WWE Wrestlers Who Are Unlikely to Be Rehired
There’s an old saying in wrestling that people always seem to forget when something unimaginable happens: never say never. Over the years, wrestlers haven’t just burnt bridges; they’ve blown them up while the person they have a problem with is standing in the middle of it. They’ve done things to each other and said some of the worst possible things about one another, and yet, when the time calls for it and the money is right, everyone is able to get along just fine.
Out of every wrestling company, that sentiment has never been more true than in WWE. We’ve seen Vince McMahon publicly screw Bret Hart to the point where it is still talked about today, CM Punk get fired on his wedding day, and Stone Cold Steve Austin literally walk out of the company in the middle of a show, and to be publicly buried for it. With all that said, not only have all three of those men made returns to WWE, but they have all been heralded and celebrated as some of the greatest WWE Superstars of all time. In order to be exiled or blacklisted from WWE must take a lot, but there are some wrestlers who are still working today that WWE isn’t exactly the most welcoming towards.
Those wrestlers are who we are here to talk about today. The stars from the past and present that, for one reason or another, WWE seems to have washed its hands of them and never brings them back into the fold. So sit back, relax, and join us on a journey through some of the most troubled and strained relationships in all of wrestling as we go through a list of wrestlers that WWE will most likely never bring back, and the reasons behind each decision.
Matt Riddle
There was a point in time where Matt Riddle was regarded as one of the most exciting and charismatic wrestlers in the entire world, hence why WWE was all in on “The Original Bro” when they signed him to a contract with “WWE NXT” in 2018. However, Riddle would be one of those performers who would get so many second chances that eventually WWE had enough of him.
Riddle was let go from WWE back in September 2023, and the road that ultimately led to his exit was bumpy to say the least. He was involved in an altercation at JFK airport in New York when flying back from a WWE live event in India, where he claimed that a police officer sexually assaulted him. That was eventually cleared up, and Riddle even apologized for his “disorderly conduct,” but he was pulled from the following week’s episode of “WWE Raw,” and in the midst of WWE firing a number of its stars, Riddle was also dismissed after reportedly burning through too many of his chances.
The former UFC fighter has remained active in the two years since he was given his marching orders from WWE, winning titles in both MLW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, but this isn’t going to be enough for WWE to bring him back. Not only was there the incident at JFK airport, but he was also named in the 2020 Speaking Out movement, had multiple suspensions due to drugs, and rubbed top stars like Seth Rollins and Goldberg the wrong way. He has also publicly stated how much he loved Vince McMahon’s way of storytelling, which isn’t going to do him any favors when Triple H is leading the creative direction in WWE. Never say never, but Riddle’s time with WWE looks to be done for good.
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Alberto Del Rio
Former WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio is a name who has popped up in conversations a lot in 2025 when it comes to a potential WWE return, and that is all thanks to the company’s purchase of Mexican promotion AAA. At the time of the purchase, Del Rio was the AAA Mega Champion and arguably the biggest star in the entire company outside of the man who would go on to dethrone him for the AAA Mega Championship, El Hijo del Vikingo. The likes of Vikingo, Mr. Iguana, and even the chaotic duo of Pagano and Psycho Clown have appeared on WWE TV so far this year, but there is no sign of Del Rio.
There was a point in May 2025 where it seemed like the relationship between WWE and Del Rio wasn’t as bad as many believed, and that there were people in WWE who were more than happy to bring Del Rio into the fold. However, despite Del Rio himself telling other members of the AAA roster that he was going to make a grand return to WWE, and the fact that WWE considered him as an entrant for the 2025 men’s Royal Rumble match, sources within WWE stated that there was a “distinct lack of interest” in using Del Rio and the company has made a conscious effort to not mention him whenever AAA is involved.
Part of the reason for this is Del Rio’s past allegations of domestic and sexual violence. He made threats of domestic violence towards his ex-fiancée, former WWE Superstar Paige, and was even arrested in 2020 for allegedly battering and sexually assaulting his girlfriend. These charges might have been dropped in 2021, but fans have been very vocal about Del Rio’s position in the business, and WWE seems to share the same views when it comes to bringing him back into the mainstream.
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Enzo Amore
There was a point in time where Enzo Amore was so over with the WWE Universe that he was able to cut an entire promo without a microphone, and the fans in the audience would not only chant the promo back at him, but be go wild at the same time. Those days are long gone for the man now known as Real1, and it doesn’t look like they will be returning any time soon.
The duo of Enzo Amore and Big Cass was one of the most promising duos to come out of “WWE NXT” in the 2010s, but once they were split up, neither man found as much success as when they were together. Both of them would be gone from WWE by the end of 2018, and while Cass was released during a time when he was battling a severe alcohol problem, Amore would be fired outright for a much more troubling accusation.
On January 22, 2018, Amore was suspended by WWE after it was revealed that he was under investigation following allegations of sexual assault against a woman by the name of Philomena Sheahan, who accused Amore of raping her in October 2017. The following day, Amore was fired by WWE for failing to tell the company about the investigation, but it was later confirmed by a friend of Sheahan that she had falsified the allegations, and the investigation was closed just a few months later.
Amore would go on to have a number of controversial incidents, such as making a scene at WWE Survivor Series 2018, getting involved in Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling’s G1 Supercard event without NJPW knowing about it, and despite resurfacing in TNA earlier this year, it’s unlikely WWE will ever take a chance on Amore again.
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The Velveteen Dream
We did say in the introduction that you can never say never when it comes to WWE, as anything is possible, but out of everyone on this list, The Velveteen Dream is the most likely to never show up in WWE ever again.
Dream was one of the most promising members of the “WWE NXT” roster from 2017 onwards, with his feuds against the likes of Aleister Black, Johnny Gargano, and Tommaso
