William Regal Issues Statement On WWE Departure
The legendary William Regal took to Twitter tonight to issue a statement on his WWE departure.
Regal was released from his WWE NXT contract on Wednesday as a part of the major overhaul of NXT and WWE Performance Center staff. Several longtime employees were let go, but Regal was the most shocking departure.
In an update, Regal tweeted tonight and thanked WWE for a wonderful 21 years. He said he has no complaints against the company, and will not have anything bad to say about his former employer. Regal also credited WWE with saving his life in 1999, and keeping his family fed.
"Thank you to @WWE for a wonderful 21 year run. You gave a lad who was happy and in wonderland wrestling on a carnival have a charmed life for 21 years. No complaints and please no one waste time replying as I won't have a bad work said against the company.x I will add that @WWE saved my life in 1999 when they didn't need to, kept my family fed and took me all around the world. You have my gratitude forever. You allowed me to live a charmed life," he wrote.
Regal had been working as WWE's Director of Talent Development and Head of Global Recruiting, and the main talent scout for the company. He also worked on TV as the NXT General Manager until this past fall. Regal had been with WWE since 2000. His son still wrestles for the NXT UK brand as Charlie Dempsey.
As noted, WWE issued a statement on Wednesday evening and said due to NXT 2.0 changes, several producers, writers and coaches were being released. WWE Hall of Famer "Road Dogg" Brian James was the first name revealed, along with Sarah Cummins, who was working as the Senior Vice President of Consumer Products, as we reported at this link. It was then revealed that Regal, Ryan Katz, Dave Kapoor, Scott Armstrong, George Carroll, and Christopher Guy were released, which we reported on at this link. It was then revealed that Hachiman, Timothy Thatcher, Danny Burch and Cathy Corino were also released, which we noted at this link. It was then revealed on Thursday morning, at this link, that Gabe Sapolsky was released, and revealed later on Thursday night that Samoa Joe was also let go from his behind-the-scenes job on Thursday.
You can click here for a backstage update on the releases and how names from the Triple H-era of NXT were cut, along with WWE's full statement on the departures, and news on how some reacted to the New Year's Evil entrance booked for new NXT Champion Bron Breakker. You can click here for Road Dogg's post-release comments, and click here for what several top stars had to say about Regal's departure. You can also click here for a statement from Katz on his departure, and click here for a statement from Armstrong. You can also click here for a statement from Joe, or click here for backstage notes on Joe's departure.
There is no word yet on what Regal has planned for his pro wrestling future, or what kind of non-compete clause he has with WWE, but we will keep you updated.
Stay tuned for more. You can see Regal's full tweets below:
Thank you to @WWE for a wonderful 21 year run. You gave a lad who was happy and in wonderland wrestling on a carnival have a charmed life for 21 years. No complaints and please no one waste time replying as I won't have a bad work said against the company.x
— William Regal (@RealKingRegal) January 8, 2022
I will add that @WWE saved my life in 1999 when they didn't need to, kept my family fed and took me all around the world. You have my gratitude forever. You allowed me to live a charmed life.
— William Regal (@RealKingRegal) January 8, 2022