Dave Meltzer Weighs In On Surprising WWE Departures R-Truth & Carlito
On Sunday afternoon, the wrestling world was shocked to learn that WWE veterans R-Truth and Carlito will be released from the company once their contracts expire. Although fans were upset about both stars exiting the promotion, R-Truth specifically received an outpour of support from his colleagues, who took to social media to share their devastation about the news. There continues to be limited information about WWE's decision to release both R-Truth and Carlito, especially because they were still popular with the audience, leading Dave Meltzer to speculate that the company's recent additions and "WWE NXT" call-ups could be the reason that both men were cut.
"When you're bringing people in, when you make additions to a roster, you have to make subtractions and I was surprised with Carlito in the sense that he's in the Judgment Day thing and they have regular TV time. R-Truth not so much. I mean he's been around for a long time and I think a lot of people were surprised but when you really look at it ... he's just in there for quick cameos, it's not like he's in weekly storylines." Meltzer said on the "Wrestling Observer Radio." "Every time you hear someone coming in, whether it's from AEW or if they're coming in from "NXT," then somebody on the bottom level, if you're not being used in a program and you're not like this major superstar, you're in danger."
Meltzer continued to explain that WWE evaluates the amount of money they need to save by cutting talent in order to sign other wrestlers to new contracts, which leads Paul "Triple H" Levesque to choose who to release. Following yesterday's news, multiple independent wrestling promotions are reportedly interested in booking R-Truth for shows. As for Carlito, it remains to be seen if he will be featured on WWE television with two weeks left on his contract.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Wrestling Observer Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.