Major Backstage Update: Chris Jericho-Brazil Update

Partial Source: The Wrestling Observer

Here is the latest news and notes on the Chris Jericho-WWE Brazil story:

– This is NOT a work by any means.

– Jericho was rushed to the airport late last night and they got him out of the country and into Ecuador ASAP. As of earlier this morning, he was in Ecuador. He’s likely on his way back home now.

– WWE management met with and issued an apology to the Brazilian government last night and this morning.

– In Brazil, desecrating the flag is grounds for incarceration. It’s against the law.

– Jericho was told by police and government officials that he had two choices – either apologize right then and there or be arrested and escorted out of the arena in handcuffs. They would have also shut the entire show down and sent fans home.

– Jericho has been pulled from the entire tour and has been suspended for 30 days. He will not be at the No Way Out PPV and the planned match with Randy Orton is off. They started the angle on RAW Monday and had planned to do a match between the two at the pay-per-view.

– This is something Jericho did completely on his own. WWE had absolutely no knowledge of this and it wasn’t part of the script. A fan actually brought the flag and gave it to CM Punk as he was entering the ring.

– James sent this in: As a prosecutor here in the US, I have actually lectured to visiting Brazilian prosecutors when they came to Central Florida for international law enforcement training. We talked about the laws involving national flags of both our countries, and it is against the national law to desecrate the flag in Brazil (unlike the US where such a law would be unconstitutional). It is a misdemeanor level offense in Brazil.

– Brazil is completely different than the U.S, Canada, UK, etc. with their rules and laws, etc. It’s against the law (entertainment or not) to desecrate their flag and Jericho did just that.

– UFC star Chael Sonnen was nearly banned from fighting in Brazil for simply trash talking the country.

– As noted earlier, WWE management was scrambling to “make things right” with Brazilian officials and promoters late last night.

— WWE officials are hoping the media regarding this will die down but realize it’s going to get worse before it gets better. The company also knows they had no other choice but to suspend him.

– As noted earlier, this is not a work and WWE management was extremely pissed off about the events that transpired Thursday night.

More as we get it.

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