Top 5 Wrestling News Stories Of The Week 10/28: Rhea Ripley Pulled From WWE Shows, Major AEW Stars Going On Hiatus & More
Each and every week, the weird and wonderful world of professional wrestling never fails to captivate fans with a plethora of captivating stories that make their way into the news cycle.
Whether it’s shocking upsets, dramatic showdowns, or behind-the-scenes drama, the happenings within professional wrestling always keep fans on the edge of their seats.
Here are the Top Five Wrestling News Stories of the Week.
Goldberg Sets Countdown For WWE Retirement
Goldberg Hanging Up His Boots In 2025
Appearing on the SEC Network, Goldberg confirmed he will have his retirement match in 2025 in WWE.
“The news of the day is, per three executives, Nick Khan, Chris Lengentil, and Paul Levesque, in 2025, Goldberg’s having his retirement match!”
The former WCW World Champion indicated that his opponent or “victim” would be Gunther but that remains to be confirmed.
“I think we know who the subject, or the victim probably, the frontrunner right now, we know who it is,” Goldberg said. “But in 2025, Goldberg makes his return in a retirement match. I got a couple of months to get ready. No date, no time.”
Major AEW Stars Taking Indefinite Hiatus
The Young Bucks Taking Break From AEW
The Jackson brothers lost the Tag Team Championships to Private Party. Following the loss the Bucks were seen leaving the arena noting that the working environment was too chaotic and they’d be working from home. With the Jacksons gone, Jon Moxley and the BCC attacked Brandon Cutler, with Claudio Castagnoli smashing his hand with a hammer.
Reporting in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, reiterated an earlier update noting that Nick Jackson had been dealing with a shoulder injury, before confirming that the brothers would be taking a break.
Although The Bucks are set to feature Wrestle Dynasty in Japan in January, there is no schedule for a return to AEW television. Their opponent for the AEW/NJPW cross-promotional show is yet to be confirmed.
WWE Releases Indi Hartwell, Tegan Nox and Baron Corbin
Baron Corbin announced his time with WWE has come to an end while Tegan Nox & Indi Hartwell have been released.
It has been reported by Fightful Select that Corbin’s WWE contract was set to expire soon and he would not be offered a new deal.
In addition to Corbin, WWE has also released Indi Hartwell and Tegan Nox. Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful reports that both women will be free agents in 90 days, which is the norm for main roster superstars when they are released.
As of this writing, it is being reported that just Corbin, Hartwell and Nox are leaving the company. According to PWInsider, there will not be other releases at this time.
WWE Unimpressed By Samantha Irvin Following Exit
Samantha Irvin’s departure from WWE has caused a stir.
After four years with WWE, Samantha Irvin announced she was leaving the company in the hours leading up to the October 21st episode of Raw. The star has become beloved by fans, with her tearful confirmation of Cody Rhodes’ WrestleMania World Title win set to become the stuff of legend.
Following her departure, Irvin has regularly gone back and forth with fans on social media, repeatedly dismissing rumours about her future. Mainly that she won’t be joining her partner Ricochet in AEW.
In one exchange, she revealed that she never actually liked announcing and wanted to be a manager, but WWE never saw her moving into that role. Despite this and comments from some users that this was some kind of slight towards the company, Irvin reiterated that she loved her time with WWE.
In another post responding to yet more criticism, she wrote:
“I am so glad I don’t have a boss anymore so I can say this. Shut the f*** upppppp. Woohoo feels great.”
Writing in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer commented that while WWE respected Irvin’s decision to leave, some backstage weren’t happy about her punchy responses to fans online.
From someone in WWE, they said that Cargill got the same hate from AEW fans when leaving but didn’t react because WWE doesn’t allow talent to respond to fans in that realm. If they do, most f the time they’ll be told to take it down.
The person said that many in WWE respected her decision to leave, but after those posts were not happy about that aspect but because she was gone they couldn’t force her to take it down…
As noted WWE does not allow people to answer fans in that way.
Rhea Ripley Pulled From WWE Show
Rhea Ripley’s injury has already forced WWE to make changes.
On October 30th it was announced that Rhea Ripley would be out of action for an “undisclosed period” after suffering a fractured right orbital socket. The announcement came after Ripley appeared on the October 29th episode of NXT where she was seen meeting with Zaria, Giulia, Stephanie Vaquer, Jordynne Grace, and Kelani Jordan.
However, as she left the Performance Center, Ripley was left a bloody mess in the parking lot. Although the attack wasn’t captured on camera, Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez were seen walking away with a baseball bat.
Fans initially wondered whether the injury was just part of her ongoing storyline, but it was quickly reported that sadly, it’s very real. As a result, WWE has already been making creative changes.
According to a new report from Mike Johnson of PWInsider, the segment involving Ripley was a late addition to NXT. This was likely done so the star wouldn’t have to fly to film an angle to explain her injury. The report explained that the former champion suffered the injury during a headbutt spot on the October 21st edition of Raw.
Johnson added that Ripley has now been pulled from the upcoming episode of Raw set to be taped in Saudi Arabia during Crown Jewel weekend.