Tributes for Terry Funk & Bray Wyatt confirmed for WWE Smackdown
WWE just issued the email blast for tonight’s Smackdown in Lexington, KY and confirmed that there will be tributes for Terry Funk and Bray Wyatt. The email included the following line-
“TONIGHT, WE PAY TRIBUTE TO THE LIVES AND CAREERS OF THE ONE AND ONLY BRAY WYATT AND WWE HALL OF FAMER TERRY FUNK.”
WWE previously announced that Jimmy Uso would address Bloodline issues on tonight’s Smackdown but that segment has been pulled from the WWE website and it was not in the email sent out this evening. WWE still has the following matches listed for tonight- Grayson Waller vs. WWE U.S. Champion Rey Mysterio in a non-title match, & IYO SKY defending the WWE Women’s Championship against Zelina Vega.
Rob Fee, who works for WWE as the Director of Longterm Creative, tweeted that tonight’s Smackdown will be “really special.” Fee was responsible for much of the White Rabbit teasers for Wyatt’s 2022 return, and worked with Wyatt on his storylines.
WWE brought Cody Rhodes and Braun Strowman to tonight’s Smackdown, according to PWInsider. Strowman is still out after undergoing neck surgery so if he appears it will only be for the tributes, not a match.
An earlier report from BWE said tonight’s “show will go on” but that there will be tributes to Funk and Wyatt, including promos and match types. It was also teased that Wyatt’s lantern “will be shut off forever.”
The canned tribute videos the legends get, like Funk got tonight, are TRASH. Bray got a sterling, much deserved tribute, mainly because it was done in the moment, not canned months/years ahead of time. Funk deserved a better tribute than the PC rubbish he got tonight. The legends have been getting the bum’s rush when it comes to the tribute packages and it’s not right. Savage, Dusty, Mae, Bearer, Moolah, Piper, those are the way it SHOULD be done. These cut and paste jobs are disrespectful to the wrestler, their family, their fans, and their legacy. There would have been no Wyatt without Funk. That needs to be respected. They’ve got an entire Network! USE IT! Why not use the footage they spent so much to get? Why not try to drive fans to the Network to watch the footage and matches? It’s irritating to say the least. Is Bret, Hogan, Taker, and Flair going to get a “The WWE was saddened to learn of the passing of WWE Hall of Famer [INSERT NAME]” piece of trash? It’s something to think about. They need to do better and we should expect more of them. They OWN WRESTLING’S HISTORY! They need to do a BETTER JOB respecting both our passion and that responsibility. Just a thought. This is a rough week for fans, and to see the clear divide between actually honoring a current legend and an icon like Funk couldn’t have been more stark or pathetic.