Stephanie McMahon to kick off WWE SmackDown
Following the announcement of her father’s retirement, Stephanie McMahon is set to appear on SmackDown tonight.
WWE has announced that Stephanie will kick off tonight’s SmackDown episode. Stephanie is WWE’s new chairwoman and also now one of the company’s co-CEOs, sharing the role with Nick Khan.
“Friday Night SmackDown will begin with Stephanie McMahon addressing the WWE Universe,” WWE wrote. “What will this mean for the blue brand? Find out tonight at 8/7 C on FOX.”
Stephanie had been serving as interim chairwoman and CEO since Vince McMahon announced last month that he was stepping away from those positions during the WWE Board of Directors’ investigation into his alleged misconduct.
It was also announced today that Stephanie’s husband Paul “Triple H” Levesque has been named WWE’s new executive vice president of talent relations.
Tonight’s SmackDown is taking place at the TD Garden in Boston. Brock Lesnar was supposed to appear on the show ahead of his Last Man Standing match against Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns at SummerSlam on July 30, but Lesnar walked out of tonight’s show after finding out about Vince McMahon’s retirement.
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.