{"id":93039,"date":"2021-06-02T16:57:36","date_gmt":"2021-06-02T20:57:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=93039"},"modified":"2021-06-02T16:57:36","modified_gmt":"2021-06-02T20:57:36","slug":"recent-releases-at-wwe-change-the-landscape","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2021\/06\/02\/recent-releases-at-wwe-change-the-landscape\/","title":{"rendered":"How Do the Recent Releases at WWE Change the Landscape?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2021\/06\/02\/braun-strowman-aleister-black-wwe-releases\/\" target=\"_self\">As reported by Scott Edwards<\/a>, today <strong>WWE<\/strong> announced the following recent releases at WWE: <strong>Lana, Ruby Riott, Murphy, Aleister Black, Santana Garrett, <\/strong>and <strong>Braun Strowman. <\/strong>The surprising cuts come just a month after a wave of releases that included <strong>Billie Kay, Peyton Royce, Samoa Joe, <\/strong>and <strong>Mickie James. <\/strong>The reaction of those released is still pouring in. Black expressed his surprise, having only recently returned to the ring-airing a series of intricately plotted animated vignettes debuting his Dark Father storyline, and interfering in <strong>Big E\u2019s <\/strong>fatal four-way against <strong>Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, <\/strong>and <strong>Apollo Crews <\/strong>on the May 21 <strong>SmackDown<\/strong><em>.<\/em> Strowman\u2019s reaction was brief and equanimous, tweeting, \u201cWhat a chapter in life. Thank you!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Whether gobsmacked or grateful, these former Superstars have been wished the customary luck in future endeavors. Now, the recent releases at WWE will now be seeking their fortune elsewhere. How will their departures change the landscape they are leaving behind?<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">What a chapter in life.  Thank you!!!!!<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; The Monster of all Monsters (@Adamscherr99) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Adamscherr99\/status\/1400151534353195014?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">June 2, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><strong>Braun Strowman<\/strong>: &#8220;The Monster Among Men,&#8221; a former Universal Champion, cuts a formidable figure on any stage, but has floundered for a storyline in recent months. A retread of his Wyatt Family days was cut short by <strong>Bray Wyatt\u2019s<\/strong> storyline heat shifting to <strong>Randy Orton, <\/strong>and then Wyatt\u2019s conspicuous absence in recent weeks. With this detour, Strowman was then thrown into a lackluster comic feud with <strong>Shane McMahon<\/strong>, which culminated in a steel cage match at <strong><em>Wrestlemania 37<\/em><\/strong>. On recent episodes of <strong>Raw<\/strong>, he was positioned as the other contender alongside <strong>Drew McIntyre<\/strong>\u00a0for <strong>Bobby Lashley\u2019s <\/strong>WWE Championship. This role, however, has been supplanted by <strong>Kofi Kingston<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>With Strowman off the roster and no return in sight for <strong>Keith Lee<\/strong>, the red brand is lacking a hard-hitting heavyweight that can go toe to toe with strongmen like McIntyre and Lashley. Of course, there is <strong>Omos, <\/strong>but he lacks Strowman\u2019s experience and is currently in a tag team. Strowman is a former champion, so any story centered around a battle for a championship would reasonably include him. With Strowman out, McIntyre, Kingston, and Lashley are surrounded by a skeleton crew, with few players to serve as a natural spoiler-with the exception of Orton. If <strong>Finn Balor<\/strong> is indeed returning to Raw, perhaps the one-day Universal Champion could be tapped into this role.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I will never forget the fans, and the love they showed me. Whether it was a tank, power-suits, flags, CRUSH, Rusev, 900 partners, weddings or tables: I tried to always entertain you, and you definitely elevated me. Thank you. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/n7W5i5KAMI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/n7W5i5KAMI<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; CJ Perry (@TheCJPerry) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheCJPerry\/status\/1400177333038899202?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">June 2, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Another member of the Raw roster among the recent releases at WWE is <strong>Lana<\/strong>. She began as a manager to <strong>Rusev<\/strong>, now known in <strong>AEW<\/strong> as\u00a0<strong>Miro, <\/strong>and has struggled to find her footing as a wrestler. This gimmick was stretched rather far, with Lana joining tag team partners like <strong>Natalya <\/strong>and <strong>Naomi, <\/strong>and being bullied by <strong>Shayna Baszler <\/strong>and <strong>Nia Jax<\/strong>. Despite showing recent improvement, she seems to be another casualty of the winnowing of the women\u2019s division. This leaves Naomi without a partner, and the fan favorite\u2019s following surely wondering when there will ever, truly, be #JusticeForNaomi.