Wrestling fans are not happy.
It’s been a rocky few days in WWE following the surprise news that several top stars will be leaving the billion dollar company.
On Sunday, arguably the most shocking exit for some time was confirmed when R-Truth announced WWE would not be renewing his contract there.
The veteran, across several spells, has wrestled for the company for more than two decades and only recently starred in a marquee match against world champion John Cena.
His latest stay with the group is over, however, as he announced on X: “I’m sorry to inform you all. I just got released from WWE.
“I want to thank WWE for the ride, but MOSTLY I want to thank each and EVERYONE OF YOU who was along for the ride.”
There was a forceful reaction from fans and Truth’s WWE colleagues online, generally ranging from shock to anger that the well-liked and charismatic performer wasn’t being kept on.
Soon after, news followed that another veteran in 46-year-old Carlito would be leaving the company, his deal also not being renewed despite his presence in high-profile storylines as a member of the Judgement Day.
Sarah Rowe, who has wrestled over the past few years as Valhalla and, previously, Sarah Logan, has also now announced on social media that she’ll be heading for the exit door as her second stint with WWE comes to an end.
“Dear Wrestling, I come to you with tears in my eyes cause our time has come to a sudden end,” Rowe penned on Instagram.
“WWE informed me yesterday that they are letting my contract expire. To be completely honest my ego can’t help but be damaged.
“You always assume that when you end a lifelong career there is going to be a grand exit. But here I am, using the notes app on my phone typing up a goodbye letter to an entity that will forget I was even there.”
The sudden cull of talent has been keenly felt by those who support them, and wrestling fans chose to make their voices known on Monday night’s episode of WWE Raw on Netflix.
Signs in support of Truth were visible in the arena, and multiple chants of ‘We want Truth’ were audible throughout the night as a number of high-profile matches were hijacked by anger in the crowd.
After the night’s main event had ended in a brawl featuring Seth Rollins, CM Punk, Jey Uso, Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed, the Netflix broadcast went off the air, at which point the live crowd in Oklahoma were sent home happy by the good guys of the piece.
Once back on their feet, Punk and co were eventually serenaded by more chants in favour of Truth, which the Chicago native wasted no time in responding to.
On the microphone, he said with a wry smile: “Let the record state I said: ‘How dare you chant for somebody who isn’t here.’
“Think about it, you’ll get it on your way home…”
Punk’s cheeky comeback is reference to the countless years WWE fans spent chanting his name at live events during his absence of almost a decade.
The multi-time former world champion left the company under a cloud in 2004 but sealed a remarkable return in 2013 and remains one of the roster’s most popular performers.
The star’s play to the crowd will have undoubtedly have been light-hearted, but it was met with one or two boos by some who weren’t quite ready to see the funny side.
