Report- WWE Superstar Leaving This Summer

[Richard Blonoff]

According to multiple sources, WWE star Wade Barrett has given notice to the WWE that he will be leaving the company when his current contract expires in June. Wade is said to be unhappy with his current role in the company.

It is well known that Wade has been plagued with injuries during his WWE career, including a current neck injury that is keeping him out of action.

Wade made a big impact to start his career as the leader of The Nexus, and had a good look, but failed to find consistent main event work. Some feel that Wade was underutilized in his career, with some even saying he could have been WWE's first British World Champion and that the WWE dropped the ball at Survivor Series 2010 by having Randy Orton go over.

Regardless of how you feel, you never want to see a guy snake bitten like Wade was with injuries, but at 35, do you see him making an impact outside the WWE? Do you feel he should have been World Champion? Discuss it all here.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

According to the main page and various other sites, 5 time WWE Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett, AKA Bad News Barrett & King Barrett, has given his notice to WWE officials that he won't be re-signing with the company when his current deal expires in June.

Allegedly, Barrett simply isn't happy with his position in WWE and has been out of action for several weeks due to nerve damage in his neck. As a result, he's mostly just been accompanying League of Nation members to the ring during their matches.

If true, then I think it's both a shame and something I can't say that surprises me. I've always liked Barrett and it's too bad that he's been such a frequent victim of lousy booking and/or injuries keeping him on the shelf for months at a time. However, it's hard to really blame WWE for not focusing or investing too much time in Barrett considering how often he sustains injuries that result in him missing so much time in the ring; I mean, it's not as if Barrett can be relied upon for a WWE Championship run when he gets hurt every time he turns around to scratch his ass. Given the issues with the damage to his neck, WWE is only going to be more reluctant to do anything with him if/when he's given a clean bill of health. As we know, they're skiddish, and rightly so, when it comes to wrestlers suffering cranial or cervical trauma.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Wade is said to be unhappy with his current role in the company.

Yes, and WWE has probably been unhappy paying him his salary while he spent huge amounts of time sitting out injured. Yet, they kept him on; I presume he's worked under more than one contract since joining the company.

No, it's not a performer's fault when they get injured, yet how can the company depend on them to keep a storyline going if their history points to the fact they'll soon be sidelined again? All the planning goes out the window when a wrestler can't wrestle.

As it is, the only reason we're seeing Wade at all since he hurt his neck is that he's once again part of a group and can at least serve as a cheerleader for the League of Nations while not getting physically involved.

I really believed Wade's 'Fight Club' schtick was going to take off and keep him in the limelight......but it didn't, nor did his Bad News persona or King of the Ring. He just can't catch on as a single.

After awhile, everyone has to move in a different direction. If Wade can find success in the European federations, more power to him.

 

[MERPER]

It's funny, I had tweeted last night about why I can't understand their reasoning for not sending him packing already. The guy can't stay healthy and was never a big enough star anyways....

His role for months, due to injury, has been to come out and stand around the ring. He doesn't even speak anymore. He's literally a giant waste of money.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

Wade Barrett's career is the definiton of "What If?"

What if Nexus won at SummerSlam 2010? What if he defeated Randy Orton for the WWE Championship? What if he defeated John Cena at TLC 2010?

What if he wasn't buried after losing to Cena? What if he didn't form a group with mediocre wrestlers like Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater, and Ezekiel Jackson? What if that group didn't lose at WrestleMania 27 in under 2 minutes to a team that had Santino Marella as a captain?

What if Barrett didn't start getting injured after that? What if WWE had not ended his "Bad News Barrett" gimmick, which was massively over?

If not you have a legit main event star and first ballot Hall of Famer. As it stand his career (2012 on) was a huge disappointment, consisting of numerous injuries and questionable creative decisions by WWE management.

 

[BrutalBarrett]

I get he's injured and is limited to what he can do. But WWE knows, he knows and we know that he's great on the mic and I'm pretty sure the LoN would of been more popular if he was the groups tactician and mouth piece and the other three did the talking with their fists.

He still has a role to play with WWE even if it's not in the ring. He has plenty to offer. Who has the UK fan base got left to cheer for?

Barrett - Became the LoN's cheerleader. Hasn't been relevant since he was injured in 2014. Even when he returned and won the IC title he jobbed to everyone on the roster.

Neville - Hasn't really had a valued storyline and has just pretty much bit by bit vanished from our screens.

