Pat McAfee: WWE ‘doesn’t need to be saved after all’

Pat McAfee WWE WrestleMania 42
Pat McAfee attacks Cody Rhodes at WWE WrestleMania 42.

Pat McAfee is claiming to be done with pro wrestling after WWE WrestleMania 42.

Going into Mania, McAfee said he would leave the wrestling business forever if Randy Orton did not win the Undisputed WWE Championship. With Cody Rhodes retaining, McAfee claimed on his ESPN show today that he is sticking to that stipulation. McAfee gave Rhodes his props and said Rhodes proved that WWE does not need to be saved after all.

“The good news is, the business doesn’t need to be saved after all. And good for them. And for me, I finished my story,” McAfee said. “I came up in the indies, IWA East Coast. I went through development, NXT. I was a wrestler, trained by Rip Rogers, the same guy that trained everybody that’s retiring kind of currently, out of OVW…

“Get to WWE, commentated, lucky to do that. Did pre-shows, lucky to do that. Wrestled, lucky to do that. Reffed, lucky to do that. Managed, lucky to do that. It’s been a hell of a run. Thank you, wrestling. It was an honor to be over there.”

McAfee has kept kayfabe by wearing a neck brace since being put through a table by Jelly Roll during the Rhodes vs. Orton WrestleMania match. There was also a spot where Orton turned against McAfee and gave him an RKO.

“Maybe he didn’t know it was me,” McAfee said about the RKO. “[But] it felt like he knew.”

Whether McAfee is actually done with WWE for any considerable amount of time remains to be seen. The Rhodes vs. Orton feud was kept alive coming out of WrestleMania (once Rhodes is over his eye injury), but McAfee’s involvement in the angle looks to have ended.

“The wrestling business just kind of — rearview mirror,” McAfee said. “And to the wrestling business, I’d like to say: thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you.”

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Joseph Currier
Joseph Currier

Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.

In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.