Saturday evening marked a turning point in WWE's long history, as the Stamford-based promotion marked its debut premium live event on ESPN's streaming service. Immediately, WWE put their biggest faces on ESPN, with Chief Content Officer Paul "Triple H" Levesque and Pat McAfee making appearances to kick off Wrestlepalooza.
The night started with a brief in-ring address from Levesque. The former WWE Champion stood in the ring, microphone in hand, and hyped up the Indianapolis crowd.
"What you are about to witness is the final form of sports and entertainment," Levesque introduced. "If tonight is your first night, let me welcome you to WWE. Let me welcome you to ESPN! Let me welcome you to Wrestlepalooza!"
Indianapolis was treated to second high-profile appearance as a luxurious silver SUV pulled into the backstage area. Where fans might have expected "The Beast Incarnate" or "The Never-Seen Seventeen" to emerge, the familiar face of WWE color commentator and college football personality McAfee appeared. Levesque and McAfee walked through the backstage area and guerilla together with wide smiles before McAfee was set out onto the entrance ramp and to the commentary desk, where he was positively received by Wade Barrett and long-time co-commentator Michael Cole. McAfee is expected to provide his voice for the rest of Wrestlepalooza.
McAfee made wrestling news headlines when he suddenly departed from WWE's commentary desk in the summer, citing mental fatigue as the primary reason for his television absence. While he was away from WWE's screens, he faced controversy over in the football sphere, where he faced legal trouble after falsely spreading rumors about Mary Kate Cornett, an Ole Miss student. Levesque recently announced that, despite his off-screen troubles, McAfee was slated for WWE's high-profile Wrestlepalooza event, but it is unclear whether this is indicative of a long-term return for the popular commentator.
