Since late April, nearly 30 wrestlers have left WWE whether that’s due to being released or asking for their release. Post-WrestleMania cuts have been the norm for years with periodic cuts coming throughout the year. There have been reports that some talent were asked to take large pay cuts with at least one talent agreeing to do so. Rumors also swirled that more roster cuts were coming.
During a recent episode of “Wrestling Observer Radio,” Dave Meltzer provided more insight. He said that while cuts are done at this time, more names could come out from the last wave of releases.
“Every name has been told,” he said. “If someone was told and did not go on social media or they did not remove the name from the website yet, it is possible a name or two could still come out.”
Meltzer also shed some light on why there were more cuts this year versus last year. He pointed out that with TKO being new at the time, they wanted to be seen as the “good guys” in 2025. He also points to creative making the call on cuts so they could be replaced by “NXT” call ups, as well as “SmackDown” moving to two hours in a few weeks, which also caused more talent to be cut from the blue brand.
“People were essentially told, ‘You’re going to take the new deal or you’re going to get cut,'” Meltzer said regarding talent pay cuts. He also pointed out that wrestlers who accepted the pay cuts are clearly not in good positions given that the company was willing to potentially cut them.
On May 1, Nick Khan signed a new multi-million contract that will keep him with WWE until 2030. Days earlier, it was reported that Paul Levesque also signed a new contract prior to WrestleMania 42.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Wrestling Observer Radio and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
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