5 Superstars who benefitted from leaving WWE in 2016
Since the demise of WCW in 2001, WWE has been the be all and end all of professional wrestling and while that could still be argued today, it is certainly possible for performers to earn a good living away from Vince McMahon’s pro-wrestling juggernaut.
With the thriving British wrestling scene and the continued rise of Japanese wrestling, not to mention American companies such as Impact wrestling and Ring of Honor, there are plenty of places for performers to ply their trade nowadays.
You needn’t look any further than people such as The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega for an example of how it is now possible to become a major pro-wrestling star away from the bright lights of WWE. The internet has helped performers who do not regularly appear on television, establish a following who can watch their matches wherever they may be performing.
Before the rise of the internet, you had to wait for independent wrestlers to perform in your local area to catch a glimpse of them, yet nowadays you can watch the likes of Will Ospreay and Ricochet from the comfort of your own home, whether they are performing in England, Japan or wherever in the world they may be.
It is due to the recent rise of the independent wrestling scene that WWE’s dreaded ‘future endeavoured’ list has become less and less intimidating, many performers in the past few years have even requested their release from the McMahon corporation if they feel that they could make a bigger name for themselves outside of WWE while still earning a decent wage.
So with that being said, let’s look at five people who left WWE in 2016 and have thrived on the independent wrestling circuit…
#1 Cody Rhodes
Cody Rhodes requested his release from WWE in May of 2016 and what a second half to the year he ended up having!
After floundering in the ‘Stardust’ persona during his final months in WWE, he has been revitalised since his release and has even said that he has once again found his passion for professional wrestling. That passion is evident in the fact that he has worked all over the world and became one of the hottest talents on the independent circuit, even leading to him becoming the latest member of the Bullet Club.
Rhodes’ talent has never been in question and it’s great to see him being able to showcase that once again. He also holds the distinction of being the only wrestler to perform at WrestleMania, ROH’s ‘Final Battle’, TNA’s ‘Bound for Glory’ and NJPW’s ‘Wrestle Kingdom’ all in a 12-month period.
It’s safe to say that Cody made the right decision on asking for his release from WWE.