How Did Mauro Ranallo & Beth Phoenix Call This Week's WWE NXT?
Creative work from WWE here...
Pro Wrestling Sheet has confirmed that NXT's Mauro Ranallo and Beth Phoenix recorded commentary for this past Wednesday's episode from their respective homes in Southern California and Asheville, North Carolina.
Neither announcer was present at WWE's Performance Center for the show. Instead, Tom Phillips opened the broadcast from a 'virtual announce desk' and then the Ranallo and Phoenix combo called the matches.
This is a bit of a departure from how WWE had been doing things previously.
Ever since the global health crisis changed everything in mid-March, Phillips and Byron Saxton had been handling commentary duties for the brand. This past Wednesday's episode was Mauro and Beth's first since 11 March.
They weren't joined by Nigel McGuinness.
There's no word on whether or not WWE will keep this format going in coming weeks or switch back to having Phillips and Saxton on the call in person. Precautionary measures mean none of the usual NXT commentators are currently able to travel to Orlando, Florida.
Pro Wrestling Sheet also speculated that WWE don't mind having the announcers call in remotely because they're rarely shown on camera during NXT episodes anyway.