Joe was initially laid off by the company on April 15 along with premier stars like Mickie James and The IIconics due to budget cuts.
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NXT special enforcer and talent scout Samoa Joe has been released for the second-time straight in 12 months by WWE. His release comes as part of the NXT lay-offs in a bid to restructure their developmental program. Joe was initially laid off by the company on April 15 along with premier stars like Mickie James and The IIconics due to budget cuts but he was re-hired at the position of a special enforcer for NXT and as a talent scout later this year. The Samoan Submission Machine had quite a commendable run after rejoining as he went on to win the NXT Championship before sustaining an injury.
He further had to relinquish his NXT Championship as the WWE doctors didn’t grant him permission to compete following his injury. However, he considers himself extremely fortunate and grateful to work alongside some of the youngsters in the WWE during his stint.
“Extremely fortunate and grateful to all the young & amazing talent I had the pleasure of working with in the past months. Only saddened at the loss of an “excuse” to see their continued growth & achievement. I am very excited for there future,….. and mine [upside down smiley face emoji],” Joe tweeted.
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Joe burst onto the scene in 2015 and went on to earn credentials, becoming one of the premier stars of the developmental NXT program. He had squared up with Shinsuke Nakamura and Finn Balor during his stint and also defeated WWE star Karrion Kross at the NXT TakerOver 36 to become the NXT Champion for a third time. It also made him the first wrestler to achieve the feat thrice.
However, after his release, he remains one of the most sought after agents to be captured with no clear indication of his next move. His release also captured the light after Director of Talent Development and Head of Global Recruiting William Regal, who was also incharge of the main talent scout for the company apart from working as the General Manager for NXT, was released from his role.
It is notable that the releases and budget cuts have been in place since the outbreak of Covid-19 and looks to be a part of the restructuring for the brand. “With the continued evolution of NXT 2.0, we’ve decided to part ways with some of the staff based in our Performance Center. We thank them for their many contributions throughout the years and wish them the best,” read their statement.
