SmackDown Superstar Elektra Lopez has been released by WWE. Her wrestler profile was moved to the Alumni section of the WWE website over the weekend, and we’ve since confirmed she was part of the latest round of cuts that also included Sonya Deville, AOP and several others.
Lopez began her WWE journey in NXT in June 2021, where she quickly aligned herself with Legado Del Fantasma as their enforcer. After Legado Del Fantasma moved to SmackDown without her in 2022, “La Madrina” remained in NXT and formed a partnership with Lola Vice. Their alliance ended in January 2024 when Vice eliminated Lopez from a battle royal, leading to a final confrontation match on NXT.
Lopez made her SmackDown debut later that month by interfering in Santos Escobar’s match against Carlito, helping Escobar secure the victory and officially rejoining Legado del Fantasma on the main roster.
WWE recently released several names from its talent roster, with Sonya Deville, AOP, Giovanni Vinci and more being cut from the promotion. It turns out that these cuts haven’t just affected those on-screen, as at least one name working off-camera has also been let go.
On the subreddit r/SquaredCircle, a user going by ‘controllasummervibes’ shared that they have also been released. Their post was checked and marked as ‘verified,’ showing that they had proven to moderators that what they were saying was true. Controll shared a paycheck from WWE to the moderators to prove she was indeed a former employee:
“Up until Wednesday I was a video editor for their social medias. Out of no where they called me about some budget cuts and terminated my contract early. I’m heartbroken. I’ve been a huge fan and this was my dream job. My desk was decked out and I was so proud of my job. This is just me ranting and looking for support from a community I’ve been a part of I guess. Hopefully better things are coming.”
After being released, Controll was able to share some behind-the-scenes details about their time as a video editor for WWE’s social media platforms.
Working Life
Working for WWE was Controll’s first job after graduating college. She shared that she was working between 50-60 hours a week, and while this was “extremely stressful” the job was also rewarding.
Getting Paid
While WWE has been boasting record-profits for years, that fortune didn’t find its way to Contoll’s position. She shared that she was “lowkey making just over minimum wage” despite WWE’s social media and video content playing a key role in keeping fans invested in the product.
Content Created
Highlights of Controll’s work include the ‘Road to the Most Stacked Royal Rumble’ video below. She was also proud of compiling the ‘Top 10 Moments’ video for the January 13, episode of Raw, as well as a video capturing Rhea Ripley’s various highlights from 2024. She shared that she was editing ten to 15 videos a day. Her final videos centered around recapping the 2025 Royal Rumble PLE.
Response to Release
Controll is “heartbroken” over losing their job with WWE, but acknowledged that working with the company will look great on her resume. When a fan compared her to Drew McIntyre, saying she can hone her skills and come back to play a bigger role, Controll said that “I love this analogy.”
What’s to Come?
Conntroll’s next job is “def gonna be at a smaller company where my manager would fire me, not HR.” After the busy corporate life of WWE, Controll is ready for something smaller where she can feel more closely part of a team.
WWE has reportedly released several talents over the past 48 hours, with most of the news coming from Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select. The latest wave of departures includes wrestlers who have held championships in NXT and on the main roster.
WWE Superstar Isla Dawn has announced her departure from the company in a cryptic Instagram story. The post features a photo of Dawn in her wrestling gear, accompanied by the caption, “Here for a good time, not a long time,” followed by another message stating, “See you in 90,” with a calendar emoji.
Isla Dawn moving on from WWE
The mention of “90” strongly implies that WWE has informed Dawn of her release and that she will remain under contract and paid for the next 90 days before becoming a free agent. This is standard procedure for main roster talent, meaning she will not be able to sign elsewhere until that period expires.
Her departure adds to a growing list of WWE talent exits this week.
Isla Dawn in WWE
Isla Dawn first appeared in WWE as Stacy Coates back in 2017, when she competed against Asuka in a match on Monday Night Raw. She joined NXT UK in 2018 after competing in the Mae Young Classic.
She developed a “modern-day witch” character and transitioned to NXT in late 2022. Things came together when she formed The Unholy Union with Alba Fyre. The duo won the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championship in April 2023, and after being drafted to SmackDown, they captured the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship at Clash at the Castle 2024 in Glasgow.
Gallows and Anderson has been released from WWE, according to Fightful Select.
Prior to this release, the duo had been relatively inactive, with Anderson sidelined due to shoulder surgery, while Gallows was relegated to dark matches. Their last notable in-ring appearance came at NXT Battleground, where they unsuccessfully challenged Nathan Frazier and Axiom for the NXT Tag Team Championships.
This marks their second WWE departure, following their previous release in April 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic budget cuts.
After that release, they had stints in TNA and NJPW before returning to WWE in October 2022, despite being offered significant contract raises by TNA at the time.
During their most recent WWE run, they primarily aligned with AJ Styles on SmackDown and made appearances on NXT, though they failed to capture any championships during this period.
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Giovanni Vinci (Fabian Aichner) has been released from WWE, according to Fightful Select.
The Italian Superstar joined WWE in 2017 and initially found success in NXT, where he became a two-time NXT Tag Team Champion with Marcel Barthel (later known as Ludwig Kaiser).
He later joined the Imperium faction alongside Gunther and Kaiser, moving to the main roster where they dominated until April 2024, when Kaiser turned on Vinci and expelled him from the group..
