Just four months after signing a new five-year WWE deal, Mike Kanellis has publicly requested his release from the company.
In a long post on Twitter, Kanellis said that he asked WWE to be let go from his contract and thanked everyone in the company who helped him out over the past couple of years.
“I’ve been with the company for almost 3 years and I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity. However it is time for me to move on. I am only 34 years old and feel I have way to much left in the tank,” Mike wrote.
He noted that working just once a week is not enough for him and the opportunity to do more doesn’t exist in WWE right now. He said he signed with WWE again in June because it’s what he thought was best for his family and from a financial standpoint it was, but he quickly realized that “bringing my work frustrations and misery home with me, is not good for my family and I no longer want my daughter to constantly see me come home defeated, sad and angry.”
Mike wrote that he wasted four years of his life addicted to drugs and not caring and now that he is clean, sober and motivated, he wants to have those 30 minute matches.
“I want to travel the world and wrestle in front of UK crowds, German crowds, Japanese crowds. I want to feel the love and excitement wrestling once gave me. I also want my daughter to be able to see me wrestle. I want her to see her daddy work for his money. I’ve never been ok with just collecting a paycheck and I can’t in good conscience tell my daughter she has to work her ass off to get ahead in life, then not do it myself,” he continued.
It’s not clear if WWE already granted his release or if they had agreed to do so before writing the letter on Twitter. Luke Harper tried a similar tactic last time around and he was denied. Only Shawn Spears, formerly known as Tye Dillinger, did the same and got what he wanted but that’s before AEW launched.