Today’s episode of the Wrestling Observer Radio had a ton of new details regarding this weekend’s releases made by WWE, and what the plan is for NXT moving forward. Highlights are below.
-The cuts were handpicked by Vince McMahon, Bruce Prichard, and John Laurenaitis. Triple H and Shawn Michaels were said to not be involved in who was released. There’s also word of some divisive opinions about wrestling among those in WWE.
-The plan is to turn NXT back into its original development structure, back before they were pre-fighting AEW. The “Curtix Axel” era of NXT is mentioned as an example. Head journalist Dave Meltzer reads off a specific list of what they are looking for. “No more midgets,” and “no one starting in their 30s” were the two biggest traits.
-There will always be exceptions to the following rule, with the report mentioning Adam Cole as someone WWE wants to focus on. Main roster writers have been told to come up with multiple storylines for Cole if he decides to re-sign with the company.
-WWE is trying to push away from indie-style and focus on larger than life characters that can become major box office draws. They don’t seem too pleased with what the NXT style has become, which is why they’ve been cleaning house.