The Real Reason Vince McMahon Fired WWE Co-Presidents - Revealed

And just why did Timothy Thatcher decide that NOW was the right time to sign with WWE?

by Andrew Pollard
Vince McMahon SmackDown
WWE.com

With the wrestling world – and stock exchange – in shock recently due to the WWE departures of co-presidents George Barrios and Michelle Wilson, there’s now an update on just what led to Vince McMahon ultimately firing the duo.

According to Dave Meltzer - in an episode of Wrestling Observer Radio recorded before WWE’s financial earnings call – the tandem of Barrios and Wilson butted heads with Vince over WWE finances.

Barrios and Wilson reportedly wanted to keep all financial aspects of WWE tight in order to turn a significant profit, while McMahon was happy to disregard that. In fact, Vince wanted to spend as much money as necessary to keep wrestlers – both WWE contracted and non-WWE contracted – away from the grasps of All Elite Wrestling.

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This wasn’t the only reason why Barrios and Wilson were fired by McMahon, but it is said to be a large part of VKM’s decision.

Timothy Thatcher
MLW

Elsewhere in this same episode of WOR, there’s an interesting report of Timothy Thatcher recently signing with WWE. The 36-year-old grappler is believed to have been on WWE’s radar for the past five years, yet he only decided to now sign with The E after having no serious offers from any promotions in Japan.

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Regardless of what caused Thatcher to sign with WWE, it should be fascinating to see how the former Evolve Champion’s career plays out over the next couple of years.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.