Vince McMahon

Football players often recall their "Welcome to the NFL" moment. Former Indianapolis Colts punter Pat McAfee had his "Welcome to the WWE" moment when he heard WWE chairman Vince McMahon in his headset.

Appearing on Just Getting Started with Rich Eisen, McAfee explained how McMahon, whom he called the "Voice of God," remains hands-on with the company's announcers during shows.

McAfee had worked in on-screen roles with the WWE and feuded with Adam Cole in NXT. Still, that probably didn't fully prepare him for what to expect when he joined the SmackDown broadcast team as an analyst earlier this month.

WWE announcers not only have to call the action in the ring, but they also have McMahon providing a constant stream of guidance and constructive criticism. Not surprisingly, McAfee had high praise for Michael Cole, who has had listened to McMahon in his ear for two decades.   

WWE released a proxy statement to its shareholders Tuesday, revealing the 2021 salaries of Vince McMahon, Triple H, Stephanie McMahon and Shane McMahon.

According to WrestlingInc.com's Marc Middleton, Vince is earning $1.4 million for his role as WWE's chairman and CEO, Triple H is earning $730,000 as executive vice president of global talent strategy and development, and Stephanie will make $730,000 as chief brand officer.

Meanwhile, Shane was only listed as having an on-screen talent contract, for which he will earn a minimum of $820,369, per H Jenkins of Ringside News.

Triple H and Stephanie are also receiving compensation for being on-screen talent. Triple H will make at least $1 million, and Stephanie will earn at least $750,000.

It was also noted that Triple H's talent contract runs through March 30, 2022, although it will automatically extend by one year at the end of each cycle unless one of the parties informs the other that it no longer wants the extension.

Stephanie has the same arrangement with her current talent contract running through Oct. 6, 2021.

Both Triple H and Stephanie remain occasional on-screen characters, although they focus primarily on their behind-the-scenes jobs with Triple H running NXT and Stephanie building the WWE brand.

Shane has been appearing on screen often in recent months, and he faced Braun Strowman in a steel cage match on Night 1 of WrestleMania 37 on Saturday, which was won by Strowman.

Vince is also committed to behind-the-scenes work, although he opened WrestleMania 37 by thanking the fans for sticking with WWE through the COVID-19 pandemic and welcoming them back to a live WWE event for the first time in over a year.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.

Triple H Talks Potential Retirement Match

Despite having wrestled just one match in the past two years, Triple H would be OK if the in-ring part of his career was over. 

Appearing on ESPN's SportsNation, Triple H said "it's not a big deal to me" when asked about the possibility of an official retirement match at a future WrestleMania. 

“It's not a big deal to me. ... (Ric) Flair tells me, 'You’ll regret it, you'll regret it.' Man, I had such a great run, was so blessed to have it and had so many great people to work with.

“It’s so much work and so much pressure. And I guess if I hadn’t found the other side of that, the NXT side of it, the production side of it that I enjoy so much, maybe I would feel differently about that. But I’m at peace with all of it."

Triple H's most recent match was against Randy Orton on the Jan. 11 episode of Raw. It ended in a no-contest after Alexa Bliss attacked Orton with a fireball. 

Prior to that bout, the King of Kings hadn't wrestled on WWE television since losing to Orton at Super Showdown in June 2019. 

Given the Game's position in WWE's corporate office and running NXT, he will always be around the company and will step up to wrestle if the right storyline presents itself. 

If that moment never arrives, Triple H's status as one of the most iconic and accomplished superstars in WWE history is already solidified. 

Details on Hurt Business Breakup

Despite being one of the strongest and most over factions in WWE, the Hurt Business broke up on the March 29 episode of Raw when Bobby Lashley attacked Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin amid a string of recent losses. 

Per Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), Vince McMahon made the call to break up the group against the wishes of Lashley and others. 

"Lashley and others tried to talk him out of it, but this was one he wasn’t budging on," wrote Meltzer. "Vince just gets the idea that he doesn’t want to push certain guys, and once he does, that’s it. It’s a regular thing, and that’s not likely to change."

One hallmark of McMahon's tenure running WWE is that when he wants to push someone in a faction as a singles star, they must leave their group. He did it with Triple H and D-Generation X, Seth Rollins and the Shield, and Batista and Evolution. 

All of those moves have worked out well, for the most part. With the Hurt Business, though, it seems like this is going to end up being bad news for Alexander and Benjamin. 

McMahon has never shown any indication that he sees Alexander and Benjamin as anything beyond mid-card jobbers, except when they were associated with Lashley and MVP. 

