Kevin Owens met w/Vince re: Covid concerns & wearing masks

[héad.casé]

Kevin Owens reportedly confronted Vince McMahon over the lack of masks at WWE TV tapings during the coronavirus pandemic.

WWE French-language commentator Pat Laprade noted during a recent episode of the Les anti-pods de la Lutte podcast and revealed that Owens raised concerns with the WWE Chairman & CEO at the TV tapings held on Friday, July 3 at the Performance Center. This reportedly led to the mandatory mask policy, and the fines for not wearing masks while in the building.

Owens reportedly told McMahon that he was not comfortable with the lack of masks being worn by people in the Performance Center, and people being too close to each other. Owens also told McMahon that he was going home, apparently due to COVID-19 concerns. Vince then asked Owens what he wanted him to do, and Owens allegedly responded by saying Vince is the only person that the WWE crew will listen to.

It was also said that Vince asked Owens if instituting a mask policy with fans would work. Owens then said that he once swore on SmackDown, was fined and never did it again, with the idea that the fine was a deterrent. Vince apparently listened and took action as Owens stayed to work the tapings after noticing that people were starting to wear masks and practice better social distancing.

Friday's RAW tapings were for tonight's episode, which will see Owens take on Seth Rollins in singles action.

As we've noted, WWE is now issuing $500 fines for not wearing masks, unless a person is performing in front of the camera. The second offense reportedly brings a fine of $1,000.

It was reported back in June that Owens skipped a set of TV tapings after a developmental talent tested positive for the coronavirus. Owens' wife's grandfather had passed away from the virus a few weeks before.

www.wrestlinginc.com/news/2020/07/kevin-owens-reportedly-confronts-vince-mcmahon-over-masks-672383/

Confirmed by Sean Ross Sapp

[Deleted]

[Mochi Lone Wolf]

As perverse as it is, it's this confrontational attitude that Vince respects and listens to.


Is it healthy? No. Not even a little bit. The only hope is that with the likes of AEW around, it'll give wrestlers the initiative to realize that don't have to put up with Vince's crap if they don't want to.

[thelonewolf527]

Was this before or after he went to Universal Studios?

[Deleted]

That's cool. Friendly talk always pays out.

[Deleted]

Jul 13, 2020 14:23:02 GMT -5 Mochi Lone Wolf said:

As perverse as it is, it's this confrontational attitude that Vince respects and listens to.


Is it healthy? No. Not even a little bit.

But, it's the only way a guy with Vince's warped sense of reality is going to listen to logic.

[Deleted]

I want to see actual segments in the show where Vince asks help of Owens in daily situations, always fixing everything in a matter of seconds. Some Foley/Vince style crap.

[Deleted]

Cash Money Kev coming through again.

[Deleted]

[polarbearpete]

Owens in his interview with SI:

I hurt my ankle at WrestleMania so I needed time off, and then I came back—and then I went away again. I just felt like it was the right move for my family and I to sit out a few of the tapings of Raw and assess the COVID outbreak. We live in Orlando, so it’s not just going to the Performance Center. It’s everywhere. We thought it was the right time to quarantine and practice safe guidelines. Last week, I saw the measures that the company was taking, from the testing to the splitting up the crews to make sure Raw and SmackDown wouldn’t be there the same day, and sending out very clear very indications that masks were required unless we were in the ring.

A big part of this is my wife lost her grandfather to COVID. We make these decisions together. I don’t want anything I do to make my wife uncomfortable when I get back home. I want to make sure that she feels safe and that my children are safe. Every decision I make, I make with her. She saw the efforts the company made, as well, and she said maybe it was time for me to go back to work because it’s what I love to do. The company depends on me and there are a lot of fans that look forward to seeing me on TV every week, so we’re just trying to juggle everything. The family being safe, of course, but I also want to contribute to the shows. With her blessing, I went back. And what I observed gave me hope and gave me a sense of security.

