WWE’s partnership with ESPN got off to a relatively rocky start last weekend after their Wrestlepalooza event didn’t receive the best of reviews from the media company. Earlier this year, the two companies announced a brand-new partnership, which will see ESPN air WWE’s premium live events going forward.
The deal is said to be worth close to $2 billion for WWE, with ESPN paying $1.6 billion to stream the promotion’s major live events. The new relationship got underway with Wrestlepalooza on Saturday night, with the show headlined by Cody Rhodes defending his Undisputed WWE Championship against Drew McIntyre.
Unfortunately for Triple H and company, the show wasn’t quite the success that they’d expected and it acually received a less than favourable review from ESPN who rated the show after the fact. On their official website, ESPN rated Wrestlepalooza a C and claimed that Stephanie Vaquer’s match against Iyo Sky saved the show from being a complete let-down. It was a brutal review and now, a report has revealed how some backstage in WWE felt about it.
WWE Personel Were Stunned & Confused By ESPN’s Review
Shortly after ESPN’s review of Wrestlepalooza went live, fans expressed their surprise on social media. They were shocked that a company affiliated with WWE would share such an honest rating, especially so early in their relationship. Now, Wrestlevotes have revealed how some people in WWE felt about the rating.
According to the report, those backstage in the company are said to be ‘stunned’ by the rating from ESPN. The report stated that people within WWE were openly wondering why the sports and entertainment network would want the “online stigma” of a negative review for what they considered a “fairly ordinary” or “fairly standard” WWE event.
The review is said to be in stark contrast to how those in WWE felt about Wrestlepalooza, with those backstage considering the show to have been a solid outing for the company. The event marked the in-ring returns of AJ Lee and Brock Lesnar, with the former teaming up with her husband, CM Punk, to take on Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch, while the latter demolished John Cena on his retirement tour in rapid fashion.
Other matches on the card included the aforementioned title match between Rhodes and McIntyre and Vaquer’s victory over Sky, which saved the show from receiving an even lower rating in the eyes of ESPN.