Vince McMahon will ‘vigorously defend himself’ against sex trafficking allegations

A statement released Thursday night from a Vince McMahon spokesperson indicates the TKO executive chairman is going to fight the troubling allegations that were released earlier in the day via a new lawsuit.

McMahon, WWE, and former executive John Laurinaitis are being sued by former WWE employee Janel Grant who is alleging that she was the victim of “physical and emotional abuse, sexual assault and trafficking” while at the company.

The following was released to several media outlets by McMahon’s team:

“This lawsuit is replete with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and a vindictive distortion of the truth. He will vigorously defend himself.”

Grant was the recipient of what was supposed to be a $3 million hush money settlement with McMahon that led to him being investigated by the WWE Board of Directors in 2022. However, she said she was only paid $1 million, and is looking to both void the agreement and seek unspecified financial damages, also claiming the Board never contacted her during their investigation even though she offered to speak to them.

Earlier Thursday, TKO released a statement saying they take the “horrific allegations” seriously and are addressing the matter internally even though they allegedly occurred before the UFC/WWE merger that created TKO.

Among the many explicit details revealed in the lawsuit, Grant alleges that McMahon promised “personalized sexual content” to a former UFC heavyweight champion and WWE talent they were trying to re-sign in 2021. The Wall Street Journal reported that was Brock Lesnar. 

From the Wall Street Journal report:

“The suit said McMahon shared the explicit photos with the star and informed Grant that “he likes what he sees.” After the star agreed to a new WWE contract, McMahon texted Grant in August 2021 to say “that part of the deal was f—ing U.”

That December, McMahon gave Grant’s personal cellphone number to the WWE star, the lawsuit said. The wrestler asked her to send a video of herself urinating, the suit said, and after she did, he called her a “b—.” That same month, the suit said, the star expressed a desire to “set a play date,” but a snowstorm disrupted his travel plans.”

The suit stated that Grant was introduced to McMahon while they were living in the same apartment building. Even before he eventually got her a job with WWE, the suit claims McMahon acted inappropriately to Grant which only got worse after she was brought in.

Additional alleged incidents included Grant sustaining injuries from McMahon being physically aggressive during sex, using sex toys on her in a forceful way, naming some of the toys after male WWE wrestlers, sending her to a “celebrity doctor” for appointments she never had to pay for, defecating on Grant during a sexual encounter where McMahon’s physical therapist was also involved, and instructing her to have sex with Laurinaitis.