Batista was the perfect WWE Superstar. His physique was phenomenal, could cut a promo, and worked great as both a babyface or heel. While his Deacon Batista character didn’t get his main roster career off to a great start, it skyrocketed when he became part of Evolution in 2003. Over the next seven years, he would work with the biggest stars in the company, appear in countless main events, and even headlined WrestleMania 21 against Triple H.

However, in 2010 he decided to step away from the business to become an actor in Hollywood. Now in an interview with IGN, the multiple-time world champion has revealed that during the time between leaving WWE and securing the role of Drax the Destroyer in Guardians of the Galaxy, he actually went broke. He’d admit he lost his house and had to borrow money to pay for Christmas gifts for his three children.

Batista is now arguably the second biggest wrestler turned actor in Hollywood behind The Rock. In addition to the Guardians of the Galaxy and associated Avengers movies, he has also appeared in Spectre, Blade Runner 2049, My Spy, and most recently, Army of the Dead.

Batista did go on to return to WWE in 2014 and had a run between January and June which saw him win the Royal Rumble, rejoin Evolution, and main event WrestleMania before leaving again. He then returned for one final match in 2019 when he would lose a No Holds Barred to Triple H and officially retire. While it was announced for the WWE Hall of Fame, he has opted to wait until his induction can happen in front of fans.

The release of Bray Wyatt has been the main topic of discussion on Twitter amongst wrestling fans, with even wrestlers sharing their opinion on the matter. Chelsea Green, herself recently released by WWE and now working with both Impact Wrestling and Ring of Honor, would tweet out a photo of herself with Wyatt tagged in, saying she was waiting for him to join her in the dark side.

While most fans took this as an innocent tweet inviting him to work with her, one fan called Sarah would reply to Green and call her a leech (incorrectly written as leach) for trying to associate herself with Wyatt. Additionally, they would insult her fiancé Matt Cardona in the process. This prompted Cardona to respond by saying “F*ck you Sarah” to the so-called fan.

Social media often brings the worst out in people, and some claiming to be fans use the opportunity to post anonymously and insult celebrities. While in most instances, those offended will ignore the abuse and block the fan if it is highly offensive or persistent. However, Cardona wasn’t prepared to let Green be harassed like this and fired back harshly.

Bray Wyatt was shockingly released on Saturday by WWE, having not wrestled since WrestleMania 37. The reason for his release was not disclosed by WWE, however speaking on his Wrestling Observer Radio show, pro wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer has revealed it was for budgetary reasons. Apparently, Wyatt had just been medically cleared to return, which resulted in WWE reviewing his position and deeming his contract too high.

WWE has been making mass cuts in recent months with names like Braun Strowman, Lana, and Aleister Black let go to save money. Nevertheless, with the amount of merchandise that Wyatt’s alter ego, The Fiend, sold, it didn’t seem likely he’d be considered for release despite WWE’s current obsession with cutting costs. The reason why WWE is so concerned with saving money while making record profits is not apparent, but the belief is Nick Khan, who is the President and Chief Revenue Officer of the company, is said to be behind the drive.

WWE would announce the release of Bray Wyatt in a very short message on social media and wished him well in his future endeavors. This news prompted the outspoken Mickie James, who was sent her possessions by the company in a trash bag after her own release, to fire off a tweet slamming her former employer. She would note that Wyatt had come up with an incredible gimmick that the company booked wrong and then gave to someone else so they could continue making all the money.

James was referring to Alexa Bliss, who became associated with Wyatt in 2020 and has gone all-in with the sinister gimmick in his absence. Bliss has received a lot of backlash for Wyatt being let go despite her not being responsible for WWE’s decision, and she since made her Twitter account private. James, though, would go on to clarify her tweet wasn’t blaming Bliss and that she was just working with the character she was given.

Bliss herself has commented on WWE’s decision to release Wyatt, referring to him by his real first name Windham and thanking him while revealing she was in shock. The last time the duo appeared together was at WrestleMania 37 in April when she distracted The Fiend allowing Randy Orton to defeat. Bliss and The Fiend would have a staredown, and both disappeared when the lights went off. It wasn’t well-received at the time, but fans believed it was setting up a feud. After that, however, Wyatt would not appear on WWE television again.

Alexa Bliss and Bray Wyatt became aligned in 2020, and she would become a much darker character using his finisher, Sister Abigail, as a finisher. After THe Fiend was set ablaze by Randy Orton in a Firefly Inferno, he would disappear for three months, and Bliss would continue the program with Orton. The pair would even meet in an intergender match, with The Fiend returning after being away for three months.

