Former WWE Superstar Johnny Gargano has revealed why he chose not to renew his contract with the company.
Gargano signed for WWE in 2016 and performed on NXT. The 34-year-old went on to become the first-ever triple crown champion in the brand's history. Despite enjoying a fantastic run in the company, the Ohio native chose not to renew his contract with WWE in 2021.
During a recent interview with Chris Van Vliet, the former NXT Champion revealed what the deciding factor was in choosing whether to re-sign or not.
"I always said, like, 99% chance, I don't re-sign, because there was still, like, a 1% chance I could have. But I feel like when Candice got pregnant, that's when the 1% kind of went away and I was like, I don't want to have anyone being in charge of my time during the time period." Johnny added: "When I'm with Quill (Gargano's Son), I don't want to be sitting at home and have a Connecticut number call me and say, you need to go be at this show or we will be go do this appearance. I just wanted to have a clean slate, leave on that note and then be able to come back in the future or go elsewhere." (From 2:46 to 3:14)
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With Gargano and his wife Candice LeRae welcoming their newborn son Quill into the world, parenting is now the number one priority for the former DIY member.
Johnny Gargano is stepping away from wrestling
During his main event run on NXT, Johnny Gargano became one of the most beloved superstars in the history of WWE's third brand. The veteran is a former NXT Champion and a three-time NXT North American Champion.
Continuing his conversation with Chris Van Vliet, Johnny stated how he is going to take some time away from wrestling. The former NXT star hopes to reignite his love for the business while being away from it.
"I'm kind of just hoping that this time period where not only like from a physical standpoint but a mental standpoint to be able to give myself a refresh to where I can step away from wrestling, step out of that bubble and also I don't want to say learn to love it again because I'm always gonna love it. But just reignite that passion I had for it, to its maximum amount." (From 3:28 to 3:50)
With a legion of fans supporting his decision, Johnny Gargano will undoubtedly be welcomed back with open arms into the world of wrestling whenever he decides to do so.
When using quotes from this article, please credit Insight with Chris Van Vliet and add a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling.