Wrestling is all about new arrivals returns, debuts, wrestlers jumping from one company to another. The other side of that coin, unfortunately, is that wrestling is also about departures.
As of this writing, 28 WWE talent have left the company thus far in 2025, either because they were released from "NXT" or main roster deals or because their deals were not extended. The first round of 2025 cuts came in February, when 11 talent departed (Duke Hudson, it turned out, had been gone since the previous month). The next wave hit in early May and resulted in an exodus of another 16, as of this writing mere weeks after a WrestleMania 41 event that broke gate records on two consecutive nights. No reason was given beyond budget cuts. Those released from the main roster served 90-day non-compete clauses while "NXT" releases served 30 days.
Here is every WWE talent departure in 2025, so far.
While the news of Duke Hudson's release broke in February, he was actually released in January, ending the WWE career that began under the name Brendan Vink in "NXT" in 2019. He made his eventual debut in March 2020 on "Raw" alongside Shane Thorne as enhancement talent against the Street Profits. He continued to work as such on the main roster throughout 2020 before finally debuting as the Hudson character during the 2021 NXT Break-Out Tournament, making it to the second round before falling to Carmelo Hayes.
Hudson notably entered into a feud with Cameron Grimes which culminated in a Hair vs. Hair bout, which Hudson then lost to be shaved in the ring. His next serious involvement in "NXT" came in November 2022 as he joined Chase U, eventually winning the NXT Tag Team Championship alongside Chase in 2023. His last televised match came during "NXT" in September, losing to Ridge Holland before Chase U was subsequently disbanded.
Hudson has since his departure returned to the independent circuit, working under the name Duke Hanson at Reality of Wrestling and Duke for Pandemonium over April. He started his professional wrestling career in 2006 and appeared with Progress, NWA, Evolve (when it was a promotion and not a WWE-branded show), and NJPW prior to his time with WWE.
Blair Davenport departed WWE as a part of February's batch of releases, ending almost four years with the company starting in 2021 with "NXT UK." She quickly amassed a winning streak on the brand, challenging twice albeit unsuccessfully for the NXT UK Women's Championship held by Meiko Satomura before an injury halted her momentum. But she returned in 2022 as "NXT UK" and "NXT" merged, entering a triple threat at Worlds Collide as the only non-champion against Satomura and Rose to unify the NXT UK and NXT Women's titles. She did not win that match but she continued to become a contender in "NXT" throughout 2023, ending with her call-up to the main roster in 2024.
Davenport failed to break into the Women's Money in the Bank match and briefly feuded with Naomi, culminating in a team-up with Unholy Union against Naomi, Belair, and Cargill. Her last televised match before being released by the promotion came as a loss in the first round of the inaugural Women's United States Championship tournament, losing to eventual winner Chelsea Green in a triple threat also involving Belair. As a main roster talent she was given a 90-day non-compete clause as part of her release, which will soon be up, and she has since said on her Twitch channel that she thought her release was "just budget cuts to make up their contracts" and she held no ill-will towards the departure. She added that she was looking forward to working the independent circuit in the USA, having previously worked in Japan and the UK.
Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson were also a part of February's departures, ending their second run with WWE after returning in 2022. Gallows has been in and out of WWE for much of his career, starting in April 2005 when he was signed to developmental territory, Deep South Wrestling. Gallows made his main roster debut in 2006 as Impostor Kane before being repackaged again as Festus until 2009 as he was once again repackaged as part of CM Punk's Straight Edge Society until his release in 2010.
Gallows returned alongside Anderson in 2016 having made themselves a name in NJPW as a part of Bullet Club, aligning themselves with former Bullet Club leader AJ Styles as The Club, and winning the "Raw" Tag Team Championship at Royal Rumble 2017. Their reign would end after 63 days and they did not hold gold until 2019, winning the titles once again but this time only reigning for 21 days and being released in 2020.
Gallows and Anderson had returned to NJPW and TNA during the time between their WWE runs, with Anderson re-signing with WWE while he was the reigning NEVER Openweight Champion in 2022. He dropped the title while under contract with WWE at NJPW's Wrestle Kingdom in January 2023, and it would be the last gold either of them had seen since then.
Cedric Alexander's WWE run ended after eight years in February, having first started as part of the Cruiserweight Classic in 2016. He was eliminated by Kota Ibushi in the second round of the tournament, but garnered enough praise to be included as part of the "Raw" Cruiserweight division and the early days of "205 Live." Alexander found success in 2018 as he reached the final of a tournament to crown a new WWE Cruiserweight Champion, winning the title at WrestleMania 34 and holding it for 181 days.
