INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 06: Isla Dawn attends the Los Angeles Premiere Of Netflix’s “WWE … [+] Monday Night Raw” at Intuit Dome on January 06, 2025 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by JC Olivera/Getty Images)
On Friday, news spread of seven WWE Superstars being separated from the company. On Saturday, four more were added to the list.
According to multiple outlets, including Wrestling INC, Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson, Isla Dawn, and Giovanni Vinci are also being released.
Isla Dawn is Out
SUNRISE, FLORIDA – AUGUST 19: Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn of the Unholy Union celebrate their win during … [+] Monday Night RAW at Amerant Bank Arena on August 19, 2024 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by WWE/Getty Images)
Dawn, 31, confirmed her release on Instagram Stories with a caption that said: “Here for a good time, not for a long time. See you in 90.”
Dawn was making a reference to the 90-day non-compete she’ll have to respect before appearing on TV for another organization. It wouldn’t be a shock to see her land with TNA–which WWE entered into an agreement with in January.
Dawn’s release breaks up the Unholy Union tag team with Alba Fyre. The two women were former WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. Unless Fyre is a part of another layer of sweeps, she’ll need to find a way to make an impact as a singles wrestler.
She’s done it before, but she’ll need an opportunity. In addition to being a WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion, Dawn and Fyre were also NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions.
Giovanni Vinci’s Exit Isn’t a Surprise
EDMONTON, CANADA – SEPTEMBER 6: Giovanni Vinci makes his entrance to the ring during WWE Friday … [+] Night SmackDown at Rogers Place on September 6, 2024 in Edmonton, Canada. (Photo by WWE/Getty Images)
Vinci’s exit isn’t a surprise. He suffered an injury in 2024 and was booted from Imperium. Vinci came back with a repackaged persona, but it turned out to be a joke, and he was squashed in two televised matches.
Vinci, 34, is an uber-athletic performer who has proven capable of working excellent matches. Can he ever establish a character that matches his in-ring ability? Maybe, but he is the type of performer who seemed like a candidate for a manager or mouthpiece.
Vinci leaves WWE as a former two-time NXT Tag Team Champion with Ludwig Kaiser, then known as Marcel Barthel, in Imperium.
Unfortunately, it didn’t happen in this run with WWE. Vinci had not acknowledged the news of the roster move as of late Saturday, February 8.
Gallows and Anderson Are Out
TOKYO,JAPAN – JUNE 29: Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson enter the ring during the WWE Live Tokyo at … [+] Ryogoku Kokugikan on June 29, 2019 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images)
Gallows and Anderson are seemingly forever going to be a package deal–for better or worse. The two veterans hadn’t been featured on WWE TV in anything significant for a while.
Their days of being a part of The O.C. with AJ Styles and Michin were seemingly over.
Michin has found herself as a singles performer, and Styles just returned at the Royal Rumble without Gallows and Anderson being a part of his new flow.
Anderson, 45, and Gallows, 41, are the oldest of this crop of releases. Gallows and Anderson have won tag-team titles all over the world, including two stints as WWE Tag Team Champions.
Likewise, Gallows and Anderson hadn’t acknowledged the roster move on social media.
We’ll see if they land somewhere else soon.
The WWE’s Roster Moves Shake Up Several Factions
Based on the recent moves, several factions have been disbanded:
- Pure Fusion Collective
- The Last Testament
- The O.C.
- The Unholy Union
Additionally, WWE has also released:
- Sonya Deville
- Cedric Alexander
- Akam
- Rezar
- Paul Ellering
- Duke Hudson
- Blair Davenport
Stay tuned for more information on WWE roster moves. There could be a few signings coming that help explain the recent purge.
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Brian Mazique