WrestlePalooza “C” Rating Sparks Talk of How Vince McMahon Would’ve Had the ESPN Writer Fired

JBL isn’t holding back when it comes to the backlash surrounding WrestlePalooza—and he’s directing his fire straight at ESPN.

On a new episode of Something to Wrestle, the WWE Hall of Famer addressed negative reviews of the premium live event and called out critics who he says only sound “smart” by being negative.

“I saw some of the negative stuff out there. I think, you know, people love to be negative in their reviews. And I just think that’s what people … you know, you sound smart when you’re negative. You don’t sound smart when you’re positive.”

One review in particular set JBL off. An ESPN journalist gave Wrestlepalooza a “C” grade—something many fans found shocking, considering the show aired on ESPN’s own platform. JBL didn’t mince words about what would’ve happened if Vince McMahon were still running the show.

“Mr. Hale [the ESPN journalist] would be looking for a new job. There’s no doubt about it, and that’s what should happen. Look, you’re writing for a platform that you spent hundreds of millions of dollars on this product, and you’re bashing the product. I just don’t think that’s well thought through.”

JBL said the writer had every right to his opinion, but warned that undermining the product of a company that invested heavily in WWE isn’t a great career move.

“Mr. Hale has a right to say whatever the heck he wants and, you know, it’s his prerogative. But when you’re writing about the first show and you’re writing for it on the company that’s paid hundreds of millions of dollars and you undermine the very product that they’re paying hundreds of millions of dollars for because your opinion is that it wasn’t an A-level show, it was a C-level show, I doesn’t seem like that person has much job security.”

The former WWE Champion clarified that individual matches or wrestlers can be criticized, but taking down the entire show is a bad look for both ESPN and WWE. JBL’s comments shine a spotlight on the tension between media partners and wrestling promotions, especially when it comes to criticism of premium events.