Update On WWE “Moving Past” Vince McMahon’s Flagship Events

A new report has shed light on what TKO boss Mark Shapiro really meant about WWE moving away from Vince McMahon’s events.

Endeavor ushered in a new era in WWE when it took over the sports entertainment giant in 2023, putting it under the TKO umbrella alongside UFC.

Vince McMahon was originally named as Executive Chairman of the new TKO Group, but that role did not last long. McMahon was forced to resign after being accused of serious sexual assault by a former WWE employee as part of an ongoing lawsuit.

Speaking recently on The Main Event with Andrew Marchand podcast, TKO President Mark Shapiro appeared to suggest that WWE staple events such as WrestleMania and the Royal Rumble could end up being phased out as they were created by Vince McMahon:

They’re open to new ideas. They never seem exhausted. They’re ready to take on a new shot, a new risk, a new opportunity. ‘Hey, Nick, let’s talk about launching a new event.’ Right now, a lot of our PLEs were created by Vince McMahon.

We need to get in the business of taking that torch and moving past that, and Nick (Khan) and Triple H created Wrestlepalooza, which is the launch event for our new ESPN deal, which did incredibly well and may turn into a superfranchise.

Not to mention from a merch standpoint, I don’t need to tell you, securing the I.P. rights and then selling merch at Wrestlepalooza, let’s just say it was a real winner…

But things might not be as drastic as they first seemed.

WWE Not Getting Rid Of Vince McMahon Tentpole Events

Fightful Select has reported that a WWE higher-up noted their belief that Shapiro’s comments referred to other monthly events rather than the tentpole franchises such as WrestleMania, Royal Rumble, SummerSlam, and Survivor Series. It was specifically noted that “Saudi Arabia isn’t paying for WrestlePalooza, they’re paying for WrestleMania, and the value of that name and brand is the reason for that.”