After dropping the title to Buddy Murphy (Matthews in AEW) he transitioned to the "Raw" brand on a full-time basis. In 2020, he turned heel to join the Hurt Business, winning the "Raw" Tag Team Championship alongside Shelton Benjamin and reigning for 85 days. With the Hurt Business disbanded and Alexander as the last remaining member in WWE, Alexander began appearing on "NXT" alongside Je'Von Evans last year. He was written off of TV after a match with Ethan Page in January, playing into the feud between Page and Evans.
Alexander's release came with a 90-day non-compete clause owing to the fact he was considered a main roster talent, with all of his former Hurt Business partners reunited as the Hurt Syndicate in AEW and open to the idea of new members.
Giovanni Vinci, also known as Fabian Aichner during his early run with Imperium in "NXT UK," saw his seven-year with WWE end in February. Vinci originally debuted on "NXT" in October 2017 before joining Gunther's faction in the UK in 2019, teaming with Marcel Barthel later known as Ludwig Kaiser to capture two reigns with the NXT Tag Team Championship in 2020 and 2021, before Vinci turned on his partner to leave the stable; Kaiser and Gunther were called up to the main roster while he remained.
It was when he returned as a repackaged wealthy European epicurean in 2022 that he debuted the name, Giovanni Vinci, as opposed to Fabian Aichner, alongside a new catchphrase "Veni Vidi Vinci" Latin for "I came, I saw, I won." However, he swiftly reunited with Imperium as Triple H took control of creative towards the end of the year, returning alongside Kaiser and Gunther at Clash at the Castle. Together they were drafted to "Raw" in 2023, but Vinci was ejected from the group by Kaiser in April 2024 following Gunther's Intercontinental title loss to Sami Zayn. Vinci returned to his previous persona, but quickly slipped down the card ahead of his departure, last wrestling Sheamus to a defeat on "WWE Speed" in October last year.
Akam and Rezar debuted as Sunny Dhinsa and Gzim Selmani respectively in 2015, eventually shifting to become AOP in 2016, winning the Dusty Rhodes Classic and eventually defeating #DIY for the NXT Tag Team Championship in 2017. They held the titles for 203 days, flanked by Ellering during their time at the top of "NXT" and then as they were called up to the main roster in 2018 but he was quickly dismissed the mark the end of his first run afterward. They quickly won the "Raw" Tag Team Championship though they would only reign for 35 days, failing to find further success until their release in 2020.
AOP returned alongside Ellering in January 2024, having been rumored to return for some time beforehand, to align with Karrion Kross against Lashley and the Street Profits and form The Final Testament. However, they swiftly disappeared from TV after December, last wrestling a victory over the LWO's Cruz Del Toro and Joaquin Wilde on the December 30 episode of "Main Event" before their departure.
Ellering is a 50-year veteran and was first inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2011. His second departure marked the end of a combined total of 14 years with the company.
Sonya Deville saw her career as the first openly gay female WWE star come to an end in February, with the Pure Fusion Collective leader being informed that her expiring contract would not be up for renewal. Deville started with WWE during the 2015 season of "Tough Enough" and signed with the company in October that year, making her "NXT" debut in July 2016, under her real name Daria Berenato.
She debuted the name Sonya Deville in April 2017 and continued until December before her call-up to the main roster alongside Mandy Rose and Paige (Saraya) to form Absolution. Paige's retirement at the beginning of 2018 brought an abrupt end to the faction, but Deville and Rose continued to team together as Fire and Desire until April 2020.
Deville turned on Rose to end their team culminating in a No Disqualification match at SummerSlam 2020, with Deville losing and taking a hiatus until her return as "SmackDown" General Manager in 2021. Deville resumed her in-ring career in 2022, winning the Women's Tag Team Championship alongside Green in 2023, ending prematurely as Deville suffered a torn ACL in July forcing her to vacate the title. She returned to found Pure Fusion Collective alongside Baszler and Stark, wrestling her last match against Natalya on "Main Event" in February.
Isla Dawn was released in February to end her seven-year run with WWE. After debuting in November 2017 as Stacy Coates in a loss against Asuka on "Raw," Dawn debuted as the character she would become known as in June 2018, establishing herself as part of "NXT UK" until joining "NXT" in 2022. Dawn began teaming with compatriot Alba Fyre and the pair won the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship at Stand & Deliver 2023, though they would later lose the titles in a unification bout against WWE Women's Tag Team Champions Baszler and Rousey.