<\/p>\n<p>Another female tag team athlete left without a partner is <strong>Liv Morgan, <\/strong>with the release of <strong>Ruby Riott<\/strong>. In her 2020 WWE documentary \u201cLiv Forever,&#8221; Morgan was candid about how poor booking practices in the WWE have stalled her career and frustrated her. The release of partner Riott could be the final strike in a death by a thousand cuts to Morgan\u2019s WWE career, or pave the way for a meaningful singles push for Morgan-only time will tell if she will be utilized as a solo performer now that the Riott Squad is no more.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Im gathering my thoughts as this was a complete left field for me as obviously we just started the dark father character but this was it, thank you so much WWE universe for allowing me to create and give you small bits of myself.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Aleister Black (@Aleister_Blxck) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Aleister_Blxck\/status\/1400112081060478979?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">June 2, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Black, as noted above, had only recently returned to active duty after a long absence. He has spent the afternoon elucidating the details of his release to fans via wife <strong>Thea Trinidad\u2019s <\/strong>(formerly known as <strong>Zelina Vega)<\/strong> Twitch page. Black, or rather Tom Budgen, says that his release was to do with budget cuts, and he will be releasing new original music soon. His interference in the May 21 fatal four-way match for Apollo Crews\u2019 Intercontinental Championship seemed to point towards Black being in contention for the IC belt himself. However, now we will never know what cruel tutelage of the Dark Father Black had to impart on the SmackDown roster.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Murphy<\/strong> and <strong>Santana Garrett <\/strong>were two<strong> NXT<\/strong> call-ups who failed to find a footing on the main roster. Murphy\u2019s most impactful storyline was as the follower of <strong>Seth Rollins\u2019s<\/strong> \u201cMonday Night Messiah,&#8221; who later reformed for love of <strong>Aliyah Mysterio<\/strong>. The callups of <strong>Rhea Ripley <\/strong>and <strong>Damien Priest<\/strong> have been handled similarly lukewarm on Raw, begging the question of whether NXT\u2019s performers would be better served by contributing their talents to building the black-and-gold brand into its own impactful tentpole of the WWE universe, rather than transitioning into smaller roles on a bigger stage.<\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s recent releases at WWE changed the landscape, discontinuing storylines, breaking up tag teams, and surely leaving many shaken up about what the future holds.<\/p>\n<p><em>Stay tuned to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/\" target=\"_self\">Last Word on Pro Wrestling<\/a>\u00a0for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can check out an almost unlimited array of WWE content on the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/watch.wwe.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">WWE Network<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.peacocktv.com\/watch\/home\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Peacock<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Looking to talk wrestling, pro football, or any number of sports? Head on over to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/boards\/index.php\" target=\"_self\">LWOS Boards<\/a>\u00a0to engage in conversation with fellow fans!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As reported by Scott Edwards, today WWE announced the following recent releases at WWE: Lana, Ruby Riott, Murphy, Aleister Black, Santana Garrett, and Braun Strowman. The surprising cuts come just a month after a wave of releases that included Billie Kay, Peyton Royce, Samoa Joe, and Mickie James. The reaction of those released is still [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3715,"featured_media":93047,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2192,25,26,4,3],"tags":[433,255,1703,604,2851,449],"class_list":["post-93039","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wrestling","category-raw","category-smackdown","category-wwe","category-wwe-universe","tag-aleister-black","tag-braun-strowman","tag-buddy-murphy","tag-lana","tag-ruby-riott","tag-santana-garrett"],"modified_by":"Robbie Sutter","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/93039","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3715"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=93039"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/93039\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/93047"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=93039"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=93039"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=93039"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}