The release of Bray Wyatt sent shockwaves in WWE on Saturday for many reasons.
Wyatt was beloved by so many people in the locker room and the feeling was that someone like Wyatt is bulletproof since so much time was put into the first incarnation and the rebooted version (Fiend) version of his character. Wyatt was also one of the top merchandise sellers.
A report by Fightful states that nearly 20 people in WWE reached out to say that they were very frustrated in WWE and that some of the veteran talent “don’t feel like their jobs are safe any longer.”
There has always been a rotation with talent in WWE but what is different about this year is that more upper card names are being let go. The “budget cuts” reason being given is accurate as they want to get their payroll under control. Several names were given bigger contracts a couple of years ago because Vince McMahon wanted to keep wrestlers away from AEW. The mindset now appears to be about worrying about keeping costs down and worrying less about people making the jump to the competition.
As previously noted, Wyatt was advertised for upcoming live events and was set to return to action after being medically cleared.
Morale in WWE had dropped during the previous batch of releases but morale was back up with the return of live events. Fightful reports that morale has taken a hit again with Wyatt’s release.
