After reports that multiple people in WWE tested positive for COVID, Renee Young confirmed on June 24 that she was one of the positive tests.
Young sent out a tweet that read, "Man. What a few days. My show gets cancelled and I get Covid. Wear your masks and wash your hands. Stay safe, everyone," referencing her positive test and news that WWE Backstage had been canceled.
Appearing on the SI Media Podcast with Jimmy Traina, Young discussed revealing her positive COVID test and WWE's response.
"I generally just like to be transparent about everything. I like to just be honest. There's no shame in having got it. Again we don't know what's going on with anything. We're all trying to figure it out. So when I tweeted that I had it, I wasn't doing it as, like, 'I GOT COVID.' That was not my MO when I tweeted. It was mostly, 'Hey, I have it.' Also, in case there were people that could've been around me and maybe seen that I had it, I felt a responsibility to make sure people knew that I was sick. But, yeah, it was NOT well received. They weren't even like 'You shouldn't have posted it.' But it was like, 'We wish you gave us a heads up.' It was bad for PR and whatnot. But again, I wouldn't have even thought to be like, "Hey guys, I'm gonna tweet that I have Covid, ha, ha. Like, that was just not what I was thinking about when I posted it," she said.
WWE's handling of COVID was scrutinized from the start as the company didn't shut down in March when other sports leagues halted and didn't even start testing until June.
When asked if WWE handled things properly, Young said, "Listen, anything I say on this is gonna end up seeming like controversial or like I'm shitting on it or whatever, but, yeah, did I feel a little slighted? I didn't really feel like anyone was all that concerned that I got sick. That bothered me for sure. But, you know, it's hard to say. Again, it's like, shit, the show goes on and now they're working at the Amway Center and they're essentially doing the best that they can NOW. Now doing the proper tests. I think that was something that should've been implemented from the beginning. Since everything that's gone down and however many people ended up getting sick, now it feels like a much safer environment. Even when I was there for SummerSlam, I was definitely less concerned about it knowing that everyone in the building has been properly tested with the nose swab and whatnot."
She continued by saying, "It was shocking. It really shocking to see that this was deemed essential business. That made it seem like, hold on a second here. I was not traveling for a while. I was doing stuff from home. I was like, 'I just don't need to be there.' Especially when you look at what I was going on the shows at that time. ... For me to fly from Las Vegas to Orlando when you have Kayla Braxton local in Orlando, you have Sarah Schreiber local in Orlando, Charley Caruso was spending most of her time in Florida, there were hands on deck that didn't have to travel, so for me to feel like I had to actually still had to get on a plane and go do it was like, "Oh my God. For what? What are we doing here? It felt insane to me."
Young said in a post on the Player's Tribune that Steve Austin did check in on her when she announced her positive COVID test.
Young finished up with WWE following SummerSlam and is currently plotting her next move. Her husband, AEW Champion Jon Moxley, said she isn't lacking offers at the moment. You can find his full comments on her departure by clicking here.