Stephanie McMahon taking leave of absence from WWE
By Ryan Satin
FOX Sports WWE Analyst
WWE Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon has announced she’s taking a leave of absence to focus on family.
McMahon made the surprising announcement Thursday afternoon in a tweet that sent shockwaves throughout the wrestling community.
While no additional details are present at this time, the New York Post reports McMahon’s decision will allow her to "take some time after a trying past year."
This most likely refers to the fact that her husband, WWE legend Triple H, suffered a cardiac event last summer that resulted in a near-death experience.
The WWE Hall of Famer told Stephen A. Smith back in March that it began with viral pneumonia and McMahon noticing that he had coughed up blood. After undergoing tests, doctors then determined he had potentially fatal fluid around his heart.
"I was nose-diving, and sort of at the one-yard line of where you don’t want to be for your family and your future," Triple H said.
"We have three young girls — 15, 13, 11. Suddenly I come home, I’m a little bit sick, and their dad, who’s strong always, suddenly is in the hospital. And I don’t know if they understood the consequences of it, but there’s moments when they’re putting you out for stuff and you think, ‘Is this it? Do you wake up from this?' That’s tough to swallow, and it makes you think differently."
Triple H, whose real name is Paul Levesque, has since returned to work, but only in a limited capacity at this time.
McMahon, who is the daughter of WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, has been working for the company in various on and off-screen roles since she was a child.
In 2000, she began to work behind the scenes on the writing team and worked her way up to Executive Vice President of Creative. She then transitioned to the role of CBO in 2013 and began to work on enhancing the company’s image with advertisers, business partners and more.
While there’s no telling if this contributed whatsoever to her decision, it’s worth noting that in March of this year, Vince McMahon expressed disappointment in family members during a rare live interview.
Without naming anyone specific, Vince told Pat McAfee the following on the topic of a possible successor:
"Quite frankly, I’ve probably expected more, you know out of my family members, which is probably not the right thing to say. But nonetheless, it’s like, you have to do the right thing for the business. So, if this person is not working out, then they shouldn’t be a part of the company."
It's unclear at this time when Stephanie plans to return, or if anyone will fill her position until that time.
Check out a few reactions from WWE stars below:
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Ryan Satin is a WWE analyst for FOX Sports. Satin previously appeared on FS1's "WWE Backstage" and founded Pro Wrestling Sheet, where he broke countless news stories as editor-in-chief.