I don't see why they can't have the LoN's kick Barrett from their group cause he doesn't do anything for them and have him manager to Neville. Neville is great in the ring but not the most gifted talker on the mic. Barrett could really be the next Heyman if given the chance. (Not saying Neville is the next lesnar though 😂 )

 

[Radical Canadian Goose]

I have often called Barrett overrated on these forums. It may have been due to his injury plagued career and seemingly holding an upper-midcard spot while others struggle to get their due.

I happened to meet Wade last year after a house show and got to have a quick chat with him. I told him he had an amazing match with Neville. He responded with "There is more to come." He was sadly mistaken.

I wish Wade the best of luck. Maybe he can be a star elsewhere as others have before.

 

[OYDK]

Lost potential is the best way I can describe Wade Barrett. It's very possible that without the injuries, Barrett is a current main-eventer. Probably a former World Champ. Obviously, he knows WWE will never try with him again. That's not their fault, there's just no point in investing in somebody who's constantly injured.

Sadly, I don't think I'll miss Barrett all that much considering that he hasn't done very much in the past 6 months. Hopefully he can go somewhere and be the star of a fed, indie or otherwise. He deserves that much I think.

 

[KromyD]

His own play to test Vince if he will use him correctly if the right changes were made to a new contract if Barrett stays? WWE wont keep him on board if anything will probably only offer less than his current contract.

I'm all for the LON of splitting, but IMO it should be a ADR & Lucha Dragons feud with LON, if reports are correct that Barrett will leave in June have ADR turn straight after WM32 and have that match at Extreme Rules for Sheamus & Rusev to beat Barrett down after a ADR win.

 

[swallop]

Bad choice by badnews. Guy cant really wrestle all that well and he cant stay healthy to save his life. He's a 5 time IC champion too me thats more then what he should have done. He is a B+ player at best lol.

 

[Vanilla Midget]

Meh. The sad thing is he lifts right out, when so many people saw so much potential. It boggles the mind that he didn't ever get a face run. There were so many logical times, when he returned as Bad News in fall 2014 and again this last summer, when he instead remained as king and went after Neville. They should have been teamed up.

He's probably the most injury prone guy who's gotten a modern push. I can't think of anyone, except maybe Mark Henry, who's been this injury prone. Granted a lot of them weren't his fault, such as the Swagger throw into the barricade or the Big Show/Ziggler lawn dart incident.

So much potential yet his legacy at this point leads him to be a highly decorated bum. Is that status his fault? I have to disagree.

The guy has received three major repackages (bare knuckle boxer, Bad News, and KOTR) and each time has found himself rolled up by jobbers and losing the Intercontinental title, generally little to no sustained runs. That's all aside the fact that The Nexus should have won their match, and he should have won the WWE title in 2010.

There's no real loss here. WWE squandered this guy and he's the posterboy for WWE's post class of 2002 inability to create new stars (Edge, Punk, and Bryan being the exceptions). Did they really squander him? He was really only getting a reaction as Bad News, the rest of the time it was crickets.

He could turn face, become Bad News, go on a win streak, and be believable as WWE champion come the summer. But so could anyone with an over gimmick.

He's a world champion in TNA or in Japan. I'm betting he goes back to the UK at first. TNA might be best for Barrett considering their taping schedules and his knack for nasty boo-boos.

 

[Navi]

What a bummer, I really liked the guy. Yes he suffered injuries, but a couple of them weren't his fault. The time Swagger threw him into the barricade, that was just a bad landing. And the time Show threw Ziggler into him and dislocated his elbow, another unlucky bad landing.

The guy is absolute gold on the mic and an absolute natural. Reports out of Australia say he was one of the best one that tour, saying he was the King of Australia, using a cricket bat as a scepter, and making fun of the English and the Aussie's in the Ashes. No one but him could have pulled that off.

When the LON was formed I was puzzled that they never gave him the mic. He is much better than all three of the others combined, but he never said a word. I don't blame him for cutting his losses and getting out. He was given chances but then had them taken away from him. He could have been given a manager's position or put on commentary. Get rid of JBL and put Barrett in his place, he would rock RAW.

The problem with Barrett I'm afraid is only going to magnify itself, and that is what no one is talking about. Others might see themselves in the same position as he is and take the same route. Ziggler has talked about it publicly and who knows who's thinking about it privately. It's like the elephant in the round no one wants to address.

