Monday night during Raw, WWE announced the first ever Fabulous Moolah Memorial Battle Royal for WrestleMania 34, and they also announced that Superstars from every brand will be eligible to compete in the battle royal.
The announcement was met with a negative response from the fans due to allegations tied to Moolah’s controversial past, and fans took action. The fans made their voices heard and even went as far as to get in touch with Snickers who is one of the official sponsors for WrestleMania 34. Snickers issued the following statement in response to the controversy:
“We were recently made aware of the World Wrestling Entertainment Inc’s (WWE) decision to honor a former wrestler during the upcoming WrestleMania 34 event. As a principle-based business that has long championed creating inclusive environments that encourage and empower everyone to reach their full potential, this is unacceptable. We are engaging with the WWE to express our disappointment.”
Shortly after Snickers issued their statement, WWE confirmed that Fabulous Moolah’s name had been dropped from the battle royal with a statement of their own which reads as follows:
“After further consideration, we believe it’s best to proceed with the name ‘WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal.’ What remains most important is that this historic match is part of WWE’s unwavering commitment to the Women’s Division.”
It appears that all is now well between WWE and their high profile sponsor as Snickers responded to the change with the following statement:
“We are very pleased that WWE has decided to proceed with the name ‘WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal.’”
Shortly after the battle royal was announced, fans put together a petition on Change.org which received over 10,000 signatures.
It appears that the voices of the fans were too loud to ignore, as the women of WWE will be making history on Sunday, April 8 in the WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal, but Moolah’s name will not be attached to the match.
