Published: Aug 25, 2023 by Liam | Last Updated: Aug 25, 2023 by Liam
Liam has been reporting & analyzing wrestling news for over eight years, and is currently the Managing Editor at WrestleTalk.com. Immersed in wrestling for 18 years, he has over 11,000 published articles in addition to leading and overseeing WrestleTalk.com's coverage.
WWE
WWE has officially confirmed that tonight’s August 25 SmackDown will pay tribute to Bray Wyatt and Terry Funk.
Wyatt, real name Windham Rotunda, passed away aged 36 yesterday.
Funk passed away a day prior aged 79.
In a promotional email sent out to fans ahead of SmackDown, WWE wrote:
“Tonight, we pay tribute to the lives and careers of the one and only Bray Wyatt and WWE Hall of Famer Terry Funk.”
WWE is also still promoting Rey Mysterio vs Grayson Waller, and IYO SKY vs Zelina Vega.
However, a preview for Jimmy Uso’s return was removed from WWE.com earlier, and was not included in the email, so that appears to have been called off.
PWInsider reported earlier that Braun Strowman and Cody Rhodes, who of course both had close ties to Wyatt, are being brought into tonight’s SmackDown, but there’s no confirmation on whether they’ll appear on camera.
WWE has added the following note to the item descriptions for Wyatt merch on the WWE Shop website:
In the wake of Bray Wyatt’s death, WWE will donate all net proceeds to support JoJo Offerman and his children.
You can find said merch at this link.
Yesterday, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful reported:
I was given permission to reveal that earlier this year Windham Rotunda (Bray Wyatt) got COVID that exacerbated a heart issues.
There was a lot of positive progress towards a return and his recovery. Unfortunately today he suffered a heart attack and passed away.
Our thoughts and condolences continue to be with the families, friends, and anyone affected by the passings of Windham Rotunda and Terry Funk.
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