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In the world of WWE, being released from the company is never an easy thing to handle. Over the last few years, we’ve seen a plethora of wrestlers and other personnel let go from the company for various reasons.
Some of the names which were released sent shockwaves throughout the internet wrestling community. While some releases were expected to happen at some point down the road, others came as a complete surprise to many wrestling fans.
Today, we look at five WWE Superstars who were released in 2022 and see what they are up to these days.
#5 – Timothy Thatcher (January 5th)
Timothy Thatcher wrestled as part of the NXT brand during his tenure in WWE. Thatcher was a one-time NXT Tag Team Champion (by default) with Matt Riddle, as he served as a replacement for Riddle’s tag partner, Pete Dunne, who was unable to make an NXT event due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thatcher would later feud with Riddle and have one last feud with Ridge Holland. He was eventually let go by WWE on January 5th.
As of June 7th, Thatcher is now part of Pro Wrestling NOAH and is currently one half of the GHC Tag Team Champions alongside Hideki Suzuki.
#4 – Danny Burch (January 5th)
Danny Burch was a member of the NXT UK and NXT rosters during his WWE run. During his time with the brand, he became an NXT Tag Team Champion alongside Oney Lorcan. Burch and Lorcan would go on to have feuds with Breezango, The Undisputed Era and The Imperium.
Burch was released from his contract on January 5th. He currently goes by the name “Martin Stone” and is taking independent wrestling bookings. Aside from these bookings, he also conducts live seminars and tape studies with wrestlers looking to break into the business.
#3 – Kushida (April 18th)
Kushida is one of the most decorated stars to come out of NJPW, having signed with WWE in April 2019 as part of the NXT brand. Kushida would have feuds with Pete Dunne (Butch), Cameron Grimes, Santos Escobar, and Roderick Strong.
Kushida won the NXT Cruiserweight Championship on one occasion during his rivalry with Escobar. He also teamed up with Ikeman Jiro to form “Jacket Time”. The duo would mainly feud with The Diamond Mine throughout the remainder of Kushida’s NXT run.
Kushida left the company on April 18th after his contract expired. He is now back in NJPW, appearing at New Japan Road at the conclusion of Taiji Ishimori and Hiromu Takahashi’s match. He revealed during his return that he will be spending the remainder of his wrestling career with NJPW.
#2 – WWE NXT General Manager William Regal (January 5th)
William Regal is a legend in the world of professional wrestling. His run with the company was very memorable. He won various championships in his WWE career such as the Hardcore, European, Intercontinental, and Tag Team Championships (alongside Yoshiro Taijiri). Regal also won the King of the Ring tournament in 2008.
Regal wrestled his last match against Cesaro on December 25th, 2013 on NXT. Regal then began his on-screen duties as NXT General Manager and kept this role for the remainder of his tenure with the company.
Regal was released by the company on January 5th. He is currently part of AEW as the mentor and founder of The Blackpool Combat Club, which is named after his hometown of Blackpool, England.
#1 – Cesaro/Claudio Castagnoli (February 24th)
Cesaro began his WWE career in 2011 and worked in the developmental territory FCW. He would move on to the main roster in 2012.
Cesaro is a former United States, Raw Tag Team, and SmackDown Tag Team champion. He was also the winner of the inaugural Andre the Giant Battle Royal at WrestleMania XXX (2014).
Cesaro is best known for his tag team roles with Sheamus and Jack Swagger (Jake Hager). He feuded with the likes of Seth Rollins, John Cena, The Dirty Dawgs, and Sami Zayn.
His last memorable match was against the undisputed WWE Universal Champion, Roman Reigns. Cesaro lost to Reigns at WrestleMania: Backlash (2021).
He would quietly leave the company on his own terms on February 24, 2022. Cesaro is now part of the AEW roster under his real name, Claudio Castagnoli. He is currently a member of The Blackpool Combat Club and is the current ROH World Champion.
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