Lashley is in the midst of the biggest push of his career. The Almighty won the WWE championship for the first time in his career at Elimination Chamber. He will be defending the title against Drew McIntyre in one of the biggest matches at WrestleMania 37. 

WWE to Begin Selling NFTs

In addition to WrestleMania, WWE is also getting into the burgeoning NFT market starting this weekend. 

The company has announced it will start selling NFTs featuring moments from The Undertaker's career starting on Saturday. 

WWE will be conducting a four-tier drop beginning Saturday at 10:30 a.m. ET and running through 11:30 p.m. ET on Sunday. 

The platinum auction includes a "one-of-a-kind NFT (that) not only delivers a permanent piece of The Deadman’s career but a chance to experience the event that defined his legacy."

The winner of that auction will also receive two front-row tickets to WrestleMania in either 2022 or 2023, a personalized video message from the Dead Man and an original Paul Bearer urn. 

Other auctions will include the chance to win exclusive Undertaker NFTs, a signed Undertaker championship belt and various assorted NFTs featuring the Phenom. 

WWE Chairman Vince McMahon ranks No. 1,517 on Forbes' 2021 list of billionaires in the world.

McMahon is listed as having a net worth of $2.1 billion in the report, which Forbes released Tuesday.

The 75-year-old has owned WWE since purchasing it from his father, Vince McMahon Sr., in 1982. He has taken the company to new heights, making it the dominant global brand in professional wrestling and sports entertainment.

Per Forbes, McMahon reached a high-water mark of $3.3 billion in net worth in October 2018. He was then worth $3.2 billion in March 2019, which landed him at No. 296 on the Forbes 400, which lists the 400 richest Americans.

McMahon fell off that list in 2020 when his net worth dropped to $1.8 billion, but he is back over $2 billion in 2021.

While the COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative economic impact on most sports leagues and entertainment companies, WWE has been an exception because of its enormous television contracts.

In February, WWE announced it produced record revenue in 2020 thanks largely to its billion-dollar TV deals with Fox and NBCUniversal.

McMahon scored again this year when WWE announced an exclusive streaming-rights deal with Peacock, resulting in the end of WWE Network.

The deal with Peacock is reportedly worth $1 billion over five years, giving McMahon and WWE their third billion-dollar contract.

Even as professional wrestling struggles to match the television ratings it achieved during its heyday in the late 1990s and early 2000s, or even as recently as five to 10 years ago, WWE continues to thrive thanks to its identifiable brand.

McMahon is reaping the benefits, making him one of the wealthiest people not only in the United States but on the globe as well.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).

Stone Cold Steve Austin and Chris Jericho busted open the forbidden door no one thought would ever open between AEW and WWE when they announced Jericho would appear on Broken Skull Sessions set to air next Sunday after WrestleMania.

As he prepares for the interview to air, Austin spoke to Wrestling Inc.'s Nick Hausman about how he enjoys AEW giving WWE some competition in the wrestling business.

"Man, I love it," Austin said. "I think it's competition by proxy just because they're wrestling, WWE's wrestling, but I don't think they're directly trying to compete. But in essence, they are and I love it because it gives more people within any of this jobs. It gives more people a chance to work. And it makes WWE, you know, forces them to push the envelope rather than just sit back and push out content. Competition makes everybody better."

Austin said the relationship isn't quite the same as the Monday Night Wars, when it was clear WCW and WWE were trying to put one another out of business for good. He sees AEW as a type of quality gatekeeper for WWE, forcing the company to not get complacent.

"The product is better because you're forced," Austin said. "'What are these cats doing over here? This friggin' stuff. We gotta up it a little bit!' There's checks and balances. I remember when we put WCW out of business. I remember going up to Vince and saying, 'Was it our mission to put them out of business?' They kicked our ass for two years, you know, but I didn't know that was the mission! We just wanted to win the ratings war. Of course, he ends up buying them for pennies on the dollar; that's the genius of Vince McMahon. But to answer your question, yes, AEW is a good thing. It's a good thing for everybody, including WWE."

It's fair to say WWE's product has gotten better since AEW's arrival. Both companies deserve some level of praise for their handling of the pandemic, continuing to produce shows with bare-bones crews and in many cases without (or with greatly limited) fan attendance.

Austin said McMahon told him in the past that other promoters lack his foresight, which allowed the WWE chairman to buy nearly every major promotion in the United States and create a near-monopoly on mainstream wrestling until AEW's arrival. While Austin needed McMahon's permission to have Jericho on Broken Skull Sessions, he joked their relationship is a bit different now than it was in the Attitude Era.

