Well, I mean the AEW roster is pretty slim at the moment. Those 4 will beef up that roster with good wrestlers. And thats all they need for now (besides a TV deal).
Yeah, I hope Mike and Maria don’t go to AEW. They’ve always bored me and Mike just doesn’t have it.
The Revival though has potential and they’re really good workers. Like I said before, hopefully AEW values and pushes tag team wrestling more. It’s obvious Vince doesn’t care about it at all, as nearly everyone tag team is comedic BS.
Revival hasn’t hit it out of the park with their mic work, but they’ve been fine and in today’s overscripted WWE that’s more than good enough.
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From PWinsiderElite… Take it for what you will - but clearing up some of the rumours about talent looking to leave WWE.
WHAT’S UP WITH ALL THE RUMORS OF WWE RELEASES & DEPARTURES
by Mike Johnson @ 8:28 AM on 1/17/2019Over the last several weeks, there have been a number of stories and rumors about WWE talents asking for releases and/or departing in the wake of the announcement of All Elite Wrestling. While we normally shy away from rumors, we’ve received so many emails and questions about this, I figured it was best to address what we know in one place. So, in no particular order:
Dolph Ziggler - There has been a lot of talk in the last week that Ziggler is done with WWE after turning down an offer to become a producer. His last TV appearance was the beat-down he took in a steel cage on Raw against Drew McIntyre last month. He has removed the Dolph Ziggler name from his social media and is embarking on a comedy tour soon. He has not been on the road for WWE in recent weeks after the completion of the Holiday house show tour. As of today, sources claim he remains under a WWE deal (and some there have denied he is exiting at all) but others have been pointing to 1/31 as an exit date. Whether that turns out to be the case, we will see. Ziggler was coy with PWInsider.com last August when asked about whether he had signed a new WWE deal, commenting, "I guess you’ll have to see Sunday or Monday, but I’ve also heard that [his deal was coming up.] I’ve also heard about several different contracts that I signed but I didn’t sign. So…I’m giving you a comment. I’ve been doing some great work and looking forward to doing what I do and Sunday or Monday, we’ll see what direction we’re heading in afterwards.” So, time will tell, but there are some who believe he is done.
Goldust - While his name obviously would be attached to his brother Cody’s due to their relationship, PWInsider.com has not been able to substantiate any rumors that Dustin Runnells has asked for a WWE release.
Mike Kanellis - We have heard from several sources that Mike Kanellis requested a release from WWE but was denied three weeks ago. Kanellis was last seen on 205 Live programming on 1/9 during a backstage vignette with Drake Maverick and before that, had not been on TV in a number of weeks. The belief among some WWE wrestlers is that Kanellis was hoping to return to Ring of Honor, but as of today, he has not been released from the company.
Maria Kanellis - Her name has floated around in the last few days as also having asked for a WWE release, but PWInsider.com has not been able to substantiate that story.
The Revival - Yesterday, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com reported that there was “fear” within WWE that The Revival, Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder, were trying to get out of their deals with the company. While we cannot confirm there was any “fear”, the talk among wrestlers on the Raw side after this week’s TV taping was that The Revival had spoken with WWE management about their unhappiness in the company and indeed asked for a release. As of this morning, they are still slated for this weekend’s Raw live events. Obviously, if they were able to get out of their deals, in a perfect world, they would be the perfect foil All Elite Wrestling could use against The Young Bucks, which is exactly why WWE wouldn’t release them.
WWE, as you would expect they would, did not return a PWInsider.com request for comment yesterday. After giving them time to respond, I opted to publish. If WWE should comment, we will update.
Here is the reality of the situation: There is no way WWE is going to release anyone they see of value in the current environment as the last thing they want is to hand talent over to any potential competitors, especially one with the type of financial backing that AEW has. That doesn’t mean that a talent who wants out couldn’t conceivably go home and sit out their contract, as Neville did when he decided he wanted out last year. Thus far, no one has done that and there’s no indication yet anyone is going to do that. It’s quite possible some will try to opt out and complain about their position or pay, believing the grass is greener elsewhere (and they may be right on that), and in the process, getting a better WWE deal to stay in the same position but making more money in the process.
