Former WWE NXT Star Says He's In Talks With Major Promotions
Former WWE star Bronson Reed, under his independent name Jonah Rock, joined Busted Open Radio to talk about his unexpected release from WWE in early August. Reed revealed he was caught completely off guard by his firing, as he had been expecting a move to either RAW or Smackdown.
"I was gobsmacked," Reed said. "It was not something I was expecting. I was actually expecting to get a call to get moved up to RAW or Smackdown. And then, out of the blue, it's the release call. So yeah, really surprised."
Reed also detailed the phone conversation with WWE head of talent relations John Laurinaitis immediately after his release. Co-host Bully Ray asked Reed if Laurinaitis gave any reason for why WWE was letting him go.
"No," Reed said if he received an explanation. "I've actually started my own podcast and I spoke about this. I was called by John Laurinaitis, who is doing all those sort of things at the moment. And I made sure to ask. I made sure to be like 'hey, why is this happening?' He said, 'there's no real reason, it's just a no for now.' It leaves it up to debate, leaves me questioning myself for the last forty days.
"He did say, 'the door is always open, keep working', which obviously I am going to do. But it would've been good to have some sort of insight. I did do a dark match in the Main Event taping match for Vince. And the only feedback I got was, I was a babyface at the time, was to smile more, which I then did in my next couple of matches. Things like that, I can definitely change. In my opinion, I think it's maybe the direction they're going in from seeing the new NXT 2.0. But I'm not 100% too sure."
Now, nearly two months later, Reed continues to call his release a head scratcher. He also believes that it's a decision that may ultimately come back to bite WWE.
"It's definitely a bit of a head scratcher," Reed said. "I thought I was primed for the main roster. I thought I could've done some great things on RAW or Smackdown. But that being said, if that wasn't going to be an avenue, I was happy with NXT. I always believed in that product and thought I fit in really well there, as well. For me, it's a bit of a head scratcher. I'm not too sure what it was, but I do know that decisions can be made at a whim. So I leave it as a business decision on their part, but maybe not a good one on their part."
As for what comes next for Reed, the powerhouse believes he's a great fit for any major promotion, whether it be Impact, AEW, or somewhere in Japan. He revealed he was in talks with certain promotions, but will first need to sort of his visa status before revealing his next move.
"I'm in talks with the major promotions at the moment," Reed said. "I can't really say any which way where I'm leaning towards. But I do think that what I do offer, a 340 lb man that can go, I don't think AEW really has that. Impact does have some bigger talent, but no one that's my mold either. So I think I would fit in Impact or AEW. But I am a huge fan, and I did wrestle in Japan for a long time, so that is definitely somewhere I would like to work again. Granted, visas, immigration, and everything makes it a little difficult at the moment. So, for me at the moment, it's sort of working on my immigration status. And hopefully in the next few weeks, I'll have an answer for the fans of where you'll be able to see me."
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Busted Open Radio and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription