It has been a little over a week since WWE presented the Greatest Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia, and the controversy of WWE working a show in that country just refuses to die.
Many wrestling fans were upset that WWE chose to sign into an agreement with a nation that has such a poor track record when it comes to women’s rights and gay rights. WWE portrayed their agreement as hopeful for the future that things would change in the country, but a Saudi issued apology to their citizens about WWE airing a commercial featuring a woman during the show seemed to paint a different picture.
Videos by PopCulture.com
No WWE women were allowed to be featured on the show, as per Saudi Arabian custom and law. In fact, Saudi women who attended the show were only allowed to sit in certain sections and had to be accompanied by a man.
With WWE leaving the women off of the show entirely, there had been speculation that WWE would still give them a portion of the massive amount of money they earned from the show as a “make good” for the situation. Jerry Lawler actually confirmed this on his podcast.
Many pointed out the hypocrisy of WWE running a show in such an anti-woman area of the world despite WWE pushing themselves as a brand that is on the forefront of a women’s revolution.
Enter WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross. He does not believe any of the WWE women should get a cut of the pay for the show.
“I don’t know why it would be that way. It’s not everybody’s right to be on any card. You earn your right to be on the card. And the women have done a phenomenal job and I am as big a supporter of women’s athletics in general, hey I’m a season ticket holder to the OU women’s basketball games. I’m a big fan of the OU women’s softball team who are defending national champions. So I’m a big fan,” Ross said this week on the Ross Report.
He continued, “But I believe the same thing as I do about WrestleMania. It’s not your birthright to be booked. It’s like playing in the Super Bowl. It’s not your right as an NFL player you earn that right to get in that game.”
“So I believe the women I don’t know if they were paid or not,” Ross said. “I don’t know why they would have been paid and I may piss some people off but I’m just being honest. It’s my problem I have sometimes, being honest.”
