Jim Ross reacts to 11 WWE departures

Jim Ross recruited WWE talent in the 1990s and 2000s. In a recent podcast episode, the legendary announcer discussed the stars who departed the company earlier this month.

Akam, Blair Davenport, Cedric Alexander, Elektra Lopez, Giovanni Vinci, Isla Dawn, Karl Anderson, Luke Gallows, Paul Ellering, and Rezar have all been let go. It has also been reported that Sonya Deville's contract will not be renewed when it expires later this month.

On his Grilling JR podcast, Ross told host Conrad Thompson that these talents should not give up on finding another job in the wrestling business:

"Just stay positive and regroup. It's not the end of the world. More opportunities will come. What kills you sometimes is how these talents react to the bad news and how it makes them overtly negative, and that's not good. Stay positive, stay in shape, improve your game, and hopefully find yourself another landing spot." [7:59 – 8:27]

Ross worked for the Sports Entertainment juggernaut for a combined 23 years between 1993 and 2019. The 73-year-old is now a part-time commentator for AEW.

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Jim Ross on former WWE stars' potential bright futures

Several former WWE talents have found work elsewhere after leaving the company over the last 12 months. Bobby Lashley, MVP, and Ricochet signed with AEW last year after their previous deals with the Stamford-based company expired. Baron Corbin has also reinvented himself under the name Bishop Dyer since his departure after the company didn't renew his contract.

With the wrestling industry thriving right now, Jim Ross believes the 11 departing WWE stars have reason to be optimistic:

"There's plenty of landing spots out there. It's just a matter of finding the right one for you, but it's certainly not the end of the world. I can say that." [8:27–8:35]

A week before the latest departures, news emerged that Duke Hudson had been let go. The 35-year-old joined WWE in 2019 and was part of the Chase U faction in NXT.

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Please credit Grilling JR and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use Jim Ross' quotes from this article.