WWE’s ‘Black Friday’ Releases Spark Immediate Backlash
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On Friday, April 24, WWE released multiple wrestlers from its roster.
The wave of cuts immediately sparked discussion online, with some fans and media referring to it as a “Black Friday” of wrestling releases, drawing comparisons to the NFL’s “Black Monday,” when head coaches are typically fired after the regular season concludes.
The timing only added to the reaction, as the announcement came on the first episode of SmackDown following WrestleMania 42.
Roster turnover is nothing new in WWE, especially in the post-WrestleMania season. However, the size of this latest wave of releases has left many fans unsettled, with some pointing toward TKO and its ongoing efforts to reduce costs across its combat sports portfolio.
Some of the names may come as a surprise. Here is the list of all the WWE released wrestlers:
There were also reports that Paul Levesque held an emergency meeting with the WWE roster. In addition, Cody Rhodes made pointed comments toward TKO during a promo segment on SmackDown. That continued to fuel speculation about internal tension.
This leads to a growing question. Is this simply standard roster management, or is there more going on behind the scenes? Could be part of a larger storyline? WWE has blurred the lines between reality and storytelling before, and reactions like this are not unprecedented.
Last year, when R-Truth was released in June, the backlash from fans was so overwhelming that he was brought back less than a week later. Could history repeat itself?
#WeWantKiari is already trending following news of her release, and she’s generating headlines in a way that mirrors the reaction to Truth’s departure.
Fans made noise once, and WWE listened. But will it happen again, or is this one already set in stone?
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