Former WWE World champ and current wrestling free agent Jack Swagger was a recent guest on the Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling podcast. As you can hear in the above clip from the show, he spent a fair amount of time talking about what contributed to his exit from the company.
What stood out is his discussion of how leaving plays into his plans for the future:
...after ten years with the company, I needed a change and like I said earlier I need to journey out and become the best professional wrestler I can but also I needed a change to make them miss me and want me back. I need to make them want me and the main thing is they were not growing my brand anymore. Bottom line.
It happens and you can get angry about it but it is all business and it is all dollars. I was angry for a long time but once this all came down and I looked at it as a business decision so I understood their side, understood my side and we left on good terms and it is just something we had to do. I look forward to getting out there and showing everyone ALL of the Jack Swagger brand not just what they wanted to show you guys.
It’s a case which has been made before, most notably by Ryback (who’s gone on to make himself one of the more quoteable guys in the business). It make a lot of sense for independent contractors, too. With few exceptions, WWE is focused on promoting WWE more than they players who make up their wrestling product.
The strategy also worked to great effect for performers like Jinder Mahal and Drew McIntyre, who’ve returned to WWE over the past year and ended up in a much better position than when they were released as comedy jobbers back in 2014.
Will it work out the same way for Swagger?
We’ll find out, but in the meantime, give us your guesses below.
And check out the whole podcast here, where Jack talks about learning from Dutch Mantell, how WWE moving him away from Mantell’s Zeb Colter factored into his decision to leave and more.