TKO President Mark Shapiro addressed WWE Crown Jewel safety concerns at a company town hall on Wednesday, telling employees the November 7 Riyadh event will be canceled if danger escalates. His comments come after an airport attack earlier this month left 13 dead, prompting the US Embassy to issue multiple warnings against travel to Saudi Arabia.
Mark Shapiro (Credits: Fightful)
Mark Shapiro on WWE Crown Jewel Safety: “People Come First”
Speaking at the town hall (via POST Wrestling), Shapiro acknowledged the balancing act between TKO’s 2026 financial targets and the safety of talent and staff. He said shareholders and Wall Street analysts are watching closely, with some doubting whether TKO can close out the year without any events being canceled — pointing to Formula 1 and other events already scrapped over global conflicts.
“We have a lot of investors and analysts out there across the Wall Street community that are nervous that we’ll be able to pull off the year without any of our events being canceled,” Shapiro said. “Well, so far, we’ve been lucky enough to not have any interruption. I can’t guarantee that we won’t have to cancel any events, but there’s not much we can do about that.”
He was blunt about the financial stakes: if Crown Jewel had to be canceled, “it will certainly have an impact on our year in a very negative way.” But safety, he insisted, overrides the budget.
“I don’t want to talk out of both sides of my mouth here. We want to have the year we all envision we’ve all worked hard for. But if there is danger or further escalation of any of these conflicts that are going on, we will not hesitate to cancel those events, damned be our budget. So it’s certainly a balancing act. But the people part of it does come first in that. We’re never putting anybody in harm’s way,” he said.
WWE’s Packed Middle East Schedule
The stakes go beyond one show. TKO has a heavy Middle East calendar on deck: UFC Fight Night lands in Riyadh on December 5, and Zuffa Boxing has an event set for November 14 in the city. Meanwhile, Canelo Alvarez — who has no TKO involvement — is scheduled to fight Saturday night at the same venue as Crown Jewel.
For WWE fans, the message is clear: Crown Jewel on November 7 is still on as of now, but the company says it will pull the plug rather than risk anyone’s safety if the situation in Riyadh deteriorates further.
Also Read: WWE Crown Jewel Moved to New Venue in Riyadh, ANB Venue Listed on Ticketing Page | Mark Shapiro Addresses Employee Safety Concerns Ahead of WWE Crown Jewel 2026
Source: Fightful — read the full story there.
