Newsweek is reporting that Mauro Ranallo, announcer for WWE Smackdown Live as well as boxing and MMA organizations, has left the company. Last seen on WWE television on March 7th, speculation has run high as to the reason why Mauro had been off the air. Some speculated it was due to his bi-polar disorder, which Mauro has been open about. Dave Meltzer from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, one of the preeminent wrestling news organizations in the country, has been adamant since the story broke that the reason for Mauro leaving was due to bullying from JBL. Citing the March 13 episode of Bring It To The Table, starring Peter Rosenberg, he cites that JBL’s verbal jabs at Mauro for winning the Best Announcer Award from the Wrestling Observer were cause for Mauro to leave. Mauro had this to say to Newsweek about his departure.

WWE and I have mutually agreed to part ways. It has nothing to do with JBL.

Full disclosure. Before I comment on this issue, I have to state that at one time, I briefly worked for JBL. From 2013 to 2014, John Layfield had a website called The Layfield Report for which I was a contributor. I had some brief interactions with him which were quite cordial and polite. He gave me my first break as a freelance writer and for that, I will be eternally grateful.

With that said, if JBL had committed a despicable act that caused one of the greatest announcers working today to leave the WWE, I would be the first to call him out on it. Yet where is the evidence showing JBL as the culprit for Mauro leaving the company? The internet wrestling community has dug up various Youtube videos and interviews with former WWE wrestlers talking about some of JBL’s backstage antics. Justin Roberts, former WWE announcer, has also spoken of actions that JBL apparently committed against him, which Layfield has gone on record as denying. They also speak of his comments on Bring It To The Table which, if they had actually watched the show, folks would see were rather innocuous.