Conflicting Reports On Vince McMahon's Involvement In Stephanie McMahon's Leave Of Absence

Conflicting reports have emerged about Vince McMahon's involvement in Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon taking a leave of absence from WWE.

Stephanie announced on May 19 that she would be taking a leave of absence from most of her WWE duties, citing that she wanted to spend more time with her family. Other reported reasons were her husband Triple H's recent health issues and her busy work schedule.

However, a report from Business Insider has claimed Stephanie's leave of absence came about as a result of a corporate shakeup initiated by Vince McMahon.

A company source told Business Insider: "Family or not family, we've got to get the right people in place. We weren't seeing that growth. When someone is moved out of a company, it's usually the result of something not working. We took stronger control of that a few months ago."

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, though, Stephanie made the decision to take a leave of absence and it was not initiated by Vince McMahon. Meltzer attributed the Business Insider report to higher-ups in WWE wanting to bury the Chief Brand Officer.

"Her leaving was 100% her choice. She had been talking about to close friends from when Paul had his heart issues. That said, key people in the company once she was gone did want to bury her on the way out. That shocked a lot of people including me and those close to her. When I noted to someone very high in the food chain about the burial starting, they told me that if they did that publicly it would be career suicide, only to find out they had already started and the burial was going to come from the top," Meltzer wrote on the F4W Online message board.

If and when McMahon will return to WWE is unclear but it is believed she will take over a new role in the organisation.