Now the news breaking earlier today that Wyatt was released by WWE, Bliss has quickly taken to Twitter to express her shock and thank him while referring to him by his real name.

The last time Wyatt and Bliss were together was WrestleMania 37 when she would appear in the Jack-in-the-box that The Fiend had entered in, distracting her mentor long enough for Orton to hit an RKO and score the victory. The Fiend and Bliss would have a staredown, and then the lights went out, and both were gone. It wasn’t well-received at the time but appeared to be setting up an angle between the pair. After that, however, Wyatt would not appear live on television again.

In Wyatt’s absence, Bliss has continued with her sinister character and added what is supposed to be a demonic doll from her childhood named Lilly to her gimmick. Fans online would mock the introduction of Lilly, but the first batch of dolls that were made available on shop.wwe.com sold out almost immediately.

Bray Wyatt last competed for WWE on April 11th at WrestleMania in a lackluster match which saw him beaten by Randy Orton win in less than six minutes. The match did come across as writing off The Fiend character, and Wyatt has been off television since. However, his return appeared to be imminent as WWE has been advertising him locally for Raw on August 9th.

Now though, WWE has shockingly announced they have released him from his contract. Unfortunately, WWE provided no details on why he has been let go, and while they have been in cost-cutting mode, it’s hard to believe that would be the reason considering how much merchandise he sells.

Over the past few months, there has been much speculation surrounding his absence. Some reports claimed he was being kept off television by design. In contrast, others suggested he was dealing with mental health issues. As and when more information is made available, we will report on it.

During this past Monday night’s Raw, Natalya would need to be no helped to the back after her ankle got caught under Doudrop. It was clear she was hurt, and she tagged out so Tamina could finish the tag match. Early reports were that she was expected to be OK, although she couldn’t put weight on her ankle. However, following an MRI, it’s now been confirmed she has undergone surgery.

Natalya and her husband, TJ Wilson, would fly to Birmingham, Alabama, to visit Andrews Sports Medicine & Orthopaedic Center on Thursday, and she had ankle surgery on Friday. It isn’t known how long she will be out for, but she has taken to Twitter revealing her surgeon called her an anomaly. Additionally, she’d seemingly confirm the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships she holds with Tamina won’t be vacated.

Natalya and Tamina won the titles on the May 14 episode of SmackDown by defeating Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler, and they’d likely have to give them up if Natalya was expected to be out for a considerable amount of time. Therefore it appears Natalya’s recovery time could be in weeks rather than months, which is excellent news for fans.

With SummerSlam fast approaching, WWE has already brought back John Cena and Goldberg, and Bray Wyatt is expected to return imminently. Now it’s been confirmed by PWInsider that on tonight’s SmackDown, Sasha Banks is set to return. The former SmackDown Women’s Champion last wrestled in April during Night 1 of WrestleMania 37, where she lost her title to Bianca Belair.

While the report doesn’t reveal her role on the show, the Target Center’s website, where SmackDown is taking place, has been updated to say she is wrestling Belair. It should be noted that WWE will often advertise matches locally and then have them take place off-air. That could be the case here as it seems more likely that a WrestleMania rematch between the pair would take place at SummerSlam rather than on SmackDown.

The reason for Banks’ WWE hiatus hasn’t been publicly revealed, but the belief is she has been filming Star Wars content for Disney+. Banks would appear in two episodes as The Mandalorian as a character called Koska Reeves and is believed to have impressed producers. Interestingly it wasn’t her pro wrestling fame that brought her to the attention of Jon Favreau, the man behind the Star Wars spinoff, but actually, her appearance on YouTube show Hot Ones. So now, a career in Hollywood potentially awaits her if and when she decided to step away from the wrestling business.

In what was a huge surprise, WWE released Braun Strowman on June 2. Only two months previously, he had a prominent role at WrestleMania facing Shane McMahon and the prior year became Universal Champion. However, Vince McMahon believed his $1.2 million a year contract was too much money for where he saw Strowman on the card.

Strowman’s agent is currently asking promoters circa $20,000 per appearance for when his 90-day non-compete clause expires on August 31, and it’s now been reported he has agreed to wrestle for Qatar Pro Wrestling. The eight-year-old middle eastern promotion has a show titled SuperSlam 3 scheduled for the 20,000 seat Lausail Sports Arena in Qatar on February 26, 2022, and is booking several big names to fill it. So far, talents such as Bret Hart, Jon Moxley, Booker T, Sting, and Hiroshi Tanahashi have been confirmed. Additionally, they plan to have a Nation of Domination reunion with Ron Simmons, The Godfather, Mark Henry, and D’Lo Brown confirmed.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter recently revealed that WWE has been considering bringing Strowman back as they are concerned with AEW signing up their former big-name talent. With QPW’s show scheduled for next year, it calls into doubt the plausibility of a WWE return. Although with him not legally able to sign a contract with QPW until August 31, WWE still has time to offer him a new deal.

