Vince McMahon didn’t make an appearance on screen during night 1 of WrestleMania 39. There’s no reason to think that he was secretly pulling the strings behind the curtain, or that anyone but Paul “Triple H” Levesque was making the final decisions. It was Levesque who was front and center to finish off the post-show press conference as well.
But perhaps it was naive to think that with McMahon back as executive chairman of WWE that he wasn’t going to attend WrestleMania and at least give his opinions on what should happen Saturday night.
According to Fightful Select (subscription required), that’s exactly what he did.
We’re told that Vince McMahon was not shy about giving input in Gorilla Position Saturday night. Talent told us that they even saw him around their hotel.
Again, it would be silly to think that unless McMahon was gone from the company completely, as he was for a few months last year, that he wouldn’t want to be part of WrestleMania in some capacity. This is still the event he dreamt up, the premier event of the company he made into a global powerhouse.
But the kneejerk reaction from many when hearing reports like this is to assume McMahon is going to reinstate himself as head of creative, that his bumping Levesque to the side is somehow inevitable. The follow-up question is pretty simple: Why?
Consider that an arrangement like this could be the best of both worlds for him. McMahon gets to offer his insight and let people internally know he’s still very much a part of the company. At the same time, he avoids the circus that would come with reclaiming his creative throne — and perhaps more importantly, the public scrutiny that would follow given his scandals that came to light in 2022, which he and WWE would undoubtedly prefer to avoid with sale talks still said to be ongoing.
It also prepares WWE for a future without him, which is going to arrive someday, giving Levesque the well-deserved credit for a show that was well received after it’s first night. It won’t be a surprise to see reports that he is back in the Gorilla Position again in night 2, making the most out of what could be his new status quo going forward.