Sean Waltman Comments On Samoa Joe’s WWE Release: “He Is A Main Eventer Anywhere”

On the latest episode of Pro Wrestling 4 Life, Sean "X-Pac" Waltman sat down with WWE NXT Superstar Kyle O'Reilly. Before their interview Waltman opened the show speaking about the latest WWE's releases. Co-host of Pro Wrestling 4 Life and Wrestling Inc. Managing Editor Nick Hausman asked Waltman which release surprised him the most.

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"Yeah, [Samoa Joe] for sure," Waltman said. "People are bummed out. I am too. The thing is this is Samoa Joe man. He's a main eventer anywhere as far as I'm concerned, and it just opens up so many great possibilities. I'm looking forward to seeing where he ends up."

Many fans have been speculating on where Joe ends up next. CM Punk and Joe have shared their own social media reactions teasing a rematch, and Waltman gave his thoughts on where he would like to see Joe pop up next.

"I could see ROH. He has a history with ROH and Impact even," Waltman noted. "I guess it just depends on what they're offering. Here's the thing, they released a dozen people or whatever all at once. Some people might think, 'Well, you put a glut of talent on the market,' but there's not a glut of talent like Samoa Joe on the market, no matter how many people get released."

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Another surprise release was The IIconics, notably Billie Kay who had a role on this year's WrestleMania and over the past few months on SmackDown. It was reported that WWE executive Kevin Dunn "didn't get" Kay, and Waltman gave his thoughts on other reasons The IIconics and Joe didn't click in WWE.

"I don't want to get too much into the rumors I heard about who was behind her release or whatever, but it's just disappointing," Waltman admitted. "You hear things and you read things. I heard there was a problem with the accent. When I hear things like that, it's just so freaking cringe man. Going back to Joe. 'Oh, he's not in shape.' The f**k he's not. I know guys with six or eight pack abs, shredded.

"Their tongues hanging on the ground after they walk three flights of stairs, and then you got guys like Joe who may not have that look people think of when they think of an athlete, but he's a better athlete than just about anybody. He could probably go an hour in the ring without barely breaking a sweat. People's idea of what's in shape and what's not in shape, it's really misguided."

Another name that surprised fans was Bo Dallas who is a former NXT Champion. Fans have been fantasy booking Dallas as part of The Fiend storylines for months but nothing came of it. Dallas' last match was at 2019's Crown Jewel event in a Tag Team Turmoil match, and Waltman discussed what might have went wrong with Dallas.

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"It was just one of those things where he just got lost in the shuffle," Waltman pointed out. "See here's the thing, I saw how Bo was used down in NXT and FCW. He was the champ down there for a minute, and he was a really good babyface. As far as I'm concerned, really good babyface. It's hard to be a good white-meat babyface these days, and he was really good at it. Just something happened. When people make that move from NXT to the main roster, something happens with a lot of people or... something doesn't happen with a lot of people.

Hausman noted that Triple H appears to have a long-term vision for many NXT talents. He asked Waltman if Triple H taking over creative entirely would create a more seamless bridge from NXT to RAW and SmackDown.

"It's just tough," Waltman admitted. "It would be nice if his vision and the vision of who's in charge of the main roster were somewhat on the same page."

A new episode of Sean Waltman's Pro Wrestling 4 Life drops every Thursday morning on all major podcast platforms and in video form at YouTube.com/XPac!

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