WWE have bowed to pressure to change the name of the upcoming Fabulous Moolah Battle Royal after two days of backlash and online controversy.
The match – an over the top rope event for the women’s division – is scheduled to take place at WrestleMania on April 8 and will now be known as the ‘WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal’.
A number of fans and wrestling journalists – including our own Thomas Broome-Jones – have taken WWE to task over the last 48 hour for celebrating the life and legacy of the Fabulous Moolah.
Since her death in 2007, a large number of allegations have been made against Moolah, real name Mary Ellison. Among these include extortion, pimping of young female wrestlers, violence, forced drug addiction and other nefarious Machiavellian tactics that ensured her spot at the top of women’s wrestling in the United States was secured.
Appearing to underestimate people’s knowledge and the outrage they have caused, WWE have been forced to backtrack to prevent the issue casting a shadow on the run up to the biggest event in the pro-wrestling calendar.
In a short statement, WWE said “(a)fter further consideration, we believe it’s best to proceed with the name ‘WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal.’ What remains most important is that this historic match is part of WWE’s unwavering commitment to the Women’s Division.”
The same statement was echoed in a tweet by Stephanie McMahon.
However, WWE seemed content to sweep the problem under the rug until WrestleMania’s major sponsor, Snickers, became involved.
As well as a 10,000 signature petition, fans contacted Snickers’ parent company Mars Wrigley Confectionery US and highlighted their displeasure with WWE’s tribute to the late Moolah.
“We were recently made aware of the World Wrestling Entertainment Inc’s (WWE) decision to honor a former wrestler during the upcoming WrestleMania 34 event” said Mars in a statement.
“As a principle-based business that has long championed creating inclusive environments that encourage and empower everyone to reach their full potential, this is unacceptable. We are engaging with the WWE to express our disappointment.”
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