The drama between the Mauro Ranallo and JBL has been ongoing ever since prior to Wrestlemania. These two were part of the commentary team on Smackdown Live. JBL plays the role of a heel whereas Mauro was hired for his babyface role on TV. Due to this reason, we have heard numerous times JBL making nasty comments on his fellow commentator.
This might have gone beyond expectation leading Mauro into a hiatus prior to Wrestlemania. Later, he declared that he has gone into a depression following those bullying incidents on live television.
The incident was brought to notice even to the mainstream media who reported the incident as WWE totally going to the opposite direction of their anti-bullying campaign, “Be A Star.” The company has not addressed the situation until now.
Yesterday, WWE released a statement on the Newsweek regarding the issue. It stated that they will be conducting thorough investigation whether JBL was bullying intentionally, Furthermore, they will take a step if the veteran wrestler was part of some incidents at backstage. Check out the released statement by WWE spokesperson:
“As part of our commitment to creating an inclusive environment, in April 2011, WWE launched our anti-bullying campaign, Be a STAR, which encourages young people to treat each other with tolerance and respect.
“As a publicly traded company, that mantra carries forward in our corporate culture. As such, we fully investigate any allegations of inappropriate behaviour including the recent alleged situation with John Layfield (aka JBL), despite no formal complaint having been submitted.”
However, to the relief of the company, Mauro did not accuse the biggest pro-wrestling promotion of such bullying. Rather he stated that he and WWE parted ways in a mutual agreement. This was his statement:
“ WWE and I have mutually agreed to part ways. It has nothing to do with JBL”
The Hall of Famer, JBL also talked to Newsweek where he claimed that he had nothing to do with Mauro being disassociated with the company,
“Admittedly, I took part in locker room pranks that existed within the industry years ago,” Layfield admitted. “WWE addressed my behaviour and I responded accordingly, yet my past is being brought up because of recent unfounded rumours. I apologise if anything I said playing ‘the bad guy’ on a TV show was misconstrued.”
WWE taking a step in this matter was an inevitable one. The media backlash for this one was ongoing for several weeks which have done a lot of damages to the company’s anti-bullying campaign. It will be interesting to see whether JBL will be retained in the commentary panel or not.