"He don't even take my phone calls, but let me tell you, back when I was working on top, when I called Vince, that phone didn't ring a half time before he picked it up," Austin said. "Now I'll send him a text message and I'll get an answer back in a couple of days."

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.

Jericho Praises Vince's Workout Routine

Even at 75 years of age, WWE Chairman Vince McMahon works out regularly and is in fantastic physical condition as a result.

Among those who are impressed by Vince's regimen is former WWE and current AEW star Chris Jericho.

According to Sai Mohan of WrestlingInc.com, Jericho commented this week on an Instagram video of McMahon working out, writing: "VkM is the REAL Terminator!!!"

Vince's love for working out has long been apparent, as he always looked to be in just as good of shape as the full-time wrestlers when he wrestled on occasion in the 1990s and 2000s.

Even so, seeing McMahon still working out at such a high level is remarkable when you consider the lifestyle most 75-year-olds lead.

Jericho's comment is notable as well since some may have the perception that he is not on good terms with Vince or WWE after signing with AEW rather than returning to the company in which he became a huge star.

It is no secret that Jericho takes shots at WWE from time to time, but it is clear that he still has a great deal of respect for his longtime boss.

Perhaps it stems from the fact that Jericho continues to excel in his field at an age when most wrestlers have long retired.

At 50, Jericho is one of AEW's top stars and a former AEW world champion. He is also seemingly on the verge of entering into a major program with MJF after MJF turned on The Inner Circle a couple of weeks ago.

Meanwhile, Vince is preparing to put on the biggest spectacle in pro wrestling in the form of WrestleMania 37, which will emanate from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, next month.

Rumors on Charlotte Flair's Status

Charlotte Flair has not been on Raw for the past couple of weeks, and she revealed why Monday, announcing that she tested positive for COVID-19:

That put to rest rumors that she was at odds with WWE amid the release of her fiancé, Andrade, from his WWE contract this week.

Mike Johnson of PWInsider confirmed that, reporting that Flair's absence was "not related in any way" to the Andrade situation.

Even so, Charlotte's WrestleMania 37 status is now up in the air, as Rhea Ripley debuted Monday on Raw and challenged Raw women's champion Asuka to a title match at WrestleMania, and Asuka accepted.

Flair had previously announced her intention to face Asuka for the Raw women's title, and while it is possible she will return in the coming weeks to make it a Triple Threat, that is far from guaranteed.

One intriguing scenario to consider is a switching of brands, as Johnson reported that there was internal discussion about Charlotte appearing on SmackDown this week.

It is unclear if she will be cleared from COVID in time to make that happen, but if she is, it may be WWE's best opportunity to make the WrestleMania card as big as possible.

With Bianca Belair challenging Sasha Banks for the SmackDown Women's Championship at WrestleMania, it leaves Bayley without a storyline and match despite the fact that she and Sasha essentially carried the women's division through the pandemic.

It would be a nice gesture on WWE's part to shift Charlotte to SmackDown, even if it's just temporary, for a brief feud with Bayley culminating in a WrestleMania match.

Although it would be out of left field to some degree, they have plenty of history, so it wouldn't be difficult to build a rivalry in a few short weeks.

Doing so would also ensure that two of WWE's top female Superstars have a big match at WrestleMania, which they undoubtedly deserve.

Reported Ali Injury Possibly Changed Retribution Plans

Retribution leader Mustafa Ali has reportedly been working hurt since December with an injury that will require surgery.

According to Nick Hasuman of WrestlingInc.com, Ali suffered a torn PCL in his knee during a match against Ricochet in December. He was reportedly told it would require surgery and rehab but decided to work through it.

The original plans were reportedly for a blow-off angle involving Retribution to take place at WrestleMania 37, but it may have already happened at Fastlane.

After Ali lost a United States Championship match against Riddle at Fastlane, Ali berated the other members of Retribution. Reckoning and Slapjack walked away, while T-Bar and Mace chokeslammed Ali.

Hausman noted that while it is possible WWE will continue the Retribution angle for a few more weeks and officially blow it off at WrestleMania, it may have already reached its conclusion.

There was no mention of Ali or Retribution on Raw, which could be a sign that WWE is ready to move on from the stable.

Retribution began appearing on WWE programming in August, and Ali was introduced as the leader in October.

While WWE gave Retribution a lot of screen time initially, the group never truly gained its footing and was never booked in any huge angles or given any significant victory.

Retribution has run its course, so it would likely be best for all involved if WWE simply moves on and counts Fastlane as the demise of the group.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).