Daniel Bryan has also now pulled out of WWE’s Saudi Arabia show
John Cena has also dropped out, following the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi
WWE superstar Daniel Bryan has been pulled from the company’s controversial Crown Jewel show in Saudi Arabia.
It comes after reports that he was refusing to participate in the widely criticised show.
This news comes just a day after John Cena was pulled from the card.
Daniel Bryan was supposed to take on AJ Styles in a match for the WWE Championship in Saudi Arabia. However, that match was moved forward to Tuesday night’s episode of WWE Smackdown. AJ Styles will now face Samoa Joe at Crown Jewel.
No official reason for Bryan's removal has been given, however.
WWE have been widely criticised for going ahead with the show this Friday, following the killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Turkey.
Khashoggi had been a vocal critic of the current Saudi regime. He had not been seen since entering the consulate on October 2nd, with the Saudi Arabian attorney general later admitting he had been killed.
وقعت قبل قليل اتفاقية مع wwe
ستشاهدون كل الأبطال لـ10 سنوات في السعودية 🇸🇦💪 pic.twitter.com/d8JecCu1EV— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) February 28, 2018
WWE Crown Jewel is set to take place at the King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. WWE has faced wide condemnation for not cancelling the event, including pressure from multiple US senators.
John Oliver dedicated a segment to savaging WWE over the decision on his Last Week Tonight show.
And here’s part two of John Oliver’s ethering of WWE on the “Last Week Tonight” that just ended, including a special hype video for Crown Jewel. pic.twitter.com/OlXC9ROWwv
— David Bixenspan (@davidbix) October 29, 2018
WWE has signed a ten year, multimillion-dollar deal to stage events in the country. The first event took place in April, with the female wrestlers unable to appear due to strict Saudi laws on women’s rights.
