Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, WWE had to change plans for WrestleMania this year. They already filmed the event last week and it will be broadcasted on April 4th and 5th. It took them a significant amount of time to edit the show and so there are more risks of a leak.
According to a report by Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated, WWE is adamant about the fact that they will be firing any employee that leaks any WrestleMania spoilers. It also notes that the agents at hand include Adam Pearce, Road Dogg, and Shawn Michaels.
Apart from them, the only other people who could spoil the event include Michael Cole or members of the production team. It is still unknown what the lineup for the event is.
On top of this, Barrasso also provided information regarding the relationship between WWE and ESPN. Here is what he said:
“A potential partnership for this year included airing WrestleMania 36 on the ESPN+ pay-per-view service, similar to the manner in which the UFC is covered, until the coronavirus ended those discussions,” notes Barrasso. “ESPN did not want to spend such a high price on any event stuck in uncertainty. Had WWE sold the pay-per-view piece to ESPN+ and reconfigured the Network, perhaps this could have been a real windfall for the company. Instead, it pivoted its strategy with access to the WWE Network to lead to more subscriptions. WrestleMania has always been the biggest reason people add the WWE Network, and in addition to television rights, it marks another guaranteed source of income in an uncertain time for WWE. But one thing is certain: ESPN is interested in being in the WWE business.”
We can be sure that this year’s WrestleMania will not be spoiled.
