WWE did not make itself popular after releasing countless employees over the past couple of months. Now, Chris Jericho shamed the company for releasing long-time employee Mike Chioda.
Chris Jericho Shames WWE For Release Of Mike Chioda
Mike Chioda’s release from the WWE came as a surprise. After all, the referee had been with the company for 31 years.
During his show, Jericho shamed the WWE for releasing the long-time loyal employee. And he did not mince words doing it.
“I mean, come on, seriously? 35 years the dude has been at your company and you’re going to fire him? Besides the fact that the dude is a great guy and such a talented performer, and can run the whole backstage, but after 35 years, what’s he supposed to do?”
Jericho also mentioned that WWE did the same to Mark Eaton. So, he had no qualms pointing out all WWE’s indiscretions when it came to their loyal staff.
Mike Chioda’s Career
As a young adult, Mike Chioda actually lived close to Gorilla Monsoon. He eventually helped Chioda get a position in the wrestling business, as he was already trained as a referee.
Chioda has been with the WWE since 1989. Since the beginning, he remained loyal to the company and became a senior referee.
Over the course of his career, Chioda called some big matches. One of the most memorable was his role in the match between John Cena and Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 23.
Interestingly, the WWE did a special on Chioda in 2019. In it, they introduced the company’s longest serving referee.
Apart from a hiatus after WrestleMania VII, Chioda has been quite the frequent figure on WWE television. So, it was insane to hear that Chioda was released from the company after 31 years of loyal service.
Being a senior referee, Chioda undoubtedly got a nice paycheck from the company. But Vince was looking to save money and a bigger profit margin, so loyalty means little to him it seems.
AEW To The Rescue
While Chris Jericho shames WWE for releasing Chioda, he also explains how Mike ended up in AEW.
According to Jericho, he and Cody Rhodes had a conversation about Mike Chioda and potentially getting him in AEW. Of course, Tony Khan had some trepidation, as it was in the middle of a pandemic.
Jericho pushed the issue with Khan and told him to bring him in for a big match. And that is exactly what happened, as Mike Chioda refereed the match between Cody Rhodes and Scorpio Sky for the TNT Championship.
Recently, Vince McMahon has been criticised for the mass release of wrestlers. Since the company boasted about huge profits weeks later, it was clear the releases were not exactly a necessity.
Things are not going well for the WWE where image is concerned. Aside from the mass releases, they are also dealing with backlash for their continuing association with Saudi Arabia.
The true damage to WWE will not become clear until fans return to the arenas. For now, it is just another scandalous story to add to the never ending list.
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