Earlier this week, the WWE announced a mass amount of roster cuts. More than 20 superstars were released ranging from main roster talents to performance center trainees. Among these WWE roster cuts were former world heavyweight champion Dolph Ziggler, Matt Riddle, Shelton Benjamin and Mustafa Ali who was scheduled to face Dominik Mysterio next week for the NXT North American Championship. These cuts come just a week after over 100 employees were laid off following the merger with UFC to form TKO.
These WWE roster cuts occurred the same day it was announced that SmackDown would be leaving FOX to head back to the USA Network in October 2024. NBCUniversal reportedly agreed to a five-year deal to acquire the rights to air Smackdown in a deal that’s valued at $1.4 billion. The new deal also includes four prime-time NBC specials.
The WWE roster cuts shocked many fans after the announcement of such a lucrative TV deal. It also raised questions about the TV rights of Monday Night Raw, which is set to expire next year. In the press release, the WWE stated both Raw and NXT “will continue to air on USA Network through September of 2024.”
As for the future of the company, there’s still some speculation that Vince McMahon won’t be able to hold the chairman position over TKO as investigations into his alleged sexual misconduct case from 2022 are still ongoing.
The full list of released superstars are as follows:
Matt Riddle
Dolph Ziggler
Shelton Benjamin
Elias
Mustafa Ali
Emma
Riddick Moss
Aliyah
Top Dolla
Rick Boogs
Mace
Mansoor
Dana Brooke
Dabba Kato
Shanky
Ikemen Jiro
Yulisa Leon
Quincy Elliott
Bryson Montana
Kevin Ventura-Cortez
Daniel McArthur
Alexis Gray
Brooklyn Barlow
Abule Abadi-Fitzgerald
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