Eric Young On WWE Exit And Vince McMahon- “Morally, I Just Couldn’t Work There Anymore”
Eric Young opened up about his decision to leave WWE just months after re-signing with the company.
Late last year, it was reported that Eric Young was on his way back to WWE after finishing up his contract with IMPACT Wrestling. It later emerged that he had signed a deal in November, but remained on IMPACT television until his final pre-taped appearance on December 1st.
However, plans for him to be featured as part of Bray Wyatt’s stable never came to pass, and he reportedly asked for his release back in April after it was announced that Vince McMahon would be back in control as WWE prepared to merge with UFC under parent company Endeavor. His release was granted, and he returned to IMPACT at Slammiversary after his non-compete clause expired.
Speaking in a new interview with Mike Johnson of PWInsider, Eric Young opened up about his decision to leave WWE, saying he morally couldn’t work for the company under the changing conditions and that he doesn’t regret what happened.
“The [Tweet] with me in front of the laptop with the keyboard is definitely a side project that I’m working on. The thing with Anthem is the truth be told, is I, I’ve never not worked for Anthem since leaving Impact. I’ve been appearing one twice or sometimes four times a week on Game Plus Network for the last three years, so I was still linked to them when I was under contract at the other place…
“I signed up for one thing and it turned into something completely different, and personally, professionally, and more importantly for me, morally, I just couldn’t work there anymore. If you’re a wrestling fan, you know what’s going on, and I know that you’re a smart guy, Mike, and you’re well aware of what I’m saying and what’s going on.
“It was not, uh, a super difficult choice for me to be honest. I know it was a dream come true, going back, for sure. The contract was fantastic and all this other stuff and what I was poised to do on the TV show was excellent, but in the end, I would’ve had to answer to somebody that I’m just not willing to do. That’s where we ended up now.
“Like I said earlier, I’m a believer in fate and everything happens for a reason, and I’m not mad about it. I’m not bitter about it, just like I wasn’t last time. Obviously it was, it’s a massive mistake on one person’s part, but a huge gain for wrestling.”
Continuing, Eric Young said he’s looking forward to his future outside of WWE and made it clear that professional wrestling will always be his greatest passion.
“I’m still very good at this and, and it’s something that I’m very passionate about. Something that I work myself to the bone trying to, to make the best possible outcome of each thing that I’m handed to do. So, I’m excited for the future, and I’m always working on other stuff.
“The reality is, wrestling, you can’t do it forever. I’ve got tons of other interests outside of wrestling, but wrestling is my first love. It will always be one of my biggest passions in my life and I think it’s the perfect creative medium for anybody that loves sport and loves cinema, and those are the two things that I love most in the world.”