Dave Meltzer Assesses WWE Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia, Says Backstage Workers Aren’t Happy

As previously reported, WWE Chief Creative Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque put out a post on his X account yesterday, revealing the new event poster for WWE Crown Jewel 2026. The graphic and post notably continue to advertise the event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, despite the escalating violence in the region and recent security alerts from the United States Embassy in Riyadh. Also, earlier this week, Saudi’s General Entertainment Authority director Turki Al-Sheikh posted that Canelo Alvarez still plans to travel to Saudi Arabia for his scheduled boxing fight against Christian M’billi on October 31.

Al-Sheikh wrote about the Canelo Alvarez fight, “Canelo reached out and told me he’ll still fight in Riyadh this October, no matter what happens. He fears nothing.”

Dave Meltzer discussed Al-Sheikh’s comments on Wrestling Observer Radio on Monday (Oct. 12). Meltzer believes the message from Al-Sheikh wasn’t only about the Alvarez fight, but it was also directed at WWE.

Meltzer explained (via WrestlingInc.com), “In WWE, when that tweet came out, they knew it was a message for them too. I mean…it’s a real tough thing. And this is obviously going to be Ari Emanuel’s decision. This is way over Nick Khan’s head…I’m sure it won’t be without Nick Khan’s input. But that’s…it’s a really tough decision, because they shouldn’t go. We all know that. It’s too dangerous.”

Meltzer also noted how WWE parent company TKO Group Holdings, LLC is beholden to the Saudi GEA, as they also fund Zuffa boxing. He added that he thinks that will result in WWE exhausting every option to move forward with Crown Jewel in Riyadh as planned, despite the recent security alerts and advisories not to travel there.

Meltzer said that he also knows the backstage workers in WWE aren’t happy about the situation. He continued, “If there is any way they can go, they’re going to go, and it’s going to be very interesting because the families of the talents, I’m sure, are not going to be happy. The talent probably isn’t going to be happy. The backstage people, I know, aren’t happy.”

For now, WWE Crown Jewel 2026 takes place at the Riyadh Season Stadium at KAFD in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The WWE premium live event will be held on Saturday, November 7. It will air live on the ESPN App in the U.S. and on Netflix internationally.