Vince McMahon Resigns From All Positions At TKO/WWE
Vince McMahon on Friday resigned as TKO executive chairman and gave up his place on the company’s board of directors.
“I wanted to inform you that Vince McMahon has tendered his resignation from his positions as TKO Executive Chairman and on the TKO Board of Directors,” WWE president and TKO board member Nick Khan said in an email to staff, per Variety. “He will no longer have a role with TKO Group Holdings or WWE.”
McMahon’s departure from TKO, the company formed by Endeavor that merged WWE and the UFC, came after former WWE employee Janel Grant filed a lawsuit against him, WWE, and former executive John Laurinaitis.
The lawsuit claimed McMahon sexually exploited her and trafficked her to other men, including Laurinaitis.
A copy of the full lawsuit can be read here.
“I stand by my prior statement that Ms. Grant’s lawsuit is replete with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and is a vindictive distortion of the truth,” McMahon said in a statement, per Deadline. “I intend to vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations, and look forward to clearing my name.
“However, out of respect for the WWE Universe, the extraordinary TKO business and its board members and shareholders, partners and constituents, and all of the employees and Superstars who helped make WWE into the global leader it is today, I have decided to resign from my executive chairmanship and the TKO board of directors, effective immediately.”
Grant’s lawsuit came after WWE announced a new media rights deal for “RAW” that will see Netflix become the exclusive home of the flagship show starting next year. McMahon’s resignation came on the same day Slim Jim announced a “pause” on its involvement with WWE, per Post Wrestling.
“She hopes any doors of secrecy have been blown off their hinges and that fresh air fills the headquarters,” Grant’s attorney Ann Callis said Friday on the “Law & Crime Network. “And she hopes those at the company, past and present, who fear speaking out about harm is a thing of the past. She wishes everyone peace.”
McMahon is believed to own 12% of TKO stock, per Wrestlenomics’ Brandon Thurston, which does not give him the voting power to force his return to the company like he did last year with WWE.
WWE is scheduled to hold its Royal Rumble premium live event Saturday. Chief content officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque is expected to speak to media in a post-show news conference.