Following the news from over the weekend, WWE released another Superstar; this time Von Wagner is gone from NXT.
During last week’s SmackDown, news came down that WWE had released a number of talents. Most notable among them was former champion Jinder Mahal. Also released were both members of Indus Sher, along with Xia Li and Xyon Quinn. These releases were both surprising and not, all at once. Surprising because WWE had made a point of trying to work into the Indian and Chinese markets. Releasing a trio of Indian Superstars, as well as the first Chinese WWE Superstar? Somewhat surprising.
However, by all accounts, none of those released were heavily used. None factored into any creative plans, even though Jinder Mahal did come out of the blue early this year and shared the ring with The Rock. Now, per a report from Fightful, Von Wagner has also been released from the company. This one, to me, fits a similar description.
Thoughts?
On one hand, it’s not surprising to me. It never felt like Wagner was really close to getting over. While he had the size and strength, something didn’t click. On the other hand, he was at least semi-regularly on NXT television-more than the others released, at least. WWE has termed these moves as budget cuts, but given the overall success, this seems more just cleaning things up. While it would have been great to make use of all involved and not part ways, at least they now have a chance to go make more of an impact.
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Still, reports have indicated that most, if not all, involved were great to work with. Meaning this one definitely just boiled down to numbers and plans. There were no plans, and the numbers did not add up. That being said, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful did make a good point.
