The past 24 hours have been quite shocking for fans of WWE, who have seen a string of high-profile names cut from the company with “budget cuts” cited as partial reasoning behind said releases, in an email from John Laurinaitis.
Fightful.com journalist Sean Ross Sapp broke the news across social media, as name after name was revealed as the next to be chopped.
“Vaccination status” was also said to be a reason for some of the decisions being made, although it's not been made clear just how many of the former WWE Superstars were released for this reason; or which of them have remained unvaccinated against the coronavirus.
Nia Jax, Eva Marie, Keith Lee, Mia Yim and Karrion Kross are some of the bigger names that are no longer going to be wrestling under the WWE banner, whilst the likes of Harry Smith, Lince Dorado, Gran Metalik, Katrina Cortez, Jeet Rama Trey Baxter and Zayda Ramier have also been released.
Smith, who is the son of wrestling legend The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith, only re-signed with the company earlier this year and hadn’t even yet appeared on television. Marie had also only just re-signed with the company, being given much of the same gimmicks she was offered the first time around during her time in the squared circle.
Jessi Kamea, Hit Row's B-Fab, Ember Moon, Oney Lorcan, Franky Monet and Scarlett Bordeaux have also been informed of their releases. Bordeaux has a 30-day non-compete clause; a feature of many contracts which seems utterly outdated and unfair, to be frank.
Some of those who have been released in recent months have found quick success via other outlets, being picked up by the likes of rival companies All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and Impact, amongst others.
We’re sure that this will be the case for many of those released overnight and, some of the talents have taken to their own social media to react to their release and tease a future elsewhere.
Those fortunate enough to still be with the WWE will be hoping to showcase their talents at upcoming pay-per-view event Survivor Series, which will take place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on Sunday, November 21st 2021.
Rumoured matches include SmackDown Champions Charlotte Flair and Roman Reigns going up against Raw's Becky Lynch and Big E in solo matches respectively, and there will undoubtedly be the traditional men and women's Survivor Series match, as the two brands battle for supremacy.
Nothing has yet been made official, but we’re sure the WWE creative team will have something up their sleeves to raise a few brows. Whether that’s for good or bad reasons remains to be seen…
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Tagged in WWE