Andrade has departed WWE after a year and a half with the company and details are beginning to emerge regarding his exit.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select reported on Saturday afternoon that the former NXT Champion and WWE United States Champion was out of the company, and was no longer listed on the WWE internal rosters. It was also noted that he had quietly been moved to the WWE Alumni section of the company website.
The departure is sudden, given that he was in a tag team program with Rey Fenix, and was a featured part of the WWE SummerSlam Six-Pack Tables, Ladders, and Chairs tag match for the WWE Tag Team Championship. And while speculation has emerged as to whether or not he mutually left the company or not, The Takedown on SI can provide some clarity on the situation.
Sources indicate to The Takedown on SI that Andrade was effectively released by the company, and that the departure was not a mutual decision. He had not been backstage at TV tapings for nearly a month, and multiple talent were being told Saturday afternoon that the 35-year-old had been let go.
It is unknown if Andrade also requested his release, as he did back in 2021. It was also noted that the release was not related to budget cuts, as has been the case for multiple WWE departures over the past couple of years. The exact nature of the release, however, is not entirely clear at this time, and it was emphasized that WWE doesn’t typically offer contracts that are a year and a half long.
Andrade had a successful run in WWE NXT from 2015 into 2018, winning the NXT Championship in a run that included a memorable title match against Johnny Gargano at NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia. He would go on to win the WWE United States Championship during that time, but would depart the company in 2021 after requesting his release.
He would jump ship to AEW, where he would have a rocky tenure due to backstage tensions and injuries. His AEW contract expired at the end of 2023, and he would return to WWE in January of 2024 at the Royal Rumble.
Andrade didn’t get much traction on-camera during his second WWE tenure, winning the WWE Speed Championship before having a best-of-seven series with Carmelo Hayes. He spent much of 2025 teaming with Rey Fenix, with his last match happening at SummerSlam.
The Takedown on SI reached out to WWE for comment regarding the situation, but has not received a formal response at this time. We will continue to have more details as they become available.
The Latest On AEW, WWE, TNA & More
Triple H Confirms Construction Of New WWE Performance Center
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO Shares Troubling News On Cost Of AEW On HBO Max
WWE Star Xavier Woods Shares Rather Graphic Post Surgery Photos
