What’s the story?
The Internet was taken by storm after Paige’s private photos and videos leaked online this week. Former WWE superstar Brad Maddox and the member of The New Day Xavier Woods were also involved in the scandal and could be seen in various clips with Paige. There was speculation that WWE would hold The New Day back from television till the brouhaha over recent events subsided. These assumptions were proved wrong when The New Day appeared in a segment on this week’s Raw.
In case you didn’t know...
Paige’s private images and videos were leaked online this week which went viral all over social media. Paige confirmed the leak on Twitter and also said that they were shared without her consent.
Paige wasn’t the only victim as the same hacker shared photos of various other celebrities including ex-WWE superstar Kaitlyn.
The heart of the matter
According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE has decided not to punish Xavier or Paige and also gave the New Day a segment on this week’s Raw to signal that everything will function normally.
The New Day were given a segment in which they promoted various matches that are supposed to take place at Wrestlemania. WWE decided to keep them away from the live crowd as they wanted to prevent any uncontrollable reactions from the fans.
The report also mentioned that the reason for Xavier’s no-show at recent live events was not because of the recent leaks but due to his appearance at the SXSW conference in Austin, Texas.
What’s next?
Paige is rehabilitating from a neck injury and is expected to return to in-ring action anytime in the near future. Though WWE has indicated that the recent events won’t affect Paige’s career, various rumours are floating online about the officials being unhappy with her anyways. Showing up at TNA tapings and failing two wellness policy tests are some of the reasons that have caused major concern backstage. Moreover, Paige’s parents have openly protested against WWE’s endeavours in the United Kingdom which do not help her case one bit.
Xavier Woods is scheduled to host this year’s ‘Mania in Orlando.
Author’s Take
Paige, Xavier and Maddox are victims. It is relieving to see that WWE doesn’t hold any of them guilty for the recent events. Also, the way WWE handled the situation on this week’s Raw is commendable. They avoided a disaster by keeping Woods backstage as his presence could have stirred the enthusiastic Brooklyn crowd into hijacking the tapings.
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