WWE made me do weekly weigh ins for losing weight to be 'marketable': Sage Beckket

On Sunday, Sage Beckket took to Twitter to open up about WWE's policies about wanting her to lose weight while she worked with them till 2018. Sage Beckket's comments come after the WWE's recent controversy, where the company and CEO Vince McMahon are facing tremendous backlash online over not allowing players to use third-party platforms like Twitch or Cameo. Beckket's Tweet came as a reply to former WWE star Maria Kanellis' tweet, which was also a reply to Andrew Yang's comments. 

If I’m not the Secretary of Labor I’m pretty confident I’ll have his or her number to talk about the ridiculous classification of WWE wrestlers as independent contractors while controlling their name and likeness for years, even for something as benign as Cameo.

— Andrew Yang🧢🇺🇸 (@AndrewYang) September 5, 2020

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Sage Beckket weight loss: Beckkets reveals WWE made her weight conscious

So, much in wrestling is in the shadows. Fear and abuse of power is their main control mechanism. If WWE fires a woman 2 months postpartum, who wouldn’t they fire? https://t.co/vvbk3eScpp

— MariaKanellisBennett (@MariaLKanellis) September 5, 2020

As fans and wrestlers called WWE out on their seemingly unfair third-party ban, Andrew Yang – former Democratic Presidential candidate – called out the pro wrestling establishment and their policies. In response, Kanellis opened up about her views on the controversy. "So, much in wrestling is in the shadows. Fear and abuse of power is their main control mechanism," Kanellis wrote. She added that if WWE could fire her two months after postpartum, they could abuse their power and fire anyone. Yang's tweet, on the other hand, deals with how much control WWE excerices over wrestlers who aren't even directly their employees. "For all the wrestlers who know that you’re being misclassified but are reliant on staying on Vince’s good side - even because WWE might hire you - I get it," Yang wrote. 

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Or hire you during the “Evolution”, AFTER you’ve already lost 130#s over the last 2yrs, then do weekly weigh ins w/ you b/c you need to lose MORE weight, to be marketable, & release you ON International Women’s Day 🤷🏻‍♀️😒 @AndrewYang https://t.co/UMIUcS2CkE

— MK (@MKGlidewell) September 6, 2020

The 35-year-old Florida-born Beckket signed with the WWE in 2017 and was let go in 2018. She appeared on NXT and was a part of the Mae Young Classic's first-round loss to Bianca Belair. As of 2020, there is no updated figure available about her net worth. However, she was said to be making around $500,000 per year while working with WWE. 

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WWE's response 

“Much like Disney and Warner Bros., WWE creates, promotes and invests in its intellectual property, i.e. the stage names of performers like The Fiend Bray Wyatt, Roman Reigns, Big E and Braun Strowman," WWE wrote in their official statement. They added that it is "imperative for the success" of their company to protect their "greatest assets and establish partnerships with third parties on a companywide basis". However, fans argued that the statement provided no explanation or clarity about their ban.

Also read | WWE stars unhappy with Vince McMahon after using legal loophole to keep shows running

(Image credits: WWE site)