A majorly pushed WWE talent was reportedly asked to accept a 50% pay cut last week and is said to have agreed to the terms, according to PWInsider.
The identity of the performer has not been confirmed, with PWInsider noting it cannot verify the claim with complete certainty. However, the timing of the report is notable, as the pay cut discussion is said to have taken place approximately one day before news broke of Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods departing WWE after being asked to restructure their deals.
It was previously reported that TKO had asked WWE to reduce payroll on the main roster, a directive understood to have contributed to the post-WrestleMania 42 roster cuts that saw 25 performers released on April 24. Bryan Alvarez separately reported that NXT releases were driven by talent evaluation rather than budget concerns, while the main roster moves were more directly tied to cost reduction.
- Kofi Kingston (Mutual departure, end of ~20-year tenure)
- Xavier Woods (Mutual departure)
- Tonga Loa
- JC Mateo
- Aleister Black
- Zelina Vega
- Kairi Sane
- Bo Dallas (Uncle Howdy)
- Erick Rowan
- Nikki Cross
- Dexter Lumis
- Joe Gacy
- (Note: The Wyatt Sicks above were all released)
- Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin)
- Santos Escobar
- Zoey Stark
- Alba Fyre
- Apollo Crews
- Andre Chase (NXT)
- Dante Chen (NXT)
- Tyra Mae Steele
- Chris Island
- Tyriek Igwe
- Trill London
- Sirena Linton
- Luca Crusifino
- Malik Blade
- Tyson Dupont
