For the second week in a row, lead Smackdown commentator Mauro Ranallo was absent from the commentary desk, leading to speculation that he will soon be gone from the company.
Last week it was said that Ranallo missed the show due to the storm that prevented him from flying to Smackdown, however Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer said that it was not true at all and there’s something bigger than that.
At the beginning of the show last night, Todd Phillips said that Mauro Ranallo was out sick and that’s why he is not there for commentary, an excuse which was not believed by those in the industry.
Ranallo last tweeted on March 14, pretty unusual for a person who uses Twitter multiple times a day to be offline for over a week. One of the tweets sent that day read, “Jealousy is one helluva drug!” which might give some insight of some problems he is having with colleagues.
Mauro joined the WWE broadcast team for the premiere of Smackdown Live on USA Network in January 2016 and has been the lead commentator for the show ever since.
