On the same day that WWE announced its return to Australia for Elimination Chamber next year and SmackDown’s new TV deal with the USA Network, WWE decided to also have a mass round of talent cuts on Thursday.
Those cut from the main roster include Dolph Ziggler, Mustafa Ali, Elias, Shelton Benjamin, Riddick Moss, Emma, Aliyah, “Top Dolla” AJ Francis, while those from NXT, Quincy Elliott, Shanky, Bryson Montana, Yulisa Leon, Dabba-Kato, Kevin Ventura-Cortez, Alexis Gray, Daniel McArthur were cut. Click here for the full list of main roster WWE releases.
It was known that WWE was looking to cut back on $50 million to $100 million in expenses following the merger with UFC to form the TKO Holdings Group. They recently put several employees on the chopping block.
In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reported, “The key to the releases were talent making main roster money but not being used on the main roster and with the idea that they were not going to be used in the future.”
Meltzer quoted a WWE official about the cuts when the person said, “It’s time in vs. how much money you are paid vs. return on investment.”
For those wondering, main roster talent has the traditional 90-day non-compete clauses, meaning they can sign with anyone they want starting December 20th. NXT talent has 30-day non-competes.
