Mick Foley reacts to WWE releasing Bray Wyatt
WWE legend Mick Foley believes the company has lost “a true visionary and creative genius” following the release of Bray Wyatt.
WWE announced on Saturday that Wyatt received his release after 12 years with the company. The former Wyatt Family leader last appeared on WWE television on the April 12 episode of RAW in a Firefly Fun House segment.
Writing on Twitter, Foley praised Wyatt’s ability to innovate and reinvent himself as an on-screen character. He also wished the 34-year-old happiness in both wrestling and in life.
According to the Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer, WWE talent relations executive John Laurinaitis informed Wyatt that his release was due to budget cuts. Several high-profile WWE names have received their release in 2021 for the same reason, including Aleister Black and Braun Strowman.
Wyatt’s last WWE match took place on the second night of WrestleMania 37. The two-time Universal Champion lost a five-minute match against Randy Orton following a distraction from his own ally, Alexa Bliss.
Mick Foley played a part in Bray Wyatt’s character transformation
Mick Foley reinvented himself multiple times throughout his legendary wrestling career. Although he is arguably best known for his Mankind character, the 2013 Hall of Famer also had success performing as Cactus Jack and Dude Love.
Like Foley, Wyatt also underwent character transformations during his 12 years in WWE. He originally performed as The Nexus’ Husky Harris before reinventing himself as the leader of The Wyatt Family. In 2019, he transformed into two different personas: 'Firefly Fun House' Bray Wyatt and 'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt.
The Fiend targeted several legends in the build-up to his in-ring debut, including Foley. As the tweet above shows, Wyatt’s alter-ego attacked Foley with the Mandible Claw – the WWE icon’s own move – on RAW in 2019.
Performing as The Fiend, Wyatt won the Universal Championship from Seth Rollins in 2019 and from Braun Strowman in 2020. He also defeated John Cena in a Firefly Fun House match at WrestleMania 36.