Vince McMahon would never book such stars, feels WWE veteran after noticing an unusual trend on SmackDown (Exclusive)

Former WWE manager Dutch Mantell recently explained some differences between Vince McMahon's booking and the current product. He was reviewing this week's episode of SmackDown.

The May 30 episode of SmackDown featured fast-paced action with stellar Money in the Bank Qualifying matches. Several luchadors, such as Rey Fenix, Je’Von Evans, and Los Garza, were also on show, using the blue brand to hype their appearances on NXT Worlds Collide on June 7. Major stars John Cena and Cody Rhodes closed the show with an intense promo battle.

During this week's episode of BroDown with host Mac Davis, Mantell observed an interesting trend of the current creative booking several smaller stars on the show. The veteran manager recalled that Vince McMahon always wanted bigger guys on his weekly programming. He acknowledged that the 250-300 lb stars worked a slower style but mentioned that Vince would book them in interesting angles to keep the audience hooked on the program.

"I've noticed they started using a lot of smaller talent. Some of this talent can't weigh 180 lbs. Well, it was so unlike Vince McMahon. Because, Vince, if he weighed 180, you had to buy a ticket. You know, he wanted those 250 or 300-lb guys. Now, they were slow and damn boring as hell, but he didn't book those guys like that. And he ran for years like that. But if you look at them, and that's what I say, if that's the best thing they want to present, go ahead." [From 11:40 onwards]

Details of Goldberg's last match HERE

Vince McMahon stepped away from his roles in WWE after a lawsuit from ex-employee Janel Grant accusing him of harassment and sexual misconduct. The veteran promoter has since then made a few public appearances, with recent reports suggesting that he may be interested in buying back WWE.

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About the author

Prityush is a WWE news writer for Sportskeeda Wrestling who started watching wrestling in the later part of The Attitude Era. Although he holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Prityush was a creative writer for his college, and his flair for creativity and love of pro wrestling eventually led him to the journalism field. After an initial stint in 2016-2017, he has been writing regularly for Sportskeeda since 2021.

As someone who loves and respects the business, he prides himself on factual, clean, and ethical reporting, free of plagiarism and AI usage. One of the ways he ensures this is by transcribing videos that he reports on.

Prityush had the privilege of interviewing superstar Matt Hardy in his career so far. Although, his favorite wrestler is CM Punk, as he relates to his Straight Edge philosophy.

When he is not reporting news, he loves reading and collecting WWE action figures. He currently owns over 500 wrestling figures and merchandise.

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Edited by Prityush Haldar