WWE has a positive COVID-19 test.
Throughout the week, Fightful has been approached by nearly a dozen members of the WWE roster, and within the industry about an alleged COVID-19 positive test in WWE. Days later, Fightful was able to obtain a WWE memo that was sent out via the company's internal app on April 5. We are not including the name of the person noted to have been infected.
Shortly after the publication of this article, WWE confirmed the news of a positive COVID-19 test, saying
“A WWE employee has tested positive for COVID-19. We believe this matter is low risk to WWE talent and staff, as the individual and a roommate became symptomatic in the days following exposure to two people working in acute health care on the evening of March 26, after WWE’s TV production on a closed set was already complete. The employee had no contact with anyone from WWE since being exposed to those two individuals, is doing well, and made a complete recovery.”
The original memo read as follows:
We have just been notified that (name redacted by Fightful) was diagnosed with COVID-19. WWE doctors spoke with (redacted) this morning and reported (they) last had contact with anyone at WWE on March 26 at the Performance Center. As you know, (redacted) is not an in-ring performer and we believe this matter is low-risk to you per the following chronology:
The memo stated that the person infected did provide their consent to share their name and status, noting that they're feeling much better. However, for the privacy of said person, we'll summarize the next paragraph in saying that the person tested positive for COVID-19 after they and their roommate became symptomatic. The memo noted the person had been socializing with two friends in the health care industry.
The memo continued:
Those of you who were potentially exposed would be cleared for travel by the evening of Thursday, April 9 at the latest, since the last possible exposure to any WWE talent personnel should have been at least 14 days prior.
It closed with Paul Levesque (Triple H) signing off.
Fightful contacted WWE reps multiple times throughout the week, and initially did not gain a confirmation or denial on the story. Towards the end of the week, we did not get a response for a follow up, but were told the memo would be looked in to. We've also reached out to the individual themselves, but can't verify if they've received the inquiry. Please do not inquire about the identity of the positive result, as we will not be providing it.
When asking members of the roster and team before WWE's confirmation, one said they "would not dispute" the findings. Fightful heard back from talent across all brands about the memo. Others were unhappy with the work environment, while another stated they didn't fear the illness and were willing to work as they need to work to justify their pay.
Just yesterday, WWE Chairman Vince McMahon deemed that WWE programming would resume live after originally planning to tape weeks of content ahead of time.
