During a recent interview with TMZ prior to Thursday’s Crown Jewel event, Stephanie McMahon commented on the first-ever women’s match in Saudi Arabia and what it meant for the company. You can check out some highlights from the interview below:
On her reaction to the women’s match happening at Crown Jewel: “As a woman, as a mother, as just a person, I couldn’t be more proud. I am ecstatic, I am thrilled, I am, you know, many different adjectives to describe how I feel right now.”
On what it means for the company: “I think what it means for WWE is that, you know, the women’s evolution is continuing. When you consider that in 2015 there was a hashtag called #GiveDivasAChance, which was our audience demanding more athleticism, better character development, better storylines, longer matches. And it trended worldwide for three days … I would say that this match now in Saudi Arabia, the first-ever women’s match, just continues that evolution and is another step for equality.”
On what changed to allow them to put on the match in Saudi Arabia: “It’s just again, it’s always been a part of our goal since we launched this partnership over a year and a half ago. And you know, here we are, and we’re able to make it happen.”
On if it took lobbying with Saudi officials: “Of course, I mean we’ve been fighting for this for a long time. And WWE fans, they’re very vocal and I love that. They’re the most passionate fans in the world, I honestly love them … but you know, ultimately they hang in there, and when we first started doing our events [in Saudi], they weren’t necessarily happy. They voiced their opinions of how badly they wanted women’s matches to be a part of it. And like you said, they’re not always aware of all the internal conversations or machinations that go into any deal. But ultimately, here we are.”
(h/t – 411 Wrestling)
