WWE hooked up RFK Jr.’s niece with a tryout during SummerSlam weekend
Zoe Hines was publicly announced for a WWE tryout just weeks after WWE chief Triple H met with RFK Jr. Her familial ties appeared to have gone unnoticed until now.
Quid pro quo, brother?
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) has been on the receiving end of criticism from pro wrestling fans over the past few days as the company has seemingly embraced its ties to President Donald Trump.
However, one of WWE’s most recent overtures to Trump and his MAGA movement appears to have gone unnoticed: The company just provided the niece of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s Secretary of Health and Human Services, an opportunity at becoming a WWE Superstar.
While WWE was in the tri-state area for its second biggest show of the year, the two-day WWE SummerSlam event, the company held tryouts in New Jersey for up-and-coming athletes as part of its WWE Recruit program.
One individual who was invited to try out at becoming a future WWE wrestler was Zoe Hines.
Her biography as covered by news outlets, pro wrestling blogs, and other online media makes mention that Hines previously played softball for Boston College and now plays in France.
However, what seemingly went unnoticed and unmentioned is that Zoe Hines is RFK Jr.’s niece.
Zoe Hines is the daughter of Rebecca Hines, the sister of RFK Jr.’s wife, actress Cheryl Hines.
Photographs taken at the tryouts show that Cheryl Hines was in attendance at the WWE tryout in support of her niece Zoe.
On Instagram, Zoe Hines has previously posted photos with her aunt and uncle, including photos of her attendance as a guest at Trump’s election night party in November 2024 and Trump’s Inauguration weekend events in January of this year.
It should be noted that both RFK Jr. and WWE Chief Content Officer Paul Levesque, better known by his ring name as Triple H, posted on social media about a meeting the two held with each other earlier this year in June concerning the President's Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition.
“Thank you for having us, @SecKennedy,” Triple H posted on X on June 13. “Always striving to do whatever we can to help make our nation’s youth as healthy as they can be.”
Six weeks later, on July 24, wrestling news site PWInsider would report the first athletes confirmed for the WWE tryout held this past weekend. Alongside a former football player for Michigan State and an amateur wrestler, Zoe Hines was one of the initial six names to be invited to the tryout.
While not a required trait for athletes attending WWE tryouts, it should be noted that Hines has no pro wrestling experience or training.
In addition, out of the dozens of athletes, Hines was one of the only tryout attendees to be featured by name in a photo of the event shared by Triple H.
Wrestling fans have criticized the WWE in recent days for embracing Trump by promoting Triple H’s recent meeting at the White House with the president on July 31, just days before SummerSlam.
Hooking up RFK JR.’s niece with a tryout is just yet another extension of WWE’s MAGA embrace. Or, as Triple H used to say “what’s best for business.”
Hasn't the WWE always been entwined with Trump? Why would they be getting extra pushback now.