I'm dreading the day Cesaro says enough is enough, I'm outta here. This is what happens when you focus on one or two people, and leave everyone behind. Eventually they just say fuck it, and when you look back they are gone.

 

[FromGlasgow]

I always heard predictions for major things ahead for Barrett but those never seemed to materialise, I don't blame WWE for that as everytime he seems on the start of a big push he seems to keep getting injured. I'm kind of indifferent towards him I don't particuarly enjoy his matches but I don't dislike them either, I think the best place he could go would be TNA as they could do with a big name for their roster after so many leaving.

 

[Messiah]

Maybe he realized the wrestling business isn't for him.. He can make money elsewhere., no point is getting injured every year, and potentially be crippled when he gets older.. WWE won't invest money in him for that very reason... Good for Barrett to give WWE notice, letting them know he won't resign. Most talent don't have the balls to do that, they'll just leave abruptly and cry about it like little bitches.

 

[ISkye]

Ever since I started watching again I haven't seen him do anything even remotely interesting. I don't really care, but I'm sure someone somewhere does. Hopefully he can find success in another promotion or maybe just stop wrestling and try a new venture.

 

[Hyorinmaru]

I can't say I'm surprised he's leaving but I am surprised he's making the choice instead of having it made for him.

He is one of if not the most injury prone man on the roster. Some people say he's been underutilized by the company and for those people I have a hypothetical situation for you.

Say you are the owner of a big business and you hire someone that has all the makings of a senior member of the company in 6+ years. He starts of big but when given his own chance to shine he calls in sick. He has some mediocre success but every time you give him a high profile client he calls in sick and someone else gets the client. Eventually you'd stop trusting the guy and fire him for not doing what he was hired to do.

Well that's Barrett in a nutshell. I'm not sorry to see him go and hope he realizes how lucky he is to have lasted this long.

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

Wade would play an excellent bad guy in an action movie.

 

[Azane]

CM Punk and Cena getting into the Nexus Storyline pretty much ruined Barret, if they kept Barret as the Commander in Chief, I think he would of been a multi-time world champion before the story was completely through, but nope, CM Punk even commented "Why did they take all the heat these fresh guys have, and give it to me, fresh off Straight Edge Society, when I was a top 3 contender, It barely helped me, and just buried the entire Nexus"

Once the Nexus was done, Barret did nothing of Note, the Corre was just... a waste of everybody's time and he was a comedy jobber from then on. Injuries didn't help, but they passed him by before he ever got hurt.

 

[Sean Valjean]

That's a shame but I can't blame him.

Barrett is one guy who's booking has frustrated me for years. He impressed the hell out of me in NXT and as the leader of Nexus. He's got a great look, is solid in the ring, and is such an eloquent speaker. I always enjoy listening to him on the mic. I firmly believe he could have been a main event heel, but unfortunately when booking didn't screw him, an injury did.

Despite everything, he still managed to carve a decent career for himself. Ultimately though, he'll go down as one of the biggest missed opportunities of the modern era.

 

[stingray11214]

You cannot do anything with a guy who is injury prone. The only reason why DBry might have gotten another shot at the brass ring was the fact that any arena he walked into was like he was God. Barrett, sadly, got ruined by Creative and his own body. They should have kept him as BNB. It would have been money long term. However, being that his real name is Bennett, he could have a career as Bad News Bennett. TNA, RoH and the Japanese will love it. "Impact Zone, I am afraid I got some bad news..."

 

[THTRobtaylor]

This isn't remotely shocking... indeed about 5 years ago, he did an interview where he expressly said "I'll be out of wrestling in about 5 years". That, more than anything was perhaps why he wasn't backed all the way by WWE, rather than any injury proneness.

After all his two "major" injuries came at the hands of others, who then took the push he was intended to get... so WWE would have a VERY hard time holding that against him unless they'd punished those who caused the problem... so they persevered with their half hearted attempts at pushing him, partially to convince him to stay as he does have value to them as a character, if not a top level worker and partially like that awkward ex you just have to be nice to cos your buddy crashed the car and scarred them to the point you couldn't be with them... it wasn't really their fault it went wrong.

The first signal was a few months back when he reverted to his real name on Twitter, that was when the LoN came about and that seemed like a "last pitch" from WWE.

