Reports of multiple WWE releases emerged during the February 7th 2025 edition of SmackDown.
Ahead of last night’s episode of SmackDown, former WWE Cruiserweight Champion Cedric Alexander announced the surprising news that he had been released. The move comes just over a week after his last televised appearance, losing to Ethan Page on the January 28th edition of NXT.
Shortly after, however, it became apparent that Alexander wouldn’t be the only one finishing up with the company as reports emerged of multiple WWE releases occurring during SmackDown.
On top of Alexander, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful reports that Akam & Rezar of AOP, Paul Ellering and Blair Davenport were informed of their releases yesterday. As is standard with main roster releases, all five are subject to a 90-day non-compete clause and will be free agents in early May.
It also emerged that Sonya Deville is leaving WWE after almost a decade with the company. Unlike the others, she wasn’t released but was instead informed that her contract wouldn’t be renewed. As a result, she will be a free agent as soon as her contract reportedly expires in a few weeks.
UPDATE: On February 8th, former WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Isla Dawn announced her WWE release. Fightful also reported that Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows had been released as well as Giovanni Vinci.
The full list of stars released as part of this batch of talent cuts is as follows:
- Cedric Alexander
- Akam
- Rezar
- Blair Davenport
- Sonya Deville (contract not renewed)
- Isla Dawn
- Karl Anderson
- Luke Gallows
- Giovanni Vinci
What Was The Reason Behind The Latest WWE Releases?
In a follow-up report via Fightful Select, Sapp provided some insight into the latest WWE releases and what could be next for some of the stars affected.
Davenport, better known to some as Bea Priestley from her time in AEW, New Japan and STARDOM, is said to have interest from multiple companies across the globe. There were reportedly no creative plans for her following her main roster call-up as part of the 2024 WWE Draft.
Alexander’s future also appears to be bright as sources in AEW believe that several of The Hurt Syndicate will push for him to join the company. He was part of The Hurt Business in WWE alongside now-Hurt Syndicate members Bobby Lashley, MVP and Shelton Benjamin.
Most interestingly, it was reported that AOP had heat when they re-signed with WWE back in 2022 due to “outside projects” that some wrestling figures invested into and didn’t see a return on. One WWE source stated this may have been why they were paired with Karrion Kross, who’s generally well-liked.
AOP reportedly insisted on their long-time manager Paul Ellering returning to the company with them upon their re-signing. However, there were no creative plans for the trio after The Final Testament’s feud with The Wyatt Sicks ended back in December.