5-time WWE champion quietly announces retirement just before Night of Champions 2025

A beloved WWE veteran has made it clear with a passing comment on this week's SmackDown that his days as an in-ring performer were now behind him. Wade Barrett confirmed that he had retired following the brutal Last Women's Standing Match between Tiffany Stratton and Nia Jax on the Friday Night Show.

Barrett has been a commentator for WWE for the last five years. However, before that, the 44-year-old star was one of the more accomplished European wrestlers in all of wrestling. His run as a leader of Nexus is still fresh in fans' memories. Moreover, he also won the Intercontinental Championship on five occasions.

After leaving WWE in 2016, Wade Barrett competed on the independent circuit before making his way back to the company, this time in the role of a commentator. Though fans have always wondered if he had another match in him, the veteran star has dropped a major confirmation that he is now retired on SmackDown.

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In the aftermath of Stratton's WWE Women's Title defense against Nia Jax in a Last Women's Standing Match, Barrett stated that it was good to be retired and witness such carnage from afar.

Check out his comments from the go-home to Night of Champions 2025 episode of SmackDown here:

“Matches like that make guys like me feel so happy to be retired and watch from the relative safety of this booth,” Barrett said.

Wade Barrett on potentially facing Drew McIntyre in WWE

In an interview last year, Wade Barrett opened up about quitting in-ring competition. He stated that, though he had hung up his boots for good, his dream scenario for coming out of retirement would be for a match against Drew McIntyre.

"Yeah, I think we all know the answer to that. Absolutely, it would be Drew McIntyre. He’s someone I go way back with and very close friends with the guy over the years. He did talk a little smack to me a few weeks ago on RAW and I haven’t forgotten about that. I’m not going to make a major deal of it, but he’s lucky he stopped where he did," Wade Barrett said.

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Barrett has had a very fruitful in-ring career, and it's safe to say he could even land a spot in the coveted WWE Hall of Fame down the line.

About the author

Arpit Shrivastava is a journalist who reports on pro wrestling (WWE) at Sportskeeda. He is also an assistant content manager for the AEW team and has played a pivotal role in building it from the ground up. Arpit graduated in Political Science and Mass Communication. From writing for his college magazine while being a huge wrestling fan to pursuing journalism as a career, he has accumulated five years of experience in the industry.

During the course of his career, Arpit has written nearly 4k articles, garnering over 32 million reads. Besides covering the latest stories in the world of pro wrestling, Arpit mentors several up-and-coming writers and is also responsible for assembling a stellar team for Sportskeeda's All Elite Wrestling division. Arpit gives utmost importance to fact-based reporting as he sources information only from reliable outlets. He believes in providing relevant information to readers, allowing them to form their opinions based on legitimate facts.

Among Arpit's favorite wrestlers is MJF. He admires The Wolf of Wrestling for his cool, anti-authoritative attitude on television. Arpit is also fond of Sami Zayn's never-say-die approach and underdog persona. In the women's division, he looks up to Becky Lynch for her sheer aura.

Outside of pro wrestling, Arpit is a massive history and cinema buff. He spends his leisure time reading and following tennis and cricket.

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Edited by Harish Raj S