Barrett or rather Stu Sanders has quite a few options. Bear in mind massive openings have just begun in Japan... with AJ, Balor and the Bullet Club now over in WWE their top new guy is Kenny Omega? Kenny, Stu has some bad news... he could go over there and easily earn close to what AJ did as a 5 time IC champion and potentially even get the IWGP title... he'd be a hot heel gaijin and not even need to wrestle that often to do so...

Couple that with TNA, where he would walk into the World title picture or even GFW where he could be the first "big steal" that helps put them on the map along with cameos in ICW and you still have a very lucrative Indy career.

However the elephant in the room is the "nerve damage" in his neck... remember this is a guy who lost a good part of his strength, which was an original selling point due to Ziggler's negligent bump snapping his arm at the elbow... he always struggled after that, moves like Wasteland always looked riskier cos he didn't have that same stability in his lifting. Add nerve damage to that equation and it might simply be a case of not worth the risk anymore.

But even if that's the case, Sanders still has a lot of options... He has been in some movies, albiet WWE ones, but he has worked with some big names in doing so... He could get an agent relatively easily and with connections like Batista, The Rock all knowing how good he is could easily appear in an Expendables type movie down the line as "British Villain". Meanwhile, his sense of humor would lend him to coming over to the UK for shows like "A League Of Their Own", which is a sport based celeb panel game presented by James Cordon... He'd fit perfectly with their "crazy" humor on that show, the wacky games and banter... he'd excel in that environment. The guy could easily end up presenting here in the UK and potentially in the US, he's like Jericho but with the added Brit accent which will make him more attractive to networks.

Whatever happens, it won't be the last time we see this guy... There is even a chance that after a period of time WWE decide they want to make him an offer to be that commentator guy we all think he should be... once Jerry hangs up his mic for example.. but in the short term, there just isn't that spot available.

But ultiimately WWE won't want to lose him but they can if they must, he was the first product of NXT in any form that "made a spalsh" and arguably set the tone for what it became... he is a 5 time IC champ which is the same as Razor was.. he has a 6 year WWE career that when he was good, was VERY good and the lows can very rarely be blamed on him... He's the kind of guy WWE gives another go to even if they walk...

 

[Bischoff's Knob Slobberer]

Barrett will go on to TNA and become a major star. WWE creative doesn't have a clue. They dropped the ball with Bateman and TNA turned him into a mega star (ECIII) and he's the face of the company. Bram and Drew Galloway are also WWE "rejects" that TNA has turned into stars. WWE creative needs to get their heads out of their collective butts! They are so concerned with old washed up nobodies like Kane, The Dudley Girlz, Triple H, The Big Slow, AJ Styles, Y2J, Mark Henry, Cena, Taker, and Stink that good young talent is being ignored. No wonder so many people are being hurt, the young guys are carrying the old farts and overextending themselves....smh......

 

[MartialHorror]

That's too bad, as I really liked Barrett and he was getting serious momentum when he returned after Wrestlemania 30. It's annoying how WWE doesn't seem to know how to use him. HE should at least be the mouth of the League of Nations. Even though Rusev, Sheamus and del Rio are capable of cutting adequate- if not exceptional- promos, Barrett is easily the best talker and he was a pretty good wrestler too.

 

[ECPirate37]

I was thinking that Barrett should go to Impact Wrestling with his "Bad News" gimmick. I'm sure WWE has some trademarks on some of the things, but he could still say Bad News, but word it differently.

I know he has been injured several times, but with TNA's lighter schedule, it may be easier for him to stay healthy. I know in the interview five years ago he said he only had five years left, but if I was him and saw how TNA treated Bateman and Drew; I'd want to give it a shot to see if I could go over as well, to prove to the WWE that they were wrong.

 

[Navi]

Barrett will go on to TNA and become a major star. WWE creative doesn't have a clue. They dropped the ball with Bateman and TNA turned him into a mega star (ECIII) and he's the face of the company. Bram and Drew Galloway are also WWE "rejects" that TNA has turned into stars. WWE creative needs to get their heads out of their collective butts! They are so concerned with old washed up nobodies like Kane, The Dudley Girlz, Triple H, The Big Slow, AJ Styles, Y2J, Mark Henry, Cena, Taker, and Stink that good young talent is being ignored. No wonder so many people are being hurt, the young guys are carrying the old farts and overextending themselves....smh......

I actually agree with you on this. He can go there start up the BNB gimmick again, because God only knows they have enough bad news these days. He'll be there forever.

Ah I was waiting for you to shit on Styles for him going with the WWE. If he had gone with TNA instead he would be a God.