For many years, politics and pro wrestling have gone hand-in-hand, with a few individuals even playing roles in both industries. Though not everyone is happy about it, politics have worked their way into pro wrestling in other forms as well. Appearing on “The Adam Friedland Show,” AEW World Champion Maxwell Jacob Friedman shared his belief that the way it’s handled is something that sets his promotion apart from WWE.

“We had a ‘F**k ICE’ chant,” MJF said. “I think what’s so cool about that is in our company, our fans have a voice. In the other company, a lot of the times when fans curse, or they say something that they don’t want them to say, they just bleep it.”

“I’ll also say, they’ve made a choice to be a little bit more right-leaning. You know, Triple H has done a couple speeches in the White House. Linda McMahon, I believe, is in the Cabinet?” Friedland then confirmed that McMahon is currently the United States Secretary of Education under President Trump.

Despite the controversial chants, MJF emphasized that AEW, unlike WWE, are not affiliated with any political party, so anyone should feel comfortable going to one of their shows regardless of their beliefs. “I don’t want politics involved in my sports!” he added.

In a similar vein, CM Punk made reference to Pat McAfee on this week’s “WWE Raw” by calling him “Pat MAGA-fee.”

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “The Adam Friedland Show,” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

It is well known that both WWE and TKO have become frustrated with ticket sales for WrestleMania 42, with there being over a 10% decrease in the amount of tickets distributed compared to last year’s event. Whether it’s fan frustration with the creative direction, the event taking place in the same city as last year, or the increased price of tickets, it doesn’t seem like Allegiant Stadium will be sold out this year. So far, lowering the price of tickets and announcing John Cena as the host of the show have been used as tactics in order to try to move the needle, but there’s been a lack of improvement thus far. Therefore, many in the industry have speculated that an appearance from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson could be a last minute effort to boost sales, but according to a new report, he’s still not planned for the event.

According to Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, he’s been given no indication by his sources that The Rock will be at WrestleMania. However, he claims that only few within the company would be told if he was making it a surprise appearance and therefore his presence at the show can’t be completely ruled out. Last year, Ari Emanuel, the CEO of TKO, called The Rock when ticket sales were low for the Elimination Chamber in Toronto and struck a deal for him to appear at the event. That said, this time around ticket prices are higher compared to Johnson’s appearance in Toronto, and WWE has seemingly not pulled the trigger on the idea for him to be involved at WrestleMania.

Alternatively, Meltzer also notes that there’s a possibility The Rock would want to keep his appearance a surprise, and his name was recently tied into the main event of WrestleMania night two when CM Punk mentioned him on “WWE Raw” while building towards his feud with Roman Reigns.

Hechicero better hone in on protecting himself and his fireballs of magic if he wants to retain his CMLL World Heavyweight Championship, as he’s about to square off with a submission magician, Jonathan Gresham, who will definitely come in with a few tricks up his sleeve at Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling’s upcoming event, Multiverse, next Friday, at The Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.

BREAKING NEWS: Hechicero will defend the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship against @TheJonGresham NEXT WEEK at MLP Multiverse! Gresham just came up short last month in his pursuit for the MLP Canadian Championship at Uprising, but will he be able to win gold this time around?… pic.twitter.com/d7FTtyhOT5

— MAPLE LEAF PRO Wrestling (@MapleLeafPW) April 9, 2026

A recurring star for MLP, Gresham is looking to obtain his first piece of gold since 2022, when he carried the Ring of Honor World Championship for 224 days. As for Hechicero, the Don Callis Family member regained the CMLL Heavyweight Title from another AEW star and Death Rider, Claudio Castagnoli, on March 20 at Homenaje a Dos Leyendas in Mexico City. Next Friday will mark his first title defense.

Both men have surpassed the expectancy on what makes for superb technical wrestlers, as Hechicero is considered one of the best to ever do it. As for Gresham, “The Octopus” is known to be a master at methodical mat work, intense psychology, and storytelling. Since suffering two strokes last summer, the former champion has competed in 11 matches across several different independent promotions. His most recent match was in MLP late last month, where the company crowned a new Interim MLP Canadian Champion after its inaugural champion, Josh Alexander, announced he would be out of action indefinitely. Former AEW star and Dark Order stablemate, Stu Grayson, is now that champion.