Charlotte Flair and Drew McIntyre are not currently backstage at the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska for tonight’s SmackDown on FOX.
It was reported last week how WWE knew Flair would be taking time off before they decided on her WrestleMania 39 loss to new SmackDown Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley. PWInsider adds that while Flair was originally advertised for this weekend’s live events before WrestleMania, that is no longer the case as she is already on vacation. As seen in the photos/clips below, Flair and her husband, AEW’s Andrade El Idolo, have been in Hawaii as of late, where they celebrated her 37th birthday on April 5.
There is still no official word on why Flair is taking another hiatus, but she was telling people backstage that she and Andrade were going to travel. There’s also no word yet on how long this break will be for, but it was a Flair decision, not a move made by WWE.
McIntyre is also not backstage for tonight’s SmackDown. He missed last week’s post-WrestleMania show for what was said to be a health issue, but then it was reported that he worked WrestleMania 39 while injured. He also missed a local signing last Friday. It was noted that the severity of the injury is not known, and that it is unclear how long he will be out for, or when the issue first occurred.
Regarding tonight’s absence, it’s very interesting that McIntyre did local media in Nebraska to promote tonight’s SmackDown, indicating that at one point he was scheduled.
As we’ve noted, McIntyre’s WWE contract expires later this year but the two sides have not agreed on a new deal, and McIntyre has told people he isn’t looking to make a decision until later this year, closer to the expiration date. It was also reported that McIntyre is unhappy with WWE for various reasons, but his absence last week and this week reportedly have nothing to do with his contract or reported unhappiness.
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Below are the aforementioned Flair photos/clips:
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