Former Wwe Executive Thinks 2019 Crown Jewel Plane Incident Was ‘exaggerated To Some Degree’

As WWE prepares for another controversial visit to Saudi Arabia, former company executive George Barrios reflected on an incident that happened during his time with the promotion.

Barrios was co-president of WWE when the roster was delayed in Saudi Arabia after Crown Jewel 2019. The incident (where some questioned whether they were being held hostage) played a part in a shareholder lawsuit that WWE settled for $39 million in 2020.

Appearing on My World with Jeff Jarrett & Conrad Thompson, Barrios said he believes the incident has been “exaggerated to some degree.” He said issues like this aren’t actually as uncommon as fans would think, recalling the time a different country other than Saudi Arabia instituted an airport fee and forced WWE to pay it if they wanted to leave.

“I don’t know what the right phrase — I think it was exaggerated to some degree,” Barrios said about the 2019 situation. “And again, look, back to doing business in other countries, there were other runways around the world where our plane was delayed. I remember somebody calling like, ‘Hey, to get [out], there’s a new fee.’ It was not in Riyadh, it was in a different country, I won’t name it. But we’re getting called, our plane had been delayed and somehow it had gotten serious enough that it reached my desk. Usually this stuff is just getting handled, but it reached my desk because a new fee had been instituted in this country — airport fee — that was a lot of money to get out. And somebody said, someone could look at this and say, ‘You’re being extorted to be let out of the country.’ I guess it depends on how you want to look at it.

“But in that moment, there was a fee. And so what did I say? I said, ‘Pay the f***ing fee. We’re coming home, right? So I don’t even know why you’re calling me. Yes, it’s a lot of money. But yeah, we’re paying the airport fee.’ If anybody’s listening and is going to charge me with a violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, I say bullsh*t, it was then law in that country and we obeyed it.”

Barrios then clarified that he wasn’t trying to say the 2019 Saudi incident was the exact same thing as what went on with this other undisclosed country.

“So when you ask about what happened in Saudi Arabia, I think for the most part, I don’t know exactly, and I’m not trying to say there was an analog there — I’m just saying there was a delay and then we got out, and I’ll leave it at that,” he said.

The 2019 Crown Jewel event was held on a Thursday. Because of the plane incident, talent missed that Friday’s SmackDown episode before making it home by Saturday.

Barrios departed WWE in early 2020 and recently released a book about his time with the company.

WWE Crown Jewel 2026 set for November 7 —

WWE announced an “expanded” partnership with the Saudi government days after Crown Jewel 2019 and has maintained a close relationship with the country since. This year’s Crown Jewel PLE is scheduled for Riyadh on Saturday, November 7. Despite recent turmoil and violence in the Middle East, preparations for Crown Jewel are still underway.

April 2027 will see Saudi Arabia host WrestleMania for the first time ever.