5 WWE stars who were released in 2018

WWE could be seen as a huge conveyor belt over time since there are normally releases for every new batch of talent that is added to the company. Right now, there are more wrestlers signed to WWE than ever before, with 205 Live, NXT, NXT UK as well as the two main roster brands currently bursting with talent.

This means that more often than not there will be a handful of WWE releases every year and even though there haven't been a lot of main roster releases in 2018, there were still some notable names who took laced up their wrestling boots for WWE for the last time.

Some of these names have made the decision to continue to wrestle outside of the business, whilst others have taken this as a hint that they no longer belong in the ring and have looked at different outlets for their creativity over the past few months.

#5 Rich Swann

Rich Swann was released from WWE back in February

Rich Swann is a former Cruiserweight Champion who was seen as the future of the brand when 205 Live was still in its infancy back in 2016. Swann was just the third Champion on the brand before he dropped the title to Neville back at The Royal Rumble in 2017 and was then sidelined through injury.

Swann's issues began back in December 2017 when he was arrested for a personal matter between himself and his wife, something that forced WWE to make the knee-jerk reaction to suspend him indefinitely since they have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to domestic violence.

Swann never returned to WWE and it was officially announced that he had been released from his contract by mutual consent back in February. The former Champion later moved on to the Independent Circuit before he signed for Impact Wrestling back in the summer and it was revealed that he had signed a multi-year deal with the company which now allows him to wrestle for Lucha Libre AAA as well.

#4 James Ellsworth

James Ellsworth was fired by SmackDown General Manager Paige

James Ellsworth was released in 2017, but WWE decided that when Carmella won the SmackDown Women's Championship back in April, she may need some backup to overcome the likes of Asuka and Charlotte in the future.

Ellsworth arrived at Money in the Bank and was able to help Carmella to defeat Asuka when he appeared dressed as The Empress of Tomorrow and the distraction lead to a win for The Princess of Staten Island.

Ellsworth quickly overstayed his welcome on WWE TV once again and it wasn't long before General Manager Paige gave him his marching orders and he was once again released from the company.

Ellsworth made his debut for Impact Wrestling back in October, but the former WWE star has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons in recent weeks, which means that his wrestling career has taken a backseat.

3#3 Neville

Neville finally negotiated his release back in August after almost a year on the sidelines

The Neville saga has been one of the most talked about things in wrestling over the past year, since the former Cruiserweight Champion walked out of WWE back in October 2017 and refused to make his return.

WWE reportedly tried everything to bring Neville back, but he wasn't open to returning to the company since he wasn't happy with the direction that his character had taken in the months prior to his departure. After months of fighting for his release, Neville was granted it in August and he has since been able to return to Dragon Gate and has returned to his former ring name PAC.

Neville has also been booked to appear at a number of other wrestling promotions on the independent circuit in the coming months as he looks to continue his career outside of WWE.

#2 Big Cass

Shockingly, Big Cass was released from his WWE contract back in Ju

Big Cass was a shock release earlier this year after the former NXT star was out with an injury at the beginning of 2018. Cass returned as part of the 2018 Superstar Shake-up in April and targetted the returning Daniel Bryan.

Bryan and Cass faced off at both Backlash and Money in the Bank, before his shock release was announced on June 19th. It was later revealed by Sports Illustrated that his release was due to behavioral issues, including public intoxication during a WWE tour and disobeying orders from Vince McMahon.

Cass was then forced to sit out his 90-day no-compete clause and has since become another name who has branched out onto the Independent Circuit following his WWE release and has wrestled at a number of different promotions, most recently at House of Hardcore.

#1 Enzo Amore

Enzo Amore was released from WWE back in January

Enzo Amore was seen as one of the best promo deliverers in WWE throughout his time in the WWE, but this wasn't enough to save him from release back in January. Amore had a number of personal issues outside of WWE, which became public knowledge the day of Raw 25 much to the dismay of WWE.

Amore was released from the company after it was revealed that the company knew nothing of these issues until they were made public and he has since refused to go quietly. Amore stated that he was done with the wrestling business and is now looking to focus on his rap career, but his actions seem to contradict this.

Amore showed up at Survivor Series last month and attempted to deviate the crowd's attention at ringside and was reportedly spotted outside a live event in Madison Square Garden in the past week, as he struggles to put his past behind him.