“Mr. McMahon,” the executive’s character in the ring, kept things short.
“It’s a privilege as always to be in front of you tonight,” McMahon told the crowd in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
McMahon told the audience he was there simply to remind the crowd of the four words that make up the “WWE signature.”
“Those four words are‘ then ’,‘ now ’,‘ forever ’, and the most important word is‘ together ’,” he said. “Welcome to Smackdown!”
McMahon left the ring while playing his lead song, “No Chance in Hell.”
The director of the wrestling company is being investigated by the company’s board for agreeing to pay a $ 3 million secret settlement to a former employee with whom he allegedly had an affair, according to a Wall Street report. Journal. On Friday morning, the company announced that McMahon has agreed to step down as chairman and CEO while the investigation is ongoing.
Her daughter Stephanie McMahon will act as CEO and interim president, the company said in a statement Friday.
As for McMahon’s character in the ring, he won’t go anywhere at the moment. McMahon will maintain his role with regard to the creative content of the WWE and will appear as his character during the matches as the research unfolds.
The separation agreement was made in January between McMahon and the former unnamed employee. It prevented the employee, who was hired as a paralegal, from “discussing or disparaging her relationship with Mr. McMahon,” according to the Journal.
The investigation, which began in April, “has uncovered other older confidentiality agreements involving claims by former WWE employees for Mr. McMahon’s misconduct,” the Journal said. Other allegations of misconduct were found against John Laurinaitis, the company’s head of talent relations.
“I have pledged my full cooperation to the special committee’s investigation and will do my utmost to support the investigation,” McMahon said in a statement Friday. “I am also committed to accepting the findings and the outcome of the investigation, whatever they may be.”
McMahon added in the statement that he loves the WWE (WWE) and is “committed to working with independent directors to strengthen our culture.”
“It is extremely important to me that we have a secure and collaborative workplace,” he said. “I am committed to doing everything in my power to help the Special Committee complete its work, including coordinating company-wide cooperation to help complete the investigation and implement its findings.”
As Friday’s appearance on “Smackdown” shows, McMahon has been an integral part of the WWE for decades, both as an executive and as a fighter.
It turned the company into a global media powerhouse, which currently has major broadcasting and broadcasting agreements with Fox and NBCUniversal. McMahon has also helped create many famous fighters, including The Rock, John Cena and Stone Cold Steve Austin, all of whom have moved into pop culture.
– Jordan Valinsky of CNN Business contributed to this report.