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Sean Gleason
Chief Executive Officer, Professional Bull Riders
Endeavor-owned PBR was the last of the national sports properties to pull the plug and the first to resume, assembling about 140 riders, stock workers and support staff on a ranch outside Oklahoma City at the end of April. With protocols that included testing, masks and small working groups, Gleason’s organization provided a road map for others who would resume in the months that followed.
— Bill King
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Dana White
President, Ultimate Fighting Championship
The first time White mentioned moving his events to “Fight Island,” some shrugged it off as a promoter creating hubbub. It wasn’t. A collaboration between Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism and the UFC, Fight Island enabled the global promoter — also owned by Endeavor — to offer work to fighters on five continents and keep its pay-per-view pipeline flowing when travel restrictions made that appear impossible. — Bill King
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Paul “Triple H” Levesque
Executive Vice President, Global Talent Strategy and Development, World Wrestling Entertainment
Stephanie McMahon
Chief Brand Officer, World Wrestling Entertainment
As other leagues suspended their seasons, WWE continued offering fresh content, starting with shifting “SmackDown” to its Performance Center in Orlando on March 15. Under the guidance of Levesque and McMahon, WWE never missed a “Raw,” “NXT,” “SmackDown” or pay-per-view event. And the ThunderDome concept for shows further demonstrated WWE’s mastery of production, even on the fly. — David Bourne
