Triple H and Joey Mercury talked Vince McMahon out of firing Titus O'Neil, RingsideNews.com is reporting. That's why the original suspension was so high at 90 days, as it was in fact a lesser punishment than a release. The suspension has now been reduced to 60 days, as the weight of public opinion and media reaction made WWE look bad for punishing an employee for a playful grab. What's interesting is that Joey Mercury had been rumoured to be away from the company. There was never any conclusive reason as to why he was off work, but presumably he's now back in his backstage role. As for Triple H calming McMahon down, it isn't a surprise to hear he was a voice of reason. O'Neil was simply saying to Vince "Ladies first" when he grabbed the arm. It was meant to be a playful joke, saying Stephanie should exit the ramp before her father. The whole incident has created a mini PR disaster for WWE, with the New York Post running it as a story linked to racism. The headline was ridiculous, as clearly race played no part. The Post then followed up with a story on how McMahon's stock got hit after last week's Q4 results. It almost makes you wonder who Vince has upset at the paper, as two overly negative headlines in a week seems a little unusual.
