As his post-show press conference following WWE Backlash on Saturday neared its end, Paul “Triple H” Levesque sought one more question from the assembled media.
It’s a safe bet that it didn’t take long for WWE’s Chief Content Officer to regret his decision.
After a reporter asked Levesque whether he could confirm that the company had released Drew Gulak and, if so, whether it had anything to do with Ronda Rousey’s allegation that the wrestler had inappropriately tugged at the drawstring on her sweatpants during her time with the company (Gulak has insisted it was an accident), the pro wrestling legend proceeded to criticize the outlets the reporter had cited seemingly.
Levesque also clarified that Gulak hadn’t been released; rather, his contract had not been renewed, but he failed to address whether Rousey’s allegation had played a role.
“First of all, if you’re going to cite news sources, pick good ones. That’s where I would start. Credible, really maybe,” Levesque answered in response to the question, which cited reporting from Fightful and PWInsider.com. “We release talent all the time. The NFL releases four or five hundred players a year. We release talent all the time. It’s a part of what we don’t. You can’t just hire people, bring them in, keep hiring more people, and just keep bringing them in. So, an unfortunate part of the job is talent gets released. Can I say that he was released? He was not released. His contract was just not renewed.”
Triple H was asked about Drew Gulak being released by WWE.
And in doing so also took aim at Fightful and PWlnsider: “First of all, if you’re gonna cite news sources, pick good ones.” pic.twitter.com/dFYFsIixtr
— Wrestle Ops (@WrestleOps) May 4, 2024
It’s unclear what part of Fightful and PWInsider’s reporting Levesque was taking issue with, although it’s worth noting that both websites referred to Gulak’s departure from the company as a release as opposed to his contract not being renewed. However, while there is a distinction between the two types of departures, the larger question at hand was whether Rousey’s comments had anything to do with Gulak no longer being with the company, which Levesque didn’t address.
In a follow-up to Levesque’s comments, Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp noted that WWE’s public relations team had contacted him to inform him that the sideswipe at his outlet was a “mishap.” Understandably, Sapp stated his desire for such an acknowledgment to be made publicly.
I've been told by WWE PR that Triple H lumping in Fightful was a "mishap." I don't think PWInsider should have been trashed either.
Would like that type of thing clarified publicly, as intentionally undermining the work of people who take the steps to verify info is messed up.
— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) May 4, 2024
Meanwhile, PWInsider co-founder Dave Scherer took to X to insist that he didn’t take the comment personally and reiterated his belief that Levesque is doing a great job running WWE’s creative.
Thoughts on what @TripleH said today? I don't have any. Whatever he meant, he meant. It doesn't change the fact that I think he is doing a great job and that Backlash was an amazing PLE. Children take things personally. We will continue being fair and honest. @davescherer
— PWInsider.com (@PWInsidercom) May 4, 2024
At this point, it’s unknown whether Levesque’s comment was intended to be explicitly directed at PWInsider, Fightful, and/or NewsNation, where Rousey made her original comment. But regardless of his intentions, if Levesque were going to take a swipe at the media, it would have been prudent for him to explain his specific criticism to avoid such confusion.
[WWE]
