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PWInsider.com has confirmed with multiple sources that WWE chose to release Bray Wyatt and that the word going around was that it was a budget-related reason, similar to other big cuts, such as Braun Strowman. It was not a case of Wyatt asking to be released.
We are told that Wyatt was called by John Lauirinaitis (who wasn't even at TV this week as he's in the middle of moving back to Connecticut) and informed it was simply a budgetary decision and not something Wyatt had done.
To say that the reaction within the company was stunned would be a massive understatement given how plugged into licensing the Wyatt character has been in recent years. The Fiend had been a massive hit for t-shirts and action figures.
One source pointed the finger squarely at WWE President Nick Khan and CFO Kristina Salen, stating that they are so "obsessed" with the company not being even one iota in the red on the financial ledgers that even after the most recent financial quarter, there had to have been a push to cut costs where with previous regimes, there would have been more leniency.
Others noted that Wyatt and Vince McMahon's relationship behind the scenes ran very hot and cold at times and that McMahon has given Khan the ability to run things far more than anyone else has historically been able to accomplish, so there was likely less of a push-back over the idea of cutting a big money contract from the ledger.
Another source pointed that Wyatt's 90 days would run out the week before AEW's Full Gear and how Vince McMahon may have been very prophetic about handing AEW other assets during yesterday's media call.
For those who have asked if there are other releases coming today, we have heard nothing that leads me to believe that is the case.
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