WWE News: WWE Suddenly Releases ‘SmackDown Live’ Star Out Of Nowhere
Every year, WWE does a bit of spring cleaning and ends up getting rid of a number of superstars, but it may have started a bit early this time around. A few days released after the biggest pay-per-view (PPV) of the year in WrestleMania 33, WWE has come to terms on a release for one-half of The Vaudevillains, and Simon Gotch is no longer with the company.
The official website of WWE did confirm the move on Wednesday afternoon, but there really was not a lot of info regarding the parting of ways. All that was said was that Gotch was gone as of April 5, 2017, and they wished him the best “in all his future endeavors.”
BREAKING: WWE has come to terms on a mutually agreed upon release with Simon Gotch as of today, April 5, 2017. https://t.co/zYX4XsZL53
— WWE (@WWE) April 5, 2017
Simon Gotch debuted for NXT in 2013 after wrestling on the independent scene for more than a decade. A year after starting in NXT, he formed a tag team with Aiden English when The Vaudevillains were officially born, and they went on to capture the tag titles on one occasion.
They became quite popular with the NXT crowds, and they were called up to WWE’s main roster in April of last year. Upon making their debuts, they were a heel team and picked up a win over the Lucha Dragons in their first ever match.
The Vaudevillains instantly shot up to the top of the tag team division, and this was all before the brand split. A WWE Tag Team Championship tournament was put in place to determine the number one contenders to the titles, which were held by The New Day, and they ended up winning it all.
Not long after their call-up, though, the Inquisitr had reported that some executives were having second thoughts about them being on the main roster.
A couple of title shots later, they could never quite get over the hump to capture them, and things just went nowhere for them from there. After the WWE superstar draft, they were part of another tag tournament for the newly created SmackDown Tag Team Titles, but they lost in the first round to the Hype Bros.
In November, they lost to Breezango in a qualifying match that would have earned them a spot on the SmackDown Live team for Survivor Series. From here, they continued to be buried and have done nothing since.
Simon Gotch and Aiden English did not have an individual match at WrestleMania 33, but they did participate in the fourth annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. Both of them ended up being eliminated early on in a match that was eventually won by Mojo Rawley.
Last year, Sports Keeda reported that there was actually a backstage fight between Simon Gotch and Sin Cara, but it appears as if the aggressor was the Lucha Dragon member. Still, there were reports that Gotch had a problem with speaking out, and “Gotch’s mouth sometimes gets people mad at him.”
Sin Cara has had backstage issues with other superstars, as well, including, but limited to, Sheamus and Chris Jericho.
So long and thanks for all the shoes pic.twitter.com/x3EJCSTk0G
— Simon Gotch (@GotchStyleWWE) April 2, 2017
During his time in NXT, Simon Gotch was extremely successful as a part of The Vaudevillains, and fans really couldn’t wait for them to hit the main roster. The former NXT Tag Team Champions never really had much momentum on the main roster and have been rather lost in the shuffle on SmackDown Live. It will be interesting to see what is done with Aiden English as he could receive a new tag team partner or go out on his own with Simon Gotch being released.
[Featured Image by WWE]
