Fightful Select has published an extensive report on the financial moves WWE has made over the past several weeks, revealing the scale of the payroll reduction mission, the speed with which talent were asked to make life-altering decisions, and the sweeping industry reaction that followed.
According to Fightful Select, WWE was tasked with shedding millions of dollars in payroll over the last month, and the cuts made over the past few weeks were in direct service of that goal. The timing of the revelations drew immediate backlash across the industry, coinciding with disclosures of record-high TKO stock prices and dramatic executive pay increases. Most people within the industry who spoke to Fightful acknowledged that releases are an accepted reality of how WWE operates going forward, but the additional ask for talent to take pay cuts of seven figures in many cases was met with heavy criticism and scoffed at internally.
The manner in which deals were presented to talent has also raised serious concerns about how performers negotiate with TKO and WWE going forward. Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp was told that a number of wrestlers in recent years were approached during overseas dates about new deals, in some cases, far earlier than they anticipated extensions would be offered. Some people viewed this as a tactic to get talent to sign before their representation could fully review the terms, though that was more of an opinion than a confirmed strategy. On the day of the mass releases, WWE approached numerous talent and asked them to take pay cuts to remain with the company, with several given just two days to decide.
Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods made their choice quickly, opting to leave rather than accept the reduced terms. Despite the pay cut offer, the duo still walked away from millions of dollars that remained on the table over the next four years of their deals. Fightful noted that the circumstances around Killer Kross’s contract offer last year were similar, with Kross claiming he was given only one day to make his decision at the time.
A related point of frustration centers on performers who had recently signed new deals with WWE, including Kingston, Woods, and Santos Escobar, in some cases without even engaging AEW or other companies in negotiations. With WWE now cutting those performers or reducing their pay, it effectively diminishes their leverage on the open market. Several talent representatives noted to Fightful that the approach was not even smart from a competitive standpoint, arguing that WWE should theoretically want AEW to have to spend more money to acquire released talent rather than making them available at reduced market value.
On the question of who actually accepted pay cuts, no specific names were provided to Fightful. The reason the New Day situation became public knowledge while other accepted pay cuts remain private comes down to a practical reality. Once WWE moved Kingston and Woods to the alumni section of their website, their stories became significantly easier to trace and confirm.
A number of longtime veterans were among those asked to take pay cuts, including some currently healing from injuries. One WWE source, quoted by another outlet, expressed disgust that WWE did not publicly acknowledge New Day for their contributions to the company. A separate WWE source told Fightful that communications praising the duo were made privately, and that a joint statement announcing the departure had been expected. Why that statement was never issued publicly remains unknown.
Fightful also confirmed that a number of names within AEW have internally pushed for the promotion to hire New Day following their departure.
This is just a snippet of the story. For complete details, please visit Fightful Select at Patreon.com/Fightful.