Dawn and Fyre would remain partners as they were called up to the main roster, branding themselves the Unholy Union. They went on to capture the Women's Tag Team Championship in a triple threat tag team match against Pure Fusion Collective, Cargill, and Belair at Clash at the Castle 2024 in their home nation. They dropped the titles 77 days later at Bash In Berlin 2024, continuing to work as a team until Dawn's release.
Dawn last appeared in a loss to Shotzi during "Speed" in February, missing out in the semi-finals of the Speed Women's Championship number one contendership tournament. After her departure, Dawn posted a eulogy to her previous characters on social media, declaring that she was not dead yet to signal her continued career post-WWE.
Elektra Lopez capped off the February cuts to the roster and sparked the end of a nearly four-year run with WWE. Lopez debuted in 2021 against Franky Monet (AEW's Taya Valkyrie) in a losing effort during "NXT" in June, and continued to appear on "NXT" programming as it rebranded to "NXT 2.0" as she aligned with Santos Escobar's Legado Del Fantasma in 2022.
However, when the stable was called up to the main roster later that year, Lopez was not included and they were instead accompanied by Zelina Vega. Alongside Rey Mysterio, Legado Del Fantasma rebooted LWO while Lopez continued to tag with Lola Vice on "NXT." But when Escobar turned on the LWO and re-formed Legado Del Fantasma with Los Garzas, Angel and Berto, Lopez was returned to the fold. She made her main roster singles debut against Vega in April 2024, but would only wrestle two more matches with WWE during "Speed" and against Tiffany Stratton and Naomi in the first round of the tournament to crown the first Women's United States Champion in December, losing both before her departure from the company.
Prior to her time with WWE, Lopez worked the independent circuit and appeared in ROH and TNA, and a social media post after her departure broke appeared to indicate she was looking forward to her 90-day non-compete running its course.
Braun Strowman was perhaps the most decorated of the names to leave the promotion this year with his May release, as a former WWE Universal, Intercontinental, and Tag Team Champion. Strowman first signed with the company in 2013 to begin his wrestling career, debuting on the main roster in 2015 as part of the Wyatt Family; he enjoyed a break-out run after 2016, notably feuding with Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar throughout the next few years before capturing his first and only Universal title in 2020.
He was released originally in 2021, just days after unsuccessfully challenging for the WWE Championship, and made a few appearances on the independent circuit with EC3's "Free the Narrative" and at ROH Final Battle 2021 the final event before the promotion went on hiatus, later acquired by AEW President Tony Khan. Strowman and EC3 announced the formation of the ill-fated Control Your Narrative promotion in 2022 before Strowman made his return to WWE in September that year, brought back as part of a wave of returns under Triple H.
Strowman spent the time since trying to add another Intercontinental title reign to his resume, unsuccessfully challenging Gunther in January 2023 and later forming a tag team with Ricochet in contention for the tag titles. Their run together was halted as Strowman went on hiatus to undergo neck surgery, and when he returned he feuded with Bronson Reed to lead to a "Last Monster Standing" match in September; he sustained a groin injury during the bout, returning in December and feuding with Jacob Fatu in the months leading up to WrestleMania 41.
Dakota Kai was another to see her second run with the company ending in May, originally making her debut in 2015 and signing with the company two years later.
Kai established herself as one of the foremost talents on the women's roster of "WWE NXT," inaugurating and twice winning the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship alongside Raquel Rodriguez before being released in April 2022, having reportedly told the company she did not intend to extend her deal. She returned four months later at SummerSlam, debuting on the main roster alongside Bayley and Iyo Sky to form Damage CTRL. Since then, she added two reigns as WWE Women's Tag Team Champion to her resume alongside Sky, but then in May 2023 sustained a torn ACL sidelining her until February last year, and then once again sidelined with a meniscus injury in May until November.
Kai came close to winning her first singles title in January as she finished runner-up in the tournament to inaugurate the Women's Intercontinental Championship; Kai lost to Lyra Valkyria after eight minutes. They wrestled a rematch in February, with Kai once again coming up short, and she would wrestle matches on "WWE Raw" and "WWE Main Event" throughout March as her most recent action to date.
Shayna Baszler's May departure saw the end of an eight-year run with WWE having first signed in 2017. Baszler notably reached the final of the 2017 Mae Young Classic only to be defeated by Kairi Sane, going on to become a two-time NXT Women's Champion before her main roster call-up in 2020. Just months later, she won the Elimination Chamber to earn a shot at Becky Lynch's Women's title at WrestleMania 36, though she would fall short at the "Show of Shows" and in each of her attempts at singles gold in the years following.
