First we had a wave of injuries. Are we about to have a wave of retirement announcements?
Ryan Satin at Pro Wrestling Sheet is reporting that Wade/Bad News/King Barrett will not re-sign with WWE when his current deal expires, putting his exit from the company in either June or July of 2016. He will still be under a Legends contract, meaning his name and likeness are still WWE's to use for video and digital product offerings.
If true - and it should be stressed that neither Barrett (real name Stu Bennett) or WWE has said anything on the subject - he'll be following fellow original Nexus member Daniel Bryan and likely preceeding Brie Bella out of the company. Mark Henry had also announced intentions to retire this year, and rumors of Undertaker hanging up the boots come after every WrestleMania.
Barrett's career with WWE has been a series of near misses since he debuted during the original season of the old faux-reality competition version of NXT. Though he was the front person for Nexus and the focal point of a long rivalry against John Cena, he never won the top belt in that program and struggled to regain position as a main eventer after that.
He was seemed close to a breakout when his Bad News gimmick was launched on television, but an injury derailed that push. He's been languishing as a member of League of Nations while reportedly nursing another health issue for the last several months.
We'll update you with confirmation as we have it, and wish Barrett the best in whatever comes next.