Wade Barrett signs a contract with WWE; New role confirmed

Wade Barrett is seemingly done with his in-ring career, but after four years away, the former Intercontinental Champion has a new role in WWE. Wade Barrett recently started appearing in NXT as a commentator and while he wasn't under contract, he is now.

Wade Barrett confirmed to Sports Illustrated that he signed a one-year contract with WWE where he will join Hall of Famer Beth Phoenix and Vic Joseph as the commentators of NXT:

“I hope this lasts for a long time, that’s our intent,” said Stu Bennett, who was best known in wrestling as “Bad News” Barrett. “So there is no bad news to share, but never forget, there is always a little bad news up my sleeve.”

Wade Barrett expressed his love for NXT and his desire to present it as a completely different product from RAW and SmackDown:

“Our aim is to be different, a little more unique than the other WWE programming,” said Barrett. “We don’t want to be a carbon copy of what you hear on Raw or SmackDown. I’ve known Beth for years, and she is incredibly talented, and I am just getting to know Vic. I’m excited to learn from and work with both of them, and I’m really excited to develop this into a really tight unit.”

Wade Barrett went further, explaining his excitement to call matches of the likes of rising stars like Ridge Holland, Bronson Reed, Shotzi Blackheart, etc. He even stated that he's followed the careers of some of the top NXT stars such as Tommaso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, Rhea Ripley, and others for a while now.

Wade Barrett's return after a burnout

Wade Barrett had done commentary for NWA as well. He revealed to SI that he had planned to sign with NWA long-term, but the COVID-19 pandemic changed his plans. Even so, he was full of praise for Billy Corgan.

Wade Barett stated that his departure from WWE in 2016 was due to a heavy burnout and the need to recover from a neck injury. Since then, he's been involved in various projects outside of wrestling and will now serve as Mauro Ranallo's replacement on the commentary desk for NXT.