Baszler became a three-time Women's Tag Team Champion, her first two reigns alongside Nia Jax in 2020 and 2021, but also alongside fellow MMA Four-Horsewoman Ronda Rousey in 2023. That last tag title run culminated in an MMA Rules match between Baszler and Rousey at SummerSlam, with Baszler going over as her friend finished up with the company. Baszler would soon begin teaming with Zoey Stark, adding Sonya Deville to the mix to become Pure Fusion Collective for the closing stretch of her tenure. Baszler last wrestled in WWE alongside Stark in a gauntlet for the WrestleMania opportunity at the Women's tag titles in April, making an inter-promotional appearance at GCW's Bloodsport a week later as her most recent match.
Also announced amongst the May releases were former WWE and NXT Women's tag team champions Kayden Carter and Katana Chance, ending their tenures with the company after almost seven years. Carter was signed to the company in July 2018 after previously being offered a developmental deal in February 2017, failing an initial physical leading to the offer being rescinded, before passing a second physical the next year.
She took part in the 2018 Mae Young Classic, ultimately losing out to Meiko Satomura in the quarter-finals. Chance joined the company in 2017 after being offered a try-out, with her signing announced during that year's Mae Young Classic, debuting in "NXT" under her real name, Kacy Catanzaro. She made her main roster debut as a surprise entrant in the 2019 Royal Rumble, but by September announced that she had resigned from the company and retired from wrestling due to an ongoing back injury. She returned in 2020, later forming her team with Carter and in 2022 having her name changed.
Chance and Carter won the NXT women's tag titles in August 2022, setting a record with their 186-day reign and getting drafted to the main roster in 2023. Then they became the first team to have won the NXT and WWE Women's tag titles as they defeated Piper Niven and Chelsea Green towards the end of the year; that reign would last just 39 days. Chance and Carter also last wrestled in WWE as part of the April tag team gauntlet match on "SmackDown."
Cora Jade was reported among the "NXT" releases in May to end her four-year run with the company, having signed in January 2021 after making a name for herself as Elayna Black on the independent circuit and appearances with AEW.
Debuting on "205 Live" and losing the opening round of the 2021 Women's Dusty Rhodes Classic, Jade became a focal point of "NXT 2.0" and fought inside WarGames by the end of the year. She got the win in that match by pinning the NXT Women's Champion, Mandy Rose, and later had her first opportunity at the title at New Year's Evil. However, the only title reign of her WWE career came as she teamed with Roxanne Perez to win the NXT Women's Tag Team titles in July 2022, ending almost as soon as it began as she turned heel on Perez to cost her the NXT Women's title.
Jade sustained a torn ACL in January 2024 which kept her sidelined for nine months, returning to help Perez retain her NXT Women's title against Giulia to re-align with her former partner. However, in February she turned on Perez once more after hearing she would not be challenging for the title at Vengeance Day, being added to the match but ultimately coming up short. Jade last wrestled at Stand & Deliver, once again alongside Perez, for an opportunity at the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship. This time Perez turned on Jade, walking out on her partner mid-way through the match.
Jakara Jackson was another prominent name among the "NXT" releases in May, having just featured during this past Tuesday's episode.
However, it was reported after her release that the episode had given some the belief she could be cut, considering it was a segment serving to break up Meta-Four as a faction and her tag team alongside Lash Legend as the Meta-Girls. Jackson debuted in 2022 after signing with the promotion in 2021, teaming with Legend from the start of her run in "NXT" until they aligned with Noam Dar and Oro Mensah in 2023 to form Meta-Four themselves taking the name Meta-Girls for their tag team.
Throughout last year they challenged for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship, including one against Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill on "SmackDown" in October. Their last attempt at the titles came in January as they faced Belair and Cargill on "NXT," proving unsuccessful and spelling a title-less run for Jackson in WWE. Their last bout together came as part of the four-way for the TNA Women's Tag Team Championship during last weekend's Rebellion event. As it stands, Legend will remain with the company as well as Dar, the current NXT Heritage Cup Champion.
Mensah was also released, ending his six-year run with the company. He debuted on the "WWE NXT UK" brand in 2019 and in 2022 teamed with Ashton Smith to win the NXT UK Tag Team Championship, but they were forced to vacate the titles when Smith sustained an injury. Mensah would turn heel to join Meta-Four alongside Jackson and Legend after "NXT UK" was merged with "NXT 2.0" in 2022.
