WWE Star ‘100% Disagrees’ With Criticism Of WrestleMania 43 In Saudi Arabia

WWE

A WWE Hall of Famer who recently returned for a role in the company “100% disagrees” with criticism of WrestleMania 43 in Saudi Arabia.

WWE made it official this past Friday that WrestleMania 43 in 2027 will be taking place in Riyadh.

When this was promoted to live fans at Worlds Collide later the same evening, it received loud boos and “you sold out” chants.

There has also been a negative reception online, with the video of the announcement receiving far more ‘dislikes’ than ‘likes.’

Speaking on Something to Wrestle, WWE Hall of Famer JBL says that he “100%” doesn’t agree with the criticism.

He said:

“I don’t know their motives for why they’re doing it. Are they doing it for selfish reasons? I don’t know if it’s a selfish motive as, ‘Hey, I just wanna be heard, I’m a spoiled brat,’ or ‘I really believe this and that’s my voice speaking out.’

“I don’t know where they’re coming from. I think it’s misguided.

“Obviously we’re not the moral police, and you say, ‘Well you can’t do business with this country because of this, this and this.’ You can list that for pretty much any country, including ours, pretty easily.

“And so, I get people wanna have their voice heard. I 100% do not agree with that dissent at all.”

If you use this transcription or any portion of it please credit WrestleTalk.com and link to this page.

JBL recently returned to WWE programming as an announcer for AAA alongside Corey Graves and Konnan, which meant JBL was in the building for the boos from the crowd at Worlds Collide.

During the same podcast, JBL listed his top five international wrestling moments, and gave an honorable mention to the Greatest Royal Rumble in 2018, which was the first event of the current WWE & Saudi Arabia partnership. He said:

“That opened up the door to WWE going to the Middle East, and I think that’s going to be massive in the next few years, what WWE is gonna do with the Saudis specifically – not just the Middle East but specifically with the Saudis.

“You look what they’re doing with golf, you look what they’ve done with soccer. Those guys, they’re force multipliers. Their money is not just about buying something for no reason at all to put their name on something. They’re force multipliers, and things that they have bought have so far turned out very well.

“I think you’re gonna see the same thing happen with WWE. Not that they’re buying WWE, they’re certainly partnering with WWE, and I think that first one that went over there, that was such a good show and things worked out so well, I think that led to what we’re seeing now.”

If you use this transcription or any portion of it please credit WrestleTalk.com and link to this page.