WWE Hiring Freeze Reportedly Still In Effect, But Could Be Ending Soon
Major free agents such as Jay White and Nick Aldis have passed WWE by recently due to the hiring freeze that has reportedly been in place since the start of the year, but that could be about to change. Per Fightful Select, a WWE higher-up has told some within the industry that the company is still communicating with potential new signings, and there is a hope that they will be hiring again sooner than later.
According to the report,William Regal and Bruce Prichard have been reaching out to talent during the freeze, including Aldis, but so far it has simply been to talk. Contact was also made with White, who WWE had a heavy interest in signing, but due to the corporate moves that were taking place at the time with the sale of the company, new main roster hires weren't happening and both men have since begun working elsewhere. EJ Nduka was also contacted during this time via James Kimball, while WWE also reportedly had an interest in Hikuleo, Tama Tonga, and re-signing Naomi, but none of those deals ended up happening, either. Fightful claims to have spoken with several other free agents that WWE simply stopped responding to at some point.
The freeze represents a marked difference from how WWE operated in the wake of Vince McMahon's brief retirement over the summer, when new WWE Chief Content Officer Paul "Triple H" Levesque kicked off his reign by bringing back numerous previously released stars, including Dakota Kai, Karrion Kross, Braun Strowman, and Bray Wyatt.