Black Wednesday: Six Superstars, Multiple Companies, What’s Next?

Written by Kimmy Sokol

The last 24 have been a toll for wrestling fans. On Tuesday night, Sean Ross Sapp from Fightful.com tweeted “Well, I heard tomorrow might be busy.”

As fans started speculating of what the news could be it gutted fans Wednesday morning to learn that more WWE cuts were coming. Six wrestlers were released Wednesday morning due to “budget cuts’‘ — Braun Strowman, Aleister Black, Ruby Riott, Lana, Santana Garrett, and Buddy Murphy. 

Luckily for these six superstars, there are multiple different companies where these superstars are going to end up. Here I will be going over where I think best suits these talented wrestlers.

Braun Strowman: This release became a shock to most fans. As Strowman just competed in the WWE World Heavyweight Championship match at Wrestlemania Backlash, they just released him out of nowhere. The “Monster Among Man” has many options, but AEW might suit him best. Mark Henry played a huge role in scouting Strowman after seeing him compete in a strongman competition. As Henry just signed a multi-year deal as both a scout and analyst, the AEW roster may just get these hands. 

Lana: Although she may not be the best in the ring, dedication is an understatement when it comes to describing Lana. During the pandemic, she spent multiple days in a hotel near Natayla’s house to get more training to become better. As 2020 came to an end Lana was one of the bigger RAW superstars on the women’s side. Although it seems that a certain couple may be reunited in AEW, CJ Perry may return to Hollywood. Perry was a wrestler who came from Hollywood after being seen in the Pitch Perfect movies. Although “Lana Day” was extremely over for the WWE Universe, Hollywood may be getting used to Lana being the best, and Lana being number one.

Aleister Black: This was the most heartbreaking release. As Black just returned last week attacking Big E in the middle of the Intercontinental Championship fatal four-way match on Smackdown. Black went on Twitch today to explain his angel was supposed to start this Friday on Smackdown and also said that he had really cool music for his new character. The other interesting point is the ongoing rumors of his wife Zelina Vega resigning with WWE. Vega was released in late 2020, after wanting to continue her Twitch account and her comments about supporting unionization.

Vega was spotted at the WWE Performance Center early last month training and having some cameos recorded. Tommy End, (Black’s character in the indies) was extremely over and he can pretty much end anywhere. Tommy End would be great in New Japan, as he can be a hopeful competitor in the G1 Climax tournament New Japan puts on every year. New Japan’s roster may be fading to black starting in early September.

Ruby Riott: As WWE continues to split up multiple tag teams, Riott was also a huge shocker to many fans. As two-thirds of the Riott Squad have now gotten released in the last year, it only seems like a matter of time before all three-member may be released. Riott is extremely talented and was also a huge name on the independent scene, so she is another talent that can go anywhere and make a name. As Impact Wrestling has gained a lot of stars over the last couple of years she can be a viable contender for Deonna Purrazo and the Impact Women’s championship. As Impact looks to get more stardom there may be some “riotts” in the Impact Zone in the near future.

Buddy Murphy; As the best-kept secret WWE has had, Murphy had a great showing in the summer of 2020. Teaming with Rollins to take on the Mysterio family was a top storyline on Monday Night Raw. After siding with the Mysterios and turning on the Messiah, we have not seen much of Murphy since. Murphy, just like Black would be a huge get for New Japan. There are many talented names that Murphy can have great matches with such as Kota Ibushi and Jay White. Although he may not have gotten his full foot in the door in WWE, Murphy maybe letting the New Japan roster in on his secret soon.

Santanna Garrett: As she was only supposed to debut this Friday on Smackdown, Garrett truly doesn’t get all the praise she deserves. As a huge independent star, Garrett made a name for herself as she was in TNA as well as Stardom. With ROH rebuilding their women’s division, Garrett would be a huge name for ROH to get. She would elevate the women’s division even higher and put on some stellar matches with some women we have seen so far. Garrett may be paying some honor to the wrestling scene soon.

Although all six superstars’ WWE careers may have gotten cut short, remember that there are multiple different promotions where these superstars can thrive.