Since being drafted to SmackDown in 2024, Vinci’s career has faced significant challenges. After returning with new character vignettes in August 2024, he suffered embarrassing losses to Apollo Crews, including a three-second defeat. His television appearances became limited to WWE Speed matches and dark matches, where he continued to lose to various opponents.
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WWE has a huge roster of talented names, but this week, that roster became noticeably smaller. After Cedric Alexander confirmed his exit from WWE, more names have reportedly been let go by the company.
Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp reports that Blair Davenport has been let go by WWE. Davenport joined WWE as Bea Priestly in 2021, and debuted with the promotion as part of NXT UK.
Davenport was later brought to WWE NXT before landing on the main roster. Her most recent match for WWE came in November 2024, and her most recent victory was over Naomi on the August 16, edition of the Blue brand.
Sonya Deville has been told that her contract will not be extended when it expires, Sapp adds. With Deville’s contract reportedly set to expire in a couple of weeks, it won’t be long before the former Women’s Tag Team Champion is a free agent.
Deville joined WWE in 2015 as part of WWE Tough Enough. During an iconic moment, Deville came out of the closet during the show. This came after she was asked by one of the judges if she had a boyfriend waiting for her back home, and shared that she had a girlfriend instead.
Deville’s sole title win in WWE came in 2021 when she and Chelsea Green captured the Women’s Tag Team titles, though an injury would cut short Deville’s time with the gold. Now, both she and Davenport will have to find new roles outside WWE.
Paul Ellering and the AOP had been a part of the Final Testament since the faction came together, working alongside Karrion Kross and Scarlett. Now, the trio’s time with WWE is seemingly over with reports that they have been released.
Mike Johnson of PWInsider first reported the news that Ellering had been let go from WWE. Sources who spoke to Fightful Select later confirmed news of his exit. PWInsider were also the first to report that AOP have been released from WWE.
Ellering is known for his run with the Legion of Doom, which earned himself and the tag-team a Hall of Fame induction in 2011. In 2016, Ellering returned to WWE to align with AOP (Akam and Rezar) who debuted in NXT by attacking American Alpha. When AOP returned to WWE in 2023, Ellering returned with them.
Ellering’s exit from WWE raises questions as to what’s next for the WWE Hall of Famer. Ellering’s daughter Rachael is signed to AEW and also competes for Ring of Honor, so fans can’t count Paul being brought in to manage his daughter. Rachael is also a former Impact Knockouts Tag Team Champion, and previously worked in WWE as Rachael Evers.
The exit of AOP also brings an end to the Final Testament who had been regulars on TV during their feud with the Wyatt Sicks. It remains to be seen if the trio’s exit will be referenced on WWE TV.
After nearly a decade with the company, Alexander has been released—a move he confirmed in a tweet on Friday night.
“Thank you for the last 8 1/2 years! Being a professional wrestler has been a dream of mine since I could form memories, and I will continue to do so till the good Lord says otherwise. #SeeYouIn90,” Alexander wrote.
Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer reported that Alexander was indeed released, though the reason behind his departure remains unclear.
Alexander first gained recognition in WWE through the Cruiserweight Classic before moving to the 205 Live brand and later transitioning to Raw. In late 2019, it was reported that Paul Heyman, then Raw’s Executive Director, was high on Alexander, leading to a brief push and a feud with AJ Styles over the United States Championship.
In 2020, Alexander joined Bobby Lashley, MVP, and Shelton Benjamin in The Hurt Business, a fan-favorite faction that was eventually disbanded. During that time, he held the WWE Tag Team Championship. However, since then, WWE has done little with Alexander outside of house shows and Main Event matches. In 2024, he was sent to NXT.
The year 2024 has seen significant changes in the WWE roster, with numerous superstars being released for various reasons, including budget cuts and creative shifts.
Below is a comprehensive list of every WWE superstar that was either released, had their contract run out or opted to leave in 2024.
Notable Releases in 2024
January to April Releases/Departures
Kevin Patrick (Commentator) – January 25
Mr. McMahon (Chairman) – January 26
Amari Miller (Wrestler) – February 8
Jinder Mahal (Wrestler) – April 1
Xia Li, Sanga, and Veer (Wrestlers) were also released on April 19, marking a significant day for roster changes.
Spring Releases:
April was particularly notable for releases, with several key talents let go:
Cameron Grimes (Wrestler) – April 23
Drew Gulak, Boa, and others on May 3, which included multiple NXT talents.
As the year progressed, more familiar names left the company:
Becky Lynch (Wrestler) – June 1, marking a major departure as she was a top star.
Ricochet (Wrestler) – June 29
Bobby Lashley (Wrestler) and MVP (Manager) were released on August 16, indicating a shift in the company’s direction.
Fall and Winter Departures
Later Releases
The fall saw further adjustments:
Odyssey Jones (Wrestler)- September 2
Baron Corbin, (Wrestler) a former US Champion, was released on November 1, ending a notable tenure in WWE.
Other significant releases included Indi Hartwell (Wrestler) and Tegan Nox (Wrestler), both on November 1.
Summary of WWE’s Roster Changes
In total, over 40 superstars left WWE for whatever reason throughout the year. These changes reflect ongoing strategies to refine the roster and focus on emerging talent.