It’s been brought up—at first, the masks weren’t being taken seriously enough. Eventually, a fine system was implemented to make sure people took it seriously. That came from me. I thought that the masks weren’t being worn seriously enough, so I went and talked to the people in charge. They immediately did what they could to remedy the situation. I don’t blame anybody for the mask thing. It’s easy to forget how important those masks are. Some people just straight up believe that the masks don’t make a difference, and that’s their belief. But if we’re all going to work together and we’re all trying to keep each other safe, I think it matters. If you’ve had somebody in your family affected by this the way my family was, it’s a lot easier to remember that these masks make a huge difference. These masks do make a difference, and I felt it was important for people to take that seriously. I was pleased that the company felt the same way and made sure to get the message out to everybody that this is a big deal. That’s why, in the end, I decided to come back. I feel comfortable going back to work, and I feel as safe as I can be there.
[\quote]

www.si.com/wrestling/2020/07/13/wwe-raw-preview-kevin-owens-seth-rollins-interview-masks

[Magic knows Black Lives Matter]

What a f***ing G.

[Shark]

Jul 13, 2020 14:23:02 GMT -5 Mochi Lone Wolf said:

As perverse as it is, it's this confrontational attitude that Vince respects and listens to.


Is it healthy? No. Not even a little bit. The only hope is that with the likes of AEW around, it'll give wrestlers the initiative to realize that don't have to put up with Vince's crap if they don't want to.

I don't think Owens went in there looking for a confrontation. I think if he went in there looking to argue, Vince would have shut him down and not listened. From that interview, Owens just laid everything out very matter of factly and got Vince to understand the situation. I don't think confronting Vince is what you need to do. Just explain it in a way that he understands.

[Bo Rida]

Masks in wrestling. How ridiculous.

Hell they keep trying weird stuff so do a show with everybody in masks. Surgical, lucha, clown, hockey, Kane, fetish, cardboard cutout of Vince's face, anything.

[EoE: Well There's Your Problem]

Jul 13, 2020 15:37:00 GMT -5 Shark said:

Jul 13, 2020 14:23:02 GMT -5 Mochi Lone Wolf said:

As perverse as it is, it's this confrontational attitude that Vince respects and listens to.


Is it healthy? No. Not even a little bit. The only hope is that with the likes of AEW around, it'll give wrestlers the initiative to realize that don't have to put up with Vince's crap if they don't want to.

I don't think Owens went in there looking for a confrontation. I think if he went in there looking to argue, Vince would have shut him down and not listened. From that interview, Owens just laid everything out very matter of factly and got Vince to understand the situation. I don't think confronting Vince is what you need to do. Just explain it in a way that he understands.

Good thing Owens had some of his kids finger puppets in the car.

[kingoftheindies]

Much respect for KO. I hate to say it this way cause it sounds somewhat bad, but that is a man who legit knows that he does not need the WWE and could walk out tomorrow and be happy. I dont even think it has anything to do with having options in wrestling. I just think Kevin knows Vince has no control over his happiness Not many people would do that so mad respect.

[King Devitt: Scrum Guzzler]

KO: Vince we need to do the common sense thing.
VKM: How do we do the common sense thing?

[avenger]

Jul 13, 2020 15:37:00 GMT -5 Shark said:

Jul 13, 2020 14:23:02 GMT -5 Mochi Lone Wolf said:

As perverse as it is, it's this confrontational attitude that Vince respects and listens to.


Is it healthy? No. Not even a little bit. The only hope is that with the likes of AEW around, it'll give wrestlers the initiative to realize that don't have to put up with Vince's crap if they don't want to.

I don't think Owens went in there looking for a confrontation. I think if he went in there looking to argue, Vince would have shut him down and not listened. From that interview, Owens just laid everything out very matter of factly and got Vince to understand the situation. I don't think confronting Vince is what you need to do. Just explain it in a way that he understands.

"Confronting" looks better in a headline, though.

[bob]

KO with massive grapefruits telling old man Vince institute a mask policy

[Deleted]

I was never his biggest fan in ring. I thought he was fine with Jericho and he was starting to win me over when him and Joe were making fun of Seth every week. But he really seems like a stand up guy behind the camera.

[Bub (BLM)]

Meanwhile Triple H is still trying to figure out his magic spray and UV scanners.

"What do you mean Kevin Owens figured it out? MASKS?! That's f***ing stupid. Now hurry up with the spray. I've gotta cram 17 people shoulder-to-shoulder for a lumberjack match tonight."