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Vince McMahon resigned as executive chairman of TKO Group Holdings along with his spot on TKO’s board of directors on Friday night, a move that came a day after a former WWE employee accused McMahon of sexual assault and sex trafficking in a federal lawsuit.
The lawsuit, filed by Janel Grant, claims to have been “the victim of physical and emotional abuse, sexual assault and trafficking at WWE.” Grant alleged that McMahon and former WWE head of talent relations John Laurinaitis forced themselves upon her, and that McMahon attempted to get Grant to have sex with a wrestler WWE was trying to sign.
“I intend to vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations, and look forward to clearing my name,” McMahon said in a statement obtained by Front Office Sports from TKO. “However, out of respect for the WWE Universe, the extraordinary TKO business and its board members and shareholders, partners and constituents, and all of the employees and Superstars who helped make WWE into the global leader it is today, I have decided to resign from my executive chairmanship and the TKO board of directors, effective immediately.”
A spokesperson for Grant’s legal team declined to comment on McMahon’s resignation.
The change comes days after the WWE struck a landmark $5 billion media rights deal with Netflix. Earlier Friday, Slim Jim, a longtime WWE sponsor, announced it had “decided to pause our promotional activities with WWE,” according to POST Wrestling.
Grant’s allegations cover a time period from 2019 to 2022. McMahon stepped down as CEO of WWE in June 2022 when WWE announced it was investigating a reported $3 million settlement McMahon is alleged to have paid to an outgoing employee with whom he was said to have had an affair.
In response to the filing, a spokesperson for McMahon told several media outlets: “This lawsuit is replete with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and a vindictive distortion of the truth.”
TKO, for its part, distanced itself from McMahon, saying: “Mr. McMahon does not control TKO, nor does he oversee the day-to-day operations of WWE. While this matter pre-dates our TKO executive team’s tenure at the company, we take Ms. Grant’s horrific allegations very seriously and are addressing this matter internally.”
Separate from McMahon’s situation, Dana White, CEO of TKO subsidiary UFC, last year avoided punishment after a video showed him slapping his wife.
Editor’s note: This story was updated with McMahon’s resignation announcement.
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