5 Superstars who were quietly released by WWE

#3 Former WWE star Cain Velasquez

Cain Velasquez released by WWE https://t.co/f6dx46vyn3 pic.twitter.com/ejXxWZITt1

— Wrestling Observer (@WONF4W) April 28, 2020

Cain Velasquez was a surprise addition to the WWE roster on the night that SmackDown made their move over to FOX back in 2019. Velasquez was already known to several WWE fans after being the man to defeat Brock Lesnar during his time in UFC.

The two men went on to have a brief feud. It led to a wrestling match in Saudi Arabia which Lesnar was able to win quite convincingly.

Velasquez was signed to a multi-year deal with the company at the time but when budget cuts were made as part of the COVID-19 pandemic, the former UFC star was one of the names released.

WWE didn't announce Velasquez's release publically. Instead, the news came from Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer.

“It was a multi-year deal, and just like everybody else, they signed him to a giant deal, and now that they’re cutting back, one of the things in those deals is that they got the right to cut people. So people who thought that they signed multi-year contracts for high dollar figures, this is how it goes.”

Velasquez wasn't part of the initial budget cuts on April 15. Instead, his release came a few days later.