The WWE has been missing one of their best commentators for the past few weeks and now Mauro Ranallo has let fans know that he also will miss WrestleMania 33 as well. Ranallo went to Twitter to announce that he will miss the big event but said he was extremely happy for Jim Ross, who will be appearing at the event.
The WWE announced this last week that they have signed Jim Ross to a new contract where he will work on various WE Network and DVD projects and will officially make his return this Sunday night at WrestleMania 33 to announce the Roman Reigns vs. Undertaker match.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEr1VFrclMQ
As for Mauro Ranallo, he has missed the past three weeks of SmackDown Live . The first week, Ranallo missed and said it was due to the bad weather that night up North. However, he then missed the next two weeks, the first one the WWE announcing that it was due to illness.
In a tweet last week, Mauro Ranallo said that he was out of action for now and his doctor was recommending he also remain off social media during this time. Mauro suffers from bipolar disorder and clinical depression. Ranallo has been very public about his mental struggles because he wants to help others who also suffer from these problems.
During the Mauro Ranallo absence, his fellow commentating partner JBL has made some comments about the absence. What Culture reported that the problems that led to the current medical problems for Ranallo might be credited to JBL .
According to reports, JBL often takes shots at Mauro Ranallo for breaking the unwritten rules of professional wrestling. According to What Culture , JBL has insulted Mauro on Twitter and blasted Ranallo on the WWE Network show Bring it to the Table for talking about winning the Announcer of the Year award from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter .
JBL said that only John Cena is allowed to mention winning awards outside of those presented by the WWE. What Culture also reports that backstage sources claim that tensions have been building up between JBL and Mauro Ranallo for a while before JBL made these comments.
Mauro Ranallo has always maintained a large presence on social media but has been absent over the last three weeks, per his doctor’s orders. He came on twice to thank fans for their kind words and support and then for this latest tweet about WrestleMania 33 .
There are other reasons to believe that there are real problems behind the scenes between Mauro Ranallo and JBL. Former UFC Champion Bas Rutten is a close friend of Ranallo and has come out publicly on Twitter in defense of Mauro.
A fan on Twitter said that he was disappointed to see that Mauro Ranallo wasn’t commentating in the WWE. Bas Rutten responded and said that Mauro was the best announcer in the WWE and then called JBL an “Ahole.” He then said that JBL used to be a pro wrestler but, as a commentator, he should always take care of his broadcast partner.
Those are very pointed comments towards JBL concerning the alleged conflict with Mauro Ranallo. Since the two are not involved in any sort of feud on camera, Bas Rutten seems to be hinting to some serious problems that might have led his friend to his recent mental problems.
For his part, Mauro Ranallo is following what he claims are his doctor’s orders and remaining off social media outside of his now rare moments to thank fans and compliment Jim Ross on the new gig. Whether or not fans will ever have the privilege of listening to Mauro commentate for the WWE again is up in the air. All that is known is that Ranallo won’t be at WrestleMania 33 this weekend.
[Featured Image by WWE]