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WWE has always been the pinnacle of the professional wrestling industry. Superstars like Seth Rollins, Randy Orton and Becky Lynch have all found tremendous success working for the company.
However, some stars can become unhappy working for the promotion for various reasons. While some become frustrated with their booking, others may feel exhausted by the relentless travel schedule.
There are a few current superstars who have requested their release from the company due to the above-mentioned reasons. A couple of stars have even let their contracts expire in 2022 and moved on to a different promotion.
In this article, we will look at the 3 current superstars who have reportedly requested their release from WWE, and 2 who recently let their contracts expire.
#5. Roderick Strong recently asked for his release
Roderick Strong is one of the oldest members of the NXT locker room. He is also the only former member of the Undisputed ERA who is still signed to WWE.
Strong has competed in some of the best matches in the brand’s history. He has avoided moving to the main roster and helped several newcomers in NXT with his experience.
Rumors began circulating in May 2022 that The Messiah of the Backbreaker had requested his release from the company. Recently, more reports surfaced that Strong was looking to get out of the company and try his luck in another promotion.
According to Dave Meltzer, the 38-year-old is feeling beaten down and wants to exit the company. However, he is still under contract with WWE.
"Roderick’s fantastic, but, you know, he’s pretty beaten down,'' said Meltzer. "I’m not talking about physically, I mean I’m talking about just the way he’s booked and everything like that. You know, and he’s asked to get out, he’s not allowed to get out. So, he’s in that weird state, you know, where he’s somewhere he doesn’t want to be basically."
The former NXT Tag Team Champion hasn’t had the best booking since the Undisputed ERA split. He has competed with Diamond Mine for some time but hasn’t found much success with the faction.
While Strong hasn’t spoken about his request as of this writing, he may be looking to move to AEW to join the other members of Undisputed ERA.
#4. Malcolm Bivens turned down a new contract from WWE
Malcolm Bivens joined WWE in 2019 and started appearing on the NXT brand. He managed a few superstars before starting the Diamond Mine faction. Alongside Roderick Strong, Bivens helped newcomers such as Tyler Rust, Ivy Nile, and The Creed Brothers find their way into the spotlight.
In April 2022, it was announced that Bivens had been released by the company. The former superstar later revealed that he wasn’t interested in working on the main roster and let his contract expire. Even though the company offered him a new contract in February 2022, he refused to sign it.
"All right, so here’s the truth: There’s a lot of rumors, a lot of speculation. Was I offered a contract in February? Yes. Did I say no to said contract? Yes. Was I offered to be with Omos? No. No one said a word to me about managing Omos. Was I told about the main roster? Yes. And people, they think I’m crazy. Like, ‘Malcolm, you threw away millions, potentially. You walked away.’ Yeah, I did, because I didn’t want to do it anymore. And, unfortunately, I just wasn’t happy. At Stand & Deliver, I had a conversation with the head writer and I told him so. And then two weeks ago, I said the same thing, ‘I don’t think this was for me.’ And that’s okay -- because your happiness is not dictated by what people say you should do. Happiness is dictated by what you think you should do. Because there’s a difference, right?" Bivens said.
The Creed Brothers greatly benefited from Bivens’ experience and services before he decided to let his contract expire. In the same interview, he said that he did not plan to return to wrestling anytime soon. However, he made his return soon after for AEW and aligned himself with Jade Cargill.
#3. Mustafa Ali asked for his release from WWE a while back
Many fans believe that Mustafa Ali is one of the best prospects currently working in WWE. However, the superstar hasn’t received a major push on the main roster. Ali moved to the main roster and immediately worked with some top stars.
The superstar was revealed as the leader of Retribution, but the faction imploded soon after. Despite working hard to gain prominence in WWE, Ali has remained off television for extended periods.
In January 2022, Mustafa Ali took to Twitter to announce that he was requesting his release from the company. He said that he had a message bigger than his dreams of professional wrestling, and he could not deliver it in WWE
The Heart of 205 Live later appeared on the After the Bell podcast and revealed that the reason he had gone public was that private conversations didn't come to any fruition.
"I'm very comfortable talking about it,'''Ali said. ''I believe private conversations are meant to be private. The reason it went public is because that private conversation went nowhere. So anyone that truly knows me and I know there's a portion of the audience that was like, 'How unprofessional.' Anyone that's ever worked with me as a human being knows how much I love this place, how much I love sports entertainment, and how much I love wrestling. This is the only thing I ever wanna do. But for me to even get to that point, that's the issue."
The superstar still hasn’t been released from the company and continues to work on small rivalries and on Main Event. Mustafa Ali will likely choose not to sign a new contract with the company.
#2. Cesaro joined AEW after his contract expired
Cesaro has been labeled as one of the best technical wrestlers in the world by many in the industry. The Swiss Cyborg made a name for himself as one of the strongest and most athletic superstars in WWE.
Although many legends consider Cesaro a top performer, he failed to win a world championship in WWE. Fans expected him to stick around with the promotion and continue as a major mid-card superstar.
However, rumors began to circulate in early 2022 that Cesaro was not going to sign a new WWE contract. In an interview with Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated, he refused to talk about his contract status.
"I’m not going to confirm or deny anything,'' said Cesaro. "To me, there needs to be a certain amount of mystery in wrestling. A lot of that magic gets lost, so I’ll let people talk. What is important to me is my work in the ring."
The Swiss Cyborg let his contract expire as he could not reach a deal with WWE. After quietly leaving the company, he made his surprise debut for AEW at AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door under his real name Claudio Castagnoli. If he receives better treatment in AEW we may very well see him as world champion soon enough.
#1. Sasha Banks asked for her release from WWE in 2019
Sasha Banks has made headlines over the past several weeks after walking out of the company alongside Naomi. The two superstars held the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships at the time and the company stripped them of their titles soon after.
Banks’ current status with the company is unclear, however, The Boss did request her release from the company a few years ago. In 2019, Banks was recovering from a shoulder injury and was suffering from depression. In an interview with The Athletic, The Boss opened up about the situation:
"I felt so sad every day and I didn’t know why," said Banks. "I had to take myself away from a situation and such a fast world where I had to stop and realize who Mercedes was and who Sasha Banks was. I had no time off. I never got to see myself, my family. I took that time to figure out what I loved besides wrestling."
WWE did not grant her what she wanted but did give her enough time off to recover and return to the ring. It’s unfortunate to see that even the most beloved superstars in the promotion can suffer and want a way out.
Diehard fans of the former SmackDown Women’s Champion can only hope that WWE reaches a deal with Banks and she returns to the ring soon.
