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WWE Released Superstars Despite a Big Profit in the Quarter

Published 11/05/2021, 12:49 PM EDT

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WWE released several Superstars recently, and the reason was – budget cuts. But, is it true?

According to reports, the company had $256 million in revenue for the quarter. If that’s true, do budget cuts stand to be a good enough reason to release seventeen Superstars at one go?

Of course, fans responded. Some of them did not hesitate to call out Vince McMahon and WWE for this. All of them pointed out how budget cuts do not make any sense for the releases at all! On the other hand, some fans believe the company should be allowed to release Superstars they don’t want to use.

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Unfortunately, this wasn’t the first time WWE released Superstars using the same reason yet reported profits for the quarter.

Former Divas Champion Expresses Displeasure as Ember Moon, Keith Lee and Others are Released

WWE will require to still pay for the non-compete clause duration

When the company releases a Superstar, the pro-wrestlers have to wait for the non-compete clause to end before they can sign up with another promotion.

During this time, the company needs to pay the pro-wrestlers during that time which is usually 90 days. While the pay comes in, former Superstars have revealed they don’t enjoy waiting for the time to end and not being able to work or enter the ring.

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However, recently two former Superstars could take advantage of a loophole in the contracts to ensure they can go back to the ring faster.

First, Aleister Black could begin working with AEW just after thirty days from being released because WWE hadn’t updated his contract when he moved from NXT to Raw. Superstars working under NXT have a 30-days non-compete clause upon being released.

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Bray Wyatt Drops Cryptic Tweet After WWE Releases Seventeen Superstars

Second, Adam Cole’s original contract ended, but he had it extended to TakeOver: 36. He wanted that extension to negotiate his next contract with WWE or quit the company. Therefore, he left after TakeOver: 36 when his extended contract ended and he could immediately begin working with AEW.

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Now, previously, many have spoken up about WWE’s policies and have expressed the need to change them. However, Vince McMahon has run a successful business with these policies and it’s doubtful the company will change them unless absolutely required.

It’s unknown what the released Superstars plan to do in the future. Hopefully, they’ll bounce back stronger once the non-compete clause ends!

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Written by:

Shuvangi Sen Chaudhury

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Shuvangi is a senior WWE and AEW author at EssentiallySports. She has over 1000 published WWE articles and also has experience in content operations with Forbes. Having completed her undergraduation from Royal Holloway, University of London, Shuvangi is closely aligned to the fitness industry, having amateur skills levels in tennis and basketball while rowing at a regatta level.
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