Bray Wyatt’s release from WWE remains one of the biggest wrestling stories of 2021, and that’s saying something given all that’s happened in pro wrestling this year. Fans still want answers behind his exit, and while reports say budget cuts played a role in his release, new reports indicate it wasn’t all about the money.
The latest comes from Andrew Zarian of the Mat Men podcast, in which Zarian said he spoke to a credible source with knowledge on the situation. Zarian didn’t name the source and quickly ruled out that it was Bray Wyatt but said that while money did play a factor, there were many factors at play too.
He was a little difficult. He had some performance issues in the ring, and he had some weight issues. And, I’m not saying that that’s a reason. I’m not gonna say that’s a reason, but you kind of piece things together as to the things – when you evaluate a talent and you're like , ‘Ok we need this, and we need that, and this is the plan moving forward,’ you need someone... Sometimes the decision is easier to make if you make it more difficult for them to make that decision. There are so many different variables. There was no one reason, by the way, let me just put it out there. Financial, yes, there was a financial issue. There were plenty of other scenarios here.
Budget cuts were the official reason for Bray Wyatt’s departure, but many suspected there was more to the story. After all, Wyatt’s characters reportedly moved a lot of merchandise for the WWE, so money seemed like an odd excuse. The statement that Wyatt was reportedly difficult in orchestrating his eventual return pulls the curtain back a bit more on the story, assuming what Andrew Zarian heard is credible.
News on Bray Wyatt arrived as the wrestler is allegedly in the process of waiting to debut on a rival wrestling organization. It’s not a great look for it to be out there that Wyatt was difficult to work with or the implication that his fitness made it difficult for him to be relied on as a top talent in the ring. Of course, pro wrestling organizations like Impact or AEW likely know there are two sides to the story and won’t so readily believe an unnamed source about the fallout between the two.
Bray Wyatt, who reverted to his given name of Windham Rotunda on social media, has yet to speak about his release publicly. In fact, he hasn’t said much about any of his future plans, but it’s believed the non-compete clause in his WWE contract expires at the end of October. Hopefully, we’ll learn about where he’s headed next soon, but until then, we can only speculate on where he’ll end up.
Pro wrestling is operating on all cylinders at the moment, with AEW and WWE’s rivalry increasing by the day. For more on that rivalry and moves being made by each company, check out the recent Twitter exchange that teased a WWE legend and current superstar could soon square off.
