Vince McMahon Has a Wild New Look, and People Have Thoughts
1. What a weekend in the world of professional wrestling. WrestleMania took place over two nights at SoFi Stadium, drawing more than 160,000 fans combined. Roman Reigns retained his two titles with a shocking win over last week's SI Media podcast guest, Cody Rhodes, who was a -550 favorite at one offshore sportsbook. And Endeavor purchased the WWE.
Vince McMahon appeared on CNBC on Monday morning to talk about his company's sale. There were two bombshells.
One, he said he will be involved in creative "on a higher level," but not "in the weeds." There had been a lot of speculation about McMahon's role in creative since he returned to the company in January after retiring in July 2022 following sexual misconduct allegations.
Two, McMahon has a new look that features much darker hair and what appears to be some kind of mustache.
1) Vince McMahon tells CNBC he will be involved in creative “on a higher level,” but not “in the weeds.”
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) April 3, 2023
2) Can we talk about Vince’s new look? pic.twitter.com/lc5pl2hxnM
Naturally, McMahon's appearance was perfect fodder for social media, where people had all sorts of reactions.
— Pablo Torre (@PabloTorre) April 3, 2023
Is that Pennzoil 10w-30 or 15w-40 that he's using to dye his hair?
— Jeremy Kasperson (@jeremykasperson) April 3, 2023
He's auditioning for a Jackie Gleason biopic. pic.twitter.com/do8v341udl
— OB (@OB_Mike) April 3, 2023
Vince McMahon looks like the police lieutenant who cannot believe he has to tell Inspector Clouseau that the lookout man for the armed bank robbery he botched isn’t actually blind. @LeBatardShow pic.twitter.com/83z1I12n4w
— Don Van Natta Jr. (@DVNJr) April 3, 2023
— AJ Taylor (@ajstarting5) April 3, 2023
He looks like a silent movie villain about to tie the damsel in distress to the train tracks.
— Anthony Verna (no blue check mark) (@avernalaw) April 3, 2023
Vince has a new gig at the concierge desk at the Waldorf Astoria.
— Savi Sr. (@SavMoney1point0) April 3, 2023
— Aaron Lewis (@AaronTLewis) April 3, 2023
That's not Vince McMahon.
— Dan Meyer (@MeyersMusings) April 3, 2023
That's his evil twin brother "Vic" McMahon, who once serve as the higher power of the stable known as "The Corporate Ministry."
Looking like the pillow man
— Timothy Lewis (@H8TR_HURTER) April 3, 2023
When did John Waters take over wrestling?
— Robert (@robfisher25) April 3, 2023
— Michael Thompson (@taco_jerry) April 3, 2023
2. Speaking of WrestleMania, even the nonwrestling fan will appreciate this one. Vince's son, Shane, made a surprise appearance at the event Sunday night, when he mixed it up with the The Miz. However, things never really got off the ground, because Shane ended up tearing his quad (for real).
OH MY GOD, Shane McMahon just blew his leg out, and Snoop Dogg came in and improvised an great #WrestleMania moment. pic.twitter.com/jHUAOANBKw
— Italo Santana (@BulletClubIta) April 3, 2023
Fortunately for WWE, Snoop Dogg was there to jump in and save the day.
Hey @TheRock, @SnoopDogg just delivered a #WrestleMania style People's Elbow to @mikethemiz and it was AWESOME!!! pic.twitter.com/H0FiZo30Vw
— WWE (@WWE) April 3, 2023
3. CBS put together a very nice tribute video package for Jim Nantz, who will wrap up his college basketball broadcasting career Monday night when he calls the San Diego State–UConn men’s final.
Behind every great sports moment, there’s a storyteller.
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) April 1, 2023
For decades, Jim Nantz has been the storyteller of the Men's Final Four. pic.twitter.com/8DPVx2WZki
4. With the tournament coming to an end Monday night, this is the perfect time to hear Bill Raftery tell us about his all-time favorite “ONIONS” call.
View the original article to see embedded media.
5. We've talked here so much about the pitch clock and how much of a great impact it's had on the Major League Baseball so far. We also need to knowledge that the bigger bases and new pickoff rules have also had a major impact over the first four days of the season.
Number of league-wide stolen bases through the first four days of the season:
— MLB Metrics (@MLBMetrics) April 3, 2023
2022: 29
2023: 70 pic.twitter.com/sYhXfIW8HJ
More action + less dead time = such a better watch.
6. Rhodes lost to Reigns in the main event at WrestleMania on Sunday night, which makes his interview on the latest SI Media With Jimmy Traina even more interesting now, because it certainly appeared WWE had set up Rhodes to go over and become the new champion.
You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Google.
You can also watch the SI Media With Jimmy Traina on YouTube.
7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: Happy 62nd birthday to the funniest person of my lifetime.
Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the SI Media With Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.