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WWE Declines To Renew Contract Of Wrestling Legend

Posted: May 6th 2024 By: Matthew Wilkinson - TheSportster.com

WWE has opted to not renew the contract of a Hall Of Famer who has been with the company since 2001.

Jerry 'The King' Lawler is no longer under WWE contract, according to a report by PWInsider, bringing an end to his 23-year run with the company in a working capacity.

Jerry Lawler And WWE Part Ways

Lawler's most recent contract ran out at the onset of this year, with WWE quietly choosing not to renew his broadcast deal. It's news that has only started making the rounds within wrestling circles during the past few weeks as this has seemingly been made lowkey.

There's been no official reason given for the decision at this point, but he hasn't worked full-time on commentary since 2020 when he was replaced by Samoa Joe. Since that point, he's been working sporadically, with his most recent appearance being last November on WWE NXT when he chose the Iron Survivor participants.

Lawler has also dealt with some health complications in recent times as he unfortunately suffered a stroke back in February of last year. Thankfully, Lawler was able to make a full recovery from that to continue with his daily life.

It was also noted by a source to PWInsider that although Lawler is no longer under a broadcasting deal, he does still have a Legends contract.

How Would The Previous Ownership Have Handled This?

According to the report, one source noted that under the previous ownership, Lawler is someone who would have always been 'taken care of.' He'd have been kept within the company in some capacity, but with WWE embarking on a new era, those times are changing.

Lawler has barely been used on television in recent years, even when Vince McMahon was still in control of the company. The WWE Hall Of Famer has typically made sporadic appearances on Legends nights, for one-off commentary appearances, or as part of WWE's pre-show panels.

More recently the company has opted to use the likes of Big E and CM Punk on the pre-show with legends such as Booker T and JBL making appearances.

This is also part of wider cost-cutting decisions that WWE has been making since the turn of the year. WWE has released several main roster stars such as Jinder Mahal and a plethora of WWE NXT Superstars such as Gable Stevson and Drew Gulak.