PWInsider.com can confirm, however, that WWE officials have started approaching talents whose deals are coming up in the next year, seeking to lock them up to longer form deals now. Whether there is a cause and effect there is debatable, since WWE has been locking talents (including Kevin Owens and The Miz) to new five-year deals for some time, but the timing is interesting, to say the least.
Here is the inherent dilemma as I see it. The Revival have NO value to WWE. They can work a good match but they have never been treated seriously on the main roster and it would take forever (maybe impossible) to heat them up to the casual Monday night audience. BUT, WWE also knows The Revival gives AEW or any other promotion a ton of momentum and they do provide value to the fan base that AEW is trying to draw from. What do you do when you are holding an asset that you can’t do anything with but you know has value on the outside?
You think Owens is kicking himself for locking himself up like he did pre-summer…though I guess I suspect he would have known what the Bucks were up to given their relationship and therefore made a decision knowing he could be passing up the opportunity to get in on their project at the time.
It never made sense why Ziggler re-signed. He’s a guy that has needed a character makeover for about 5 years. He’s wasted so much time doing the same thing and flipping between heel and face.
The guy needs a new name, new look, new everything and why not leave?
Guys like Owens, Cesaro and Zayn have already been ruined by WWE booking and will never be main guys. They should jump ASAP
Ziggler got 7 figures in some incredible sweetheart deal his agent negotiated for him. That’s why he stayed apparently.
Everyone mentioned is not exactly getting Seth Rollins.
WWE should look at this as a way to trim the fat they gained over the years…people asking for a release? Say no more fam, sign this NDA and here ya go…Flood the indy market with “former WWE stars” and see the bidding price jump up again.
Then you keep the core of your hierarchy and use them accordingly…now you the right amount of performers you can allocate your tv time to.
Also the indies will eventually burn themselves out with the bidding wars and the big 3 ROH, Impact and AEW will be stuck in their own pissing contest over exclusivity of performers and leave WWE to keep doing what they doing.
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I’m curious, why do you think Seth Rollins would matter outside the WWE? He’s an “indie geek” just like the rest who happens to get pushed by the machine but if we went to work ROH dates you think he’s bringing that WWE business with him.
I’m curious how many here watch or discuss wrestling with a casual-WWE fan. They have no interest in watching anything not Wwe and they think whoever wwe pushes is the biggest star. It’s like sheep. The truest of WWE marks.
Want a comparison. There was no bigger star on ESPN than Skip Bayless who got paid multi-million to go to Fox Sports and his program can’t crack 200k viewers. People need to seperate the brand from the star. True talent wins out.
Warning: those pushed by the machine may not be as big as they seem.
Rollins would be maineventing any company he would go to based off how high he is in WWE.
If the machine was behind you…guess what…you’ll headline Wrestle Kingdom solely on that.
Also…Ewwww Skip Bayless
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But would he draw more than The Revival headlining with the Bucks or SCU?
Ofcourse he’d draw…Christian drew for TNA for crying out loud.
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You’re proving my point. Christian was a cast off who Vince hated. Sound like any of the guys your also saying won’t draw for AEW?
I love how Rollins is now some god.
The guy can’t talk and his promos still need a lot of work. He’s nothing special right now and a card with Rollins as a headliner wouldn’t draw any better than the Bucks or Jericho.
That’s the problem with WWE, they care more about the brand and haven’t built a star other than Reigns (who isn’t that big anyways) since like 2013.
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The biggest active star the company has outside Brock Ronda and Cena is The Miz. Don’t @ me. He’s a legitimate recognizable person to the outside pop culture sphere.
I don’t think Vince hated Christian.
He wanted to put a blue dot over his face!!!
It is amazing to hear Tony Khan talking about wrestling. He knows everything and he believes that wins and losses should matter which I totally agree with. I understand why Jericho was seduced by his project.
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My favourite thing is people thinking Khan being a billionaire holds something special. …even though impact is owned by a billionaire and so is ROH
Dude, you’re not comparing Anthem and the Nordholms to the Khans. Not even comparable
Still billionaires…like that somehow matters.
Shit WOW has Jeannie Buss