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Kofi Kingston And Xavier Woods Drop WWE Names Following Sudden Departure

By Monika Thapa • Published May 12, 2026 06:14 EDT
the new day wwe kofi kingston xavier woods
The New Day's Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston backstage - Source: WWE.com

Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods, collectively known as The New Day in WWE, suddenly departed from the Stamford-based promotion earlier this month on May 2, 2026. The duo was one of the most decorated tag teams in the company’s history.

According to reports, they were asked to take a significant pay cut by TKO despite having signed a five-year extension deal in 2025 that was meant to run through 2030. Instead of restructuring their deals at a lower rate, Kingston and Woods decided to part ways, as the new terms were unfavorable to them.

According to WWE’s standard exit procedure, both Kingston and Woods are currently under a 90-day non-compete clause, which will make them free agents in early 2026. This means they cannot join another wrestling promotion during this period.

However, for the first time after being released from WWE, Kingston and Woods have been advertised for an event: GalaxyCon Oklahoma City. Since the names Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods are WWE-trademarked, they are being promoted as “Kofi” and “Austin Creed” for the upcoming event on May 23-24.

Eric Bischoff Comments On Kofi Kingston And Xavier Woods’ WWE Departure

The New Day’s departure from WWE was one of the most shocking exits in the recent wave of roster cuts. Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods had been loyal to WWE for a long time. However, according to Eric Bischoff, he saw the New Day’s release as something that had been a long time coming.

Speaking on his 83 Weeks podcast, the WWE veteran stated that Kingston and Woods, as a tag team, were no longer as profitable for WWE and TKO from a financial standpoint.

Essentially, tag teams often require double the resources, meaning more money and production costs compared to a single wrestler. Bischoff acknowledged that Kingston and Woods had been loyal to WWE for a long time, but also highlighted that loyalty to a company does not guarantee long-term job security.

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