Javier Bernal's May release ended his run at three years after his 2022 debut on "205 Live." Bernal had appeared more so on the losing end of things since then, wrestling on "WWE NXT Level Up," "Main Event," "NXT," and "SmackDown" over the past few years. He made his inter-promotional debut working Booker T's Reality of Wrestling in April last year, defeating ROW Champion Matty Ice via disqualification, and last wrestled a broadcast match on "WWE Evolve" in a February loss to Riley Osborne.
Osborne was also among the names released; having first appeared on "NXT UK" in 2018 sporadically he went on to make his full debut as a WWE star on "NXT Level Up" in 2023, later appearing on "Main Event" before reaching the final of the 2023 NXT Break-Out Tournament and ultimately losing to Oba Femi, as well as joining Chase University as a student. Osborne appeared in TNA to qualify for the Ultimate X match for the X-Division title at Emergence in August 2024, ultimately missing out as Zachary Wentz won the title, and Andre Chase later lost against Ridge Holland to cause the disbandment of Chase U. Osborne's last appearance with WWE came with his "Evolve" victory over Bernal earlier this year.
Gigi Dolin's departure as part of the May releases ended her run starting in January 2021, having started her wrestling career on the independent circuit in 2015 and making an appearance in the first round of the 2018 Mae Young Classic. Dolin was Jade's teammate for the 2021 Dusty Rhodes Classic but by July she was aligned with Mandy Rose and Jacy Jayne as Toxic Attraction; together with Jayne she became a two-time NXT Women's Tag Team Champion. After breaking up with Jayne last year, Dolin had been recently teaming with Tatum Paxley and Shotzi, most recently challenging alongside Paxley for the TNA women's tag titles at Rebellion.
Shotzi also departed the company as it was reported that she had been informed WWE didn't intend to renew her contract, following on from a cryptic post that had fueled speculation over her future. Shotzi had started wrestling in 2014, first trying out for "WWE Tough Enough" a year later before eventually signing with the company in 2019. Since then, she held the the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship alongside Ember Moon AEW's Athena for 55 days in 2021, later being called up to the main roster until her return to "NXT" last year. Her last appearance on WWE TV came in an unsuccessful attempt at the Women's North American Championship held by Fallon Henley in January.
Gallus, comprised of Wolfgang, Mark, and Joe Coffey, also saw their seven-year tenure with the company come to an end with their May release. They debuted as a trio in December 2018 on the "NXT UK" brand, winning the NXT UK Tag Team Championship in 2019 and reigning for 497 days. Joe Coffey was accused of sexual harassment during the "Speaking Out" movement in 2020, prompting his suspension from the promotion in June, but he would eventually return to work alongside his brother and Wolfgang. Mark Coffey captured the Heritage Cup as the only of Gallus to win a singles title in 2022, but he would only reign for two weeks.
Gallus debuted on "NXT 2.0" at Heatwave 2022, initially feuding with Diamond Mine before once again entering the hunt for gold at the start of 2023. Mark Coffey and Wolfgang went on to win the NXT Tag Team Championship at Vengeance Day 2023, reigning for 176 days. Since losing the titles they had continued to pursue gold, most recently losing a challenge against FrAxiom in December last year, but had spent this year working "Evolve" ahead of their departure. Wolfgang in particular had started two years prior to the Coffey brothers in WWE, having been revealed in December 2016 as one of the 16 entrants in a tournament to inaugurate the United Kingdom Championship. So his is almost a decade-long run with the company coming to an end.
Dani Palmer announced her own departure from WWE as the latest release of May, effectively retiring from in-ring competition as she wrote that she was "officially closing out her athletic career" after three years with the company.
Palmer similarly announced when she had signed with the promotion after WrestleMania week try-outs in 2022, debuting in a loss against Thea Hail at "NXT Level Up" in November and later on "NXT" as part of a 20-woman battle royal at New Year's Evil 2023. Palmer entered the NXT Women's Break-Out Tournament in the latter half of 2023, coming up short in the first round against Lola Vice, and had spent the months since working sporadic appearances across programming and live shows. Her last match came in February during "Evolve" as she lost to Kali Armstrong.
In announcing her departure and retirement, Palmer thanked WWE for introducing her to boyfriend Tank Ledger, one half of the NXT Tag Team Champions, going on to say she rode until the wheels fell off and was looking forward to her next chapter.Palmer, real name Lexie Amrhein, had worked as a fitness instructor prior to her WWE career, having previously been a three-time National Champion in Acrobatics & Tumbling at Baylor University.
