Source: PWInsider.com
A backstage incident between Bob Ryder and Jeff and Karen Jarrett has reportedly been the talk of the iMPACT! Wrestling locker room over the last two days. According to sources, Ryder got into a loud, heated argument with the Jarretts at the final iMPACT! taping on Sunday in Orlando and at one point, it appeared to be Ryder’s last moment with the company.
Multiple sources are saying Karen Jarrett confronted Ryder while he was timing out the show and began to argue with him about the booking of a hotel room. The argument was described as a “dress[ing] down” by Karen and she walked away soon after, only to have Jeff come up to Ryder several minutes later. Jeff loudly confronted him and told him to “not wait” and to leave the event. Ryder then packed up and left, not having completed his work. He reportedly had another argument with both Jeff and Karen before getting in his car and leaving.
Ryder has been dealing with health issues in recent months and there was said to be a lot of sympathy for him from others after the incident. Several people believed yesterday that Ryder was gone from the company, either having been fired or quitting after the argument with Karen. However, he was working today at the company’s Nashville offices as usual, and it is believed that everything was settled once everyone got back to Nashville. iMPACT! Wrestling officials tried to keep the incident quiet and one source just said it was the pressures of producing television, but others confirmed that the incident happened and that it was “as bad you can imagine” in the moment.
Bob Ryder has been a big part of TNA/iMPACT! since its inception, handling everything from travel and logistics issues to eventually talent relations and contracts. One person said that “if Ryder left, he would be the guy that knew where every single body was buried.”
