Vince McMahon Reportedly Fired XFL Commissioner Oliver Luck for ‘Gross Neglect’

– Vince McMahon’s legal team has struck back. As previously reported, former XFL Commissioner Oliver Luck filed a lawsuit against WWE Chairman and XFL Founder Vince McMahon for wrongful termination. Now, Vince McMahon’s lawyers are fighting back, per a new story from Sports Business Daily. Per the report, the reason Vince McMahon fired Luck before announcing the closure of the XFL revival was “gross neglect.”

Details on the lawyers’ statements came from new filings in federal court in Connecticut earlier today (May 13). Luck is currently suing McMahon for breach of contract after he was released from his post on April 9. Four days later, the XFL filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

McMahon’s lawyers are saying Oliver Luck showed “gross neglect” for his job during the early days of his coronavirus pandemic, personal use of a league-issued iPhone, and signing former NFL player Antonio Callaway despite McMahon issuing an order to avoid players who have had past legal issues.

Per the report, McMahon’s attorneys detailed some of the complaints in a pre-trial motion that was publicly held today. Previously, Luck had redacted many of the specifics of the legal dispute. In his complaint, Luck “wholly disputes and rejects the allegations set forth in the Termination Letter and contends they are pretextual and devoid of merit.” Luck’s lawyer, Paul Dobrowski, announced that an additional statement is forthcoming later today.

The court documents revealed the following reasons for why McMahon fired Luck:

Luck left the XFL’s Connecticut HQ for his home in Indiana on March 13 and “disengage[d] from the XFL’s operations,” according to the filing. McMahon further claims Luck did not inform him of his intentions. “Put simply, at the very moment when his leadership as CEO was needed most, Luck did not devote substantially all of his business time to the XFL, as required by his contract.”

Luck signed Callaway, a former Browns WR, to a draft contract promising a $125,000 signing bonus without informing McMahon, even though he was aware that McMahon asked for final approval rights to any player with a questionable background. The filing continues on that “Luck failed to promptly terminate Callaway in accordance with McMahon’s instructions,” and then Callaway injured his knee in a Tampa Bay Vipers practice, which triggered medical costs and worker’s compensation costs for the startup. “The cost to the XFL of this episode of gross negligence was in excess of six figures,” McMahon’s filing reads.

Luck used his league-issued iPhone for personal matters.

Additionally, in the new court filings made today, Vince McMahon reportedly acknowledged that he made personal guarantee for XFL parent company Alpha Entertainment’s contract with Oliver Luck. It’s that same guarantee which is giving Luck a legal basis to file a lawsuit against McMahon rather than try and appeal to the U.S. bankruptcy court that’s overseeing the XFL case. If McMahon’s legal counsel can prove that Luck’s termination was valid, the contract guarantee will be legally moot.

According to the court filings, Luck’s guaranteed contract included a $5 million annual salary and a $2 million annual. The filing was made in opposition to Luck’s legal team making a request for a pre-judgment award of damages on the basis that the lawsuit would likely succeed. In certain legal circumstances, such requests are allowable. Also, longtime WWE attorney Jerry McDevitt signed the new filing.