying that WWE has sucked creatively under Rhodes and that he is on a mission to motivate Orton to lead WWE back into its aggressive Attitude Era roots. He also criticized WWE for poor WrestleMania 42 ticket sales.
According to reports, TKO CEO Ari Emanuel made the decision to involve McAfee in the high-profile storyline of Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton. He reportedly made this move to boost corporate synergy ahead of WrestleMania’s upcoming debut on ESPN.
Later that night on SmackDown, Cody Rhodes came out to cut a promo, which was reportedly a shoot-style segment where he took direct shots at Ari Emanuel and McAfee.
On the following episode of WWE Raw, CM Punk opened the show and delivered a promo addressing Roman Reigns, while also targeting McAfee. He mocked McAfee by calling him “Pat MAGA-fee” and labeled him a “no-brain hillbilly.”
Punk also blasted McAfee for talking about wrestlers not selling enough tickets and took a direct shot at his agent, Ari Emanuel. Punk accused Emanuel of forcefully adding McAfee into the WrestleMania 42 storyline purely for corporate benefit. He even told McAfee to call his agent and ask him to lower ticket prices so that average fans and families could afford WrestleMania 42.
Pat McAfee Heat Could Be WWE’s Biggest Opportunity Ahead of WrestleMania 42
McAfee’s return, Cody Rhodes’ outrage, and CM Punk’s pipe bomb-style promo have been gaining significant traction ahead of WrestleMania 42. Speaking on Busted Open Radio, veteran Bully Ray stated that WWE can use this heat to capitalize on and promote the ongoing storylines.
He added that WWE can frame Pat McAfee as the ultimate villain of the company, which, according to him, would be hugely successful. Bully Ray even suggested WWE start a “F*** You Pat McAfee” campaign on Twitter to bring more attention to the product.
“If I’m hearing CM Punk, who is the ‘Voice of the Voiceless’ talking about Pat McAfee and how much he hates him, that’s very Pavlovian for wrestling fans. ‘Well, if Punk hates him, I hate him, too.’ I think the entire company needs to jump on board with this. You want this to really work? Then the entire company across the board should be hating on Pat McAfee. I would have started a Twitter campaign: ‘F*** You Pat McAfee.'”
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