Many fans expected The Fiend to get revenge on Randy Orton at WrestleMania after he had set him aflame back at WWE’s TLC pay-per-view in December 2020. Instead, the lackluster match saw Orton win in less than six minutes from a single RKO, and since then, neither The Fiend nor Bray Wyatt has appeared on television. There has been a lot of speculation surrounding his absence, with some reports saying he was being kept off television by design. In contrast, others suggested he was dealing with mental health issues.

Thankfully, though, the unique character’s return appears imminent for his fans as WWE advertised him in local advertising for the Raw on August 9th. Now a photo has been being shared on social media of Wyatt out in public alongside a fan, and as you can see below, he looks to be leaner than before and looking well.

What WWE plans for Wyatt at SummerSlam isn’t currently known. However, with his feud with Randy Orton appearing to conclude at WrestleMania, he looks set to face a fresh opponent. With the character able to work as either a face or heel, he could meet virtually anyone on the Raw roster. Alternatively, he may get involved in Alexa Bliss’s storyline with Eva Marie.

Proving that anything can happen in the world of wrestling, Jeff Jarrett once considered persona non-grata in WWE due to how his move from the company to WCW went down in 1999 was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. Thanks to rehab funded by the company, Jarrett had managed to turn his life around and would repair his relationship with WWE and go on to become a backstage producer and even made a surprise appearance during the 2019 Royal Rumble match. Now though it has been reported by Andy H. Murray of What Culture that as part of WWE’s ongoing cost-cutting measures, the TNA founder was quietly let go.

WWE has made no official announcement, and Jarrett hasn’t commented on when this occurred. However, the clues were there with toymaker Zombie Sailor recently started taking pre-orders for a 90s Hasbro-style action figure of the former Intercontinental Champion, which likely wouldn’t have happened had he still been with WWE. Additionally, it’s understood that Jarrett has been reaching out to promotions looking for booking. The belief is he still considers himself an active wrestler and last wrestled in April 2019 when he faced Dr. Wagner Jr. at an indie show in California.

Just four months ago, the third-generation wrestler achieved a remarkable career milestone reaching 35 years as a wrestler, having wrestled his first match on April 6th, 1986. That match took place in Memphis, Tennessee, for Continental Wrestling Association, a promotion run by his father, Jerry Jarrett. Young Jeff would wrestle Tony Falk, who had challenged the then referee in an attempt to end his losing streak. Instead, the match would end in a ten-minute draw and lead to more than 2000 career matches for the multiple-time world champion.

Rumors have been circulating that CM Punk has signed with All Elite Wrestling, and while nobody in AEW has confirmed this, they haven’t denied it either. Now further fueling the speculating is a special announcement that took place on Dynamite when Tony Schiavone revealed that the August 20th episode of AEW’s new television show Rampage would be taking place at the United Center in Chicago and titled “The First Dance.” So naturally, this led to fans in attendance chanting CM Punk’s name, and tellingly AEW’s cameras would focus on the crowd doing this.

[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”dq2gvaHJ” upload-date=”2021-07-29T01:47:31.000Z” name=”AEW Announcement” description=”” player-type=”default” override-embed=”default”]

With AEW’s next pay-per-view All Out taking place on September 5th in Illinois, it was thought that would be where PUnk would debut. However, with AEW suddenly announcing this event taking place in Punk’s hometown, it now seems inevitable that Punk has signed, and the promotion is bringing forward his debut due to the news leaking.

Once the announcement was over, AEW would go backstage to Darby Allin and Sting. This allowed Allin to cut a short promo that he’d be in Chicago and that AEW is the place to prove you’re the greatest, even if you’re the best in the world. This reference clearly points to Punk’s previous WWE nickname and could possibly be setting up Allin as Punk’s first opponent.

[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”yeV5MX2k” upload-date=”2021-07-29T01:49:26.000Z” name=”Darby Allin Will Be In Chicago” description=”” player-type=”default” override-embed=”default”]

Punk walked out on WWE after the 2014 Royal Rumble due to becoming disillusioned with the wrestling business and being in poor health. He would detail his frustrations during the now-infamous podcast interview with Colt Cabana, which ultimately got the pair sued but let fans into what it was like to work for Vince McMahon’s company. It was believed that Punk was done with wrestling, but over the years, his stance seemingly softened, and he would even appear under a mask on an indie show. Then in 2019, he would shock everyone by participating as an occasional analyst on WWE Backstage.