WWE bringing WrestleMania to The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 2027 has caused a lot of negative backlash from the pro wrestling community.
During a recent appearance on TMZ’s Inside The Ring podcast, WWE Ambassador and WWE Hall of Fame Warrior Award recipient Titus O’Neil defended the decision, explaining how Saudi Arabia is safer than many places in the United States, in his opinion.
“I can say this, you know, because I’ve been to Saudi Arabia several times now: I feel safer in Saudi Arabia than I do in most places — or a lot of places — in the United States of America.”
“I think in the United States, we have this mindset that we’re the greatest country in the world. And we are a great country, but people don’t move to the United States because we’re the greatest country in the world. They move because we have the greatest amount of opportunity. And I think that the biggest difference between places like overseas in Japan, Saudi Arabia, Middle East, all those places and the United States are morals and convictions. They actually live by theirs, whether you like them or not. They’re going to pray five times a day. They’re going to stop during the day, and they’re going to do their thing no matter what, who likes it and don’t like it.
“You don’t hear about mass shootings in Saudi Arabia. You don’t hear about mass shootings in China. You don’t hear about mass shooters in Japan. I think if people went over to Saudi Arabia or had a chance to go there, their views would change dramatically. And I’m not saying that they get it all right, but we don’t get it all right either to be pointing fingers at anybody.”
He also spoke about the progress the region has made, specifically citing the fact that women are allowed to perform at WWE shows there now, whereas in the past they were not.
“So kids are safe over there, but kids are not safe in the United States. My perspective of us going to Saudi Arabia for WWE — yeah, it’s business, but it’s also changing cultures. When we first went over there, women were just now, they were just now getting introduced and being able to drive. Things are changing over there.”
As the discussion continued, the former Prime Time Players member spoke about WrestleMania in Riyadh will give them a chance to show what unity can look like, and give other cultures an example of how to embrace things the way WWE does.
“So if there’s ever a platform for us as a company to take and utilize, to show what unity can look like, to show what good business looks like, to show what other cultures look like, and how they embrace what we do, no matter where they are and what they come from, and how they dress — Saudi Arabia is definitely one of those places, in my opinion,” O’Neil said. “I think if the WWE brass and TKO brass didn’t feel that way, the decision would not have been made.
“So for anyone that — first and foremost, most of the people that are complaining about the show being over there, would never book a ticket to go over there anyway. Watch the show on TV, it’s going to be a spectacle. Saudi Arabia does nothing small, and WWE does nothing small. So get ready for a hell of a show and a hell of an experience on a global stage that’s going to show everyone why this business, and particularly TKO and WWE, do it better than anyone in the world.”
WrestleMania 43 is scheduled to be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in 2027, marking the first time the event will take place outside of North America.
(H/T to F4WOnline.com for transcribing the above quotes.)
