Dijak Trashes WWE’s Releases Practices After His Own Departure

Donovan Dijak has been vocal about WWE’s release practices since his departure from the company. He’s committed to his “Dijak Hijack” mission, speaking out wherever he can.

For years, both fans and industry insiders have criticized WWE’s handling of releases. On multiple occasions, outlets like Fightful have reported WWE releases before the affected performers were informed.

In a recent interview with Fightful, Dijak criticized these practices, pledging to continue speaking out until changes are made.

“It’s one of the most horrific business practices I’ve ever witnessed. I haven’t been in a lot of businesses. I will be outspoken about this until it gets fixed. That’s not how it should be done. They need to figure out a way to contact everybody, all at once, and let everybody know all at once that this is happening. We should not be put through this thing where you see one name come out, ‘Oh, Mustafa Ali has been released,’ and we all go, ‘Okay, I know he asked.’ I texted him, ‘Hey man, I’m sorry.’ He texted me back, ‘Yup, I think there is more coming.’ Even though I’m at a decent spot at that time in NXT, they can fire anyone. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that a guy from the main roster gets sent to NXT and then released. It’s happened many times and was a concern of mine. You’re watching people drop like flies. ‘He was just on TV last week.’ Why do they have to do it like that?”

Advertising

Advertising

“The answer is, they don’t. It wouldn’t take that much thought to come up with a better way to do it. There has to be a better way. I went through 15 (release days). Ali was announced for a PLE, and was then released. I feel secure, but I bet he felt secure. The (release round) where Shane (Thorne) got released, that was the one where (I didn’t feel secure). I’m looking at my phone, Shane is texting me that he got released. My name is T-BAR, I can’t get off main event. ‘Sure, I’m at the top of this list.’ I have no credibility. I’m just staring at my phone. My wife can see it on my face. I’m starting to cry because I think I’m about to get fired and I don’t have a backup plan. Back then, I would have been f*cked.”

“Shane is still recovering from what they did to him. It was a mugging. He was ripped out of his tag team, made SLAPJACK, which is a bigger joke than T-BAR, and then cast aside for a year and released. You’re watching the names come out. We’re all on (Sean’s) Twitter page. We don’t have another source. We see one name. ‘Today is the day.’ We’re all just waiting for our name to pop up because you might find out before us. While we’re doing that, we’re looking at our phone waiting for the 203 number to pop up because that means you’re f*cked. The game we’re playing in our minds is, ‘Why him?’ We’re talking to each other. ‘Braun, Bray, can you believe it.’ You hear through the grapevine, ‘I heard this guy got into an argument with Vince. I heard this guy asked for more money.’ We’re justifying it, ‘What did I do? Did I make a mistake?’ It becomes a nightmare. I don’t know what the answer is to a better way, but there has to be a better way.”

As WWE navigates the remainder of the year, it will be interesting to see how they address these concerns. The first half of 2024 was full of surprises, and the second half promises to be just as unpredictable.

Stay tuned to Ringside News for updates on this story and more. We will continue to report on any future releases.

What’s your take on WWE’s release practices? Do they give up on some Superstars too early? Share your thoughts in the comments section!