AW apologizes for rape joke on Raw, WWE 'has taken appropriate action'

I don't think Abraham Washington, currently working under the moniker "A.W.," will be given a live microphone again, at least not for a while.

That's because the manager of the Primetime Players decided to make a rape joke during a match between Titus O'Neil and Kofi Kingston on last night's (July 30, 2012) episode of Monday Night Raw. At one point during the match, A.W. could be heard saying O'Neil was "like Kobe Bryant at a hotel room in Colorado ... he's unstoppable."

Whether you laughed or not, there's no denying it was something that never should have come out of A.W.'s mouth, at least not in this particular setting. The Wrestling Observer quickly reported that he now has a ton of heat backstage, too, with company officials none too happy that such a comment was made.

That much should be obvious, as Michael Cole was heard issuing an on-air apology for the remark. TMZ.com also got the following statement from WWE:

"A.W. made an inappropriate comment and WWE immediately apologized. WWE has taken appropriate action in the matter."

Whether that appropriate action involves a fine or suspension remains to be seen but for his part, A.W. is apologetic. He took to his Twitter account not long after the incident to express his regret at his words:

"I would like to apologize to all the #WWEUniverse for my inappropriate and insensitve remarks. I went too far with that joke. #NotFunny!! There was no malicious intent behind the joke. It was either a Kobe or Lebron joke. Lebron jus won the finals so there you have it."

The TMZ report also states that A.W. was sure to find all the right people and apologize profusely, which is exactly what you would expect from someone up shit creek without a paddle. Let's just hope this doesn't halt the push of the Primetime Players, who have gradually worked their way up as a tag team with A.W. as their manager.