Brock Lesnar Reportedly Confirmed For Elimination Chamber And WrestleMania 39
Fans are eagerly anticipating the booking decisions of WWE’s creative team after the exciting Royal Rumble event. With expectation high, Brock Lesnar is expected to have a significant presence at WrestleMania 39. Currently, Lesnar is reportedly confirmed to compete at both the Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania. However, there is still some uncertainty about who his opponents will be.
There is much speculation among fans about the potential match between Brock Lesnar and Gunther following the intense staredown they had at the Royal Rumble. As Lesnar is confirmed to be wrestling at both Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania 39, many fans are eager to see who he will be facing in the ring. Lesnar’s elimination from the Royal Rumble after only three minutes has only added to the speculation.
Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported that the speculation about Gunther vs. Lesnar is false as WWE seemingly has different plans for the former WWE Champion. It was also noted that despite Stone Cold Steve Austin turning down the offer to wrestle Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 39, The Beast is still confirmed to compete at WrestleMania 39 in California in April.
“Lesnar has been confirmed to be working both Montreal and WrestleMania. For Mania, it could be another match with Lashley. We were only told rumors of Gunther are false and that Steve Austin, who they had contacted for Lesnar, had turned down wrestling on the show.”
WWE Reportedly Released Big After Vince McMahon’s Return To Reduce Costs
Vince McMahon made a surprising comeback to WWE in January 2023, after announcing his retirement in 2022. Prior to his return, he had stepped down from all of his positions, including CEO, Chairman, and Creative Head of the company. However, upon his return, he only resumed the role of Executive Chairman of the Board and did not take on any additional responsibilities.
Ever since McMahon returned, there have been a lot of changes made. This includes the departures of some big names and veterans of the company. His daughter Stephanie McMahon stepped down as the co-CEO and resigned from the company. Two VPs of Communications were also reportedly let go by Vince McMahon, including Adam Hopkins.
As per Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer, multiple names have been released by WWE since Vince McMahon returned. One of the biggest names is Matthew Drew, who was the senior Vice President of International. He stated that these releases are being done to ‘lower the costs.’
”There have been a lot more cuts on the corporate side in the past few weeks in different departments since the return of Vince McMahon. The belief is that these cuts are being made to lower the costs to get the company ready for a sale. Matthew Drew, who was the Senior Vice President of International, was the biggest name let go.”
While Nick Khan is now the sole CEO of WWE after Stephanie McMahon’s exit, Matthew Drew was a man hired by him. He had previously worked for DAZN and was brought into the company in June 2021. His job was to manage global media partners and devise plans for international events.
”He came from DAZN in June 2021 which means he was a Nick Khan hire, since Khan hired a number of people from DAZN in 2021. His job included managing global media partners, devising international strategy for overseas live events, digital, consumer products and new revenue opportunities.”