All Elite Wrestling appears to have signed a recently released WWE talent, less than 24 hours after their exit from the company.
Former WWE producer and in-ring veteran Sonjay Dutt was seen backstage at the most recent Dynamite taping in Jacksonville, FL. PWInsider later broke the news that AEW had signed Dutt to a full time deal with the promotion, with similar duties to those from his WWE tenure.
Former TNA X Division champion Sonjay Dutt has reportedly left his producing role behind the scenes at WWE.#ITRWrestling#WWEhttps://t.co/vNpRx6f8Ps
— Inside The Ropes (@Inside_TheRopes) June 30, 2021
Sonjay Dutt made his professional wrestling debut back in 2000 and is perhaps best known for his time in TNA/Impact Wrestling. Facing the likes of Austin Aries, Chris Sabin and Samoa Joe, Dutt would go on to capture the companies X Division Championship. He would also work alongside Kevin Nash and Jay Lethal during Lethal’s ‘Black Machismo’ run.
Dutt would ultimately retire from in-ring action due to a torn achilles. In 2019, he would sign with WWE in a backstage role as a producer. Notably, Dutt had taken part in the motion capture for WWE 2K18 prior to signing with the company. On June 29 it was announced that Sonjay Dutt had exited the company and has subsequently signed with AEW June 30.
Though Sonjay Dutt has yet to comments publicly regarding the career move, he is said to have left WWE by his on accord, and was not a part of the budget cut related releases that have swept through the company.