7 Ups And 5 Downs From WWE Crown Jewel 2021

3. ‘The Best For The World To See’

WWE Crown Jewel 2021 Zelina Vega
WWE.com

We will try not to get too preachy throughout this column about how distasteful this relationship between WWE and Saudi Arabia is, but you’ve got to stop and shake your head at the opening seconds of the Crown Jewel video package at the outset of the PPV.

The video espoused the pageantry and history made at previous shows, then segued to talking about how the PPV presented “the best for the world to see.” The narrator went a step further and suggested that “tonight, the world marvels and celebrates as one.”

That really is a stretch, to put it politely. It’s understandable that WWE is going to put it’s best public foot forward on this show, but let’s not lose sight of the fact that it’s the almighty dollar driving this entire trip, and that previous Saudi shows have had plenty of lackluster – and even downright embarrassing – moments and matches.

This is not “the best for the world to see.” It’s a self-aggrandizing, self-serving event for the benefit of Saudi Arabia’s image and WWE’s coffers. OK, sorry for that rant, but if WWE is going to lean into it like that, we’re not going to give them a pass.

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Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.