WWE had several releases in 2020 in April and they did the same in 2021 with many stars facing cuts
Last year was a horrible time as WWE had several releases due to Covid-19 and budget cuts, yet, the company did the same in 2021 too.
This time, the excuse was also budget cuts and many top names were taken out of the company. Former champions and rising stars were handed releases by WWE, which came as a shock not only to the fans but also wrestlers all around.
This came as a huge surprise given that some of them were involved in WrestleMania storylines and others were also up and coming stars.
What is more concerning is that WWE decided to cut many stars after signing the Peacock deal with NBC which earned them, a reported $1billion over the span of the deal.
Of course, WWE has to be run like a business and if they have to take tough decisions, many will not be happy.
However, we are still in a Covid-19 situation and WWE has its policy of a three-month cool down period before stars can perform on other promotions.
Some of the names released weren’t all that big of a surprise but a few certainly left many scratching their heads.
All the names part of the 2021 WWE releases
The first set of names that came out were Billie Kay and Mickie James. James is a legend in the business and a former WWE Women’s champion. She was included in a rivalry with Asuka recently but WWE never really gave her a proper final run in the company.
Kay was a huge surprise given how she had gone over with her resume character. She is a former NXT Women’s and WWE Women’s tag team champion with IIconics partner Peyton Royce, but the pair were also split up a few months back.
Kay was one of the funniest bits on SmackDown but that wasn’t enough to save her. However, Royce was tipped to be a star and a reason why the IIconics were split up.
The Australian was another of the stars to be released but the next batch had another big surprise or two.
The two big names in this list were Samoa Joe and Chelsea Green. Green had a tough time in WWE due to injuries and recently made her SmackDown debut. However, she broke her wrist and it seemed set that she would return soon.
Joe, a former NXT Champion, is still one of the best in the world. He had been out of action due to injury and even did some commentary duty but WWE releasing him is a big decision.
Kalisto, Wesley Blake, Bo Dallas and Tucker all had their moments. However, the quartet weren’t seen all that much in recent months and the writing seemed to be on the wall for a couple of them.
The final name on the list was Mojo Rawley. Rawley is a former 24/7 champion and also won the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal in 2017.
Rawley also had a few matches during the previous months or so, but he wasn’t really in any major storylines.
There is no doubt that most of these stars will bounce-back and sign with other promotions. Many from the 2020 releases are doing well already and some have even transitioned into their own podcast and YouTube/Twitch shows.
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