JBL appeared on Fox Business’ Varney & Co on Tuesday. JBL was asked if the WWE Crown Jewel event in Saudi Arabia was still going to take place. He ended up sharing his thoughts on the situation and if WWE should still put on the event.
Here is what JBL said (quotes below via Cageside Seats)
“From what I understand, yes [Crown Jewel is going to take place in Saudi Arabia as planned]. The idea is WWE is gonna go there. Right now the official line is that they’re monitoring the situation.
My personal opinion is that they should go. I think the only way you promote change, like we did with Cuba – you isolate a country, all you do is impoverish that country. You want to promote change? WWE went to Abu Dhabi, did the first women’s match that had ever happened in the middle east, the crowd chanting in English ‘this is change’.
And for these senators to come out and bash the WWE on this? I have spent seven Christmases in Iraq and Afganistan with the WWE. I was with WWE, the first group that went down to visit the twin towers while they were still burning and bodies were pulling out. We were the first group, on 9/13 to have a mass gathering, right after 9/11. People didn’t know what was gonna happen. For these guys to hide behind their patriotism and their flag-waving to me is – to try to improve their abysmal approval ratings to me is wrong.
WWE has been at the forefront of change, and you want to change Saudi Arabia, you send something like WWE there.”
WWE is holding another big event in Saudi Arabia next month, however, many WWE stars stated that they felt uneasy following the disappearance of columnist Jamal Khashoggi. @JCLayfield, former WWE Wrestling Champion, joined Stuart to share his insight. #WWE #Kashoggi #SaudiArabia pic.twitter.com/hd88DpXy1P
— Varney & Co. (@Varneyco) October 16, 2018
Your thoughts on his comments?
On a related note, here was WWE’s statement on the reports that some WWE stars don’t want to go to Saudi Arabia.