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As we (almost) predicted, Andrade was not selected in the WWE Draft. He was then one of two Superstars - along with Mickie James - not assigned to either Raw or SmackDown via “free agency” after the Draft.
It’s a remarkable fall for the former NXT & United States champion. He & his then-business associate Zelina Vega went to Raw in the first round of the 2019 Draft. His former tag partner Angel Garza was Raw’s 12th pick on Friday.
Fans were already wonder what was going before Andrade sent this (since deleted*) on Tuesday morning...
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Thank you/ Gracias
— “EL IDOLO” ANDRADE (@AndradeCienWWE) October 13, 2020
The easy conclusion to jump to is that he’s leaving WWE. It’s probably what the third-generation wrestler wants us to think*. I’m not sure that’s realistic though. We haven’t heard anything his contract being up. Andrade reportedly signed a developmental deal in 2015, and presumably would have inked a new contract when he was moved to the main roster in 2018. If that was a standard length, he probably couldn’t get free until after next year’s WrestleMania at the earliest.
What we have heard is that his stock fell when Paul Heyman lost his job backstage at Raw. And what we’ve seen on-screen backs that up, including last night’s loss to Garza.
Is this all part of repackaging? Or is he working on gaining his release?
Settle down, says fiancée Charlotte Flair, in an also-now-deleted tweet (and I didn’t screen shot this one first):
1. He was thanking Zelina. Y’all wild.
— Charlotte Flair (@MsCharlotteWWE) October 13, 2020
2. That said, papi will need a new manager..
Vega was “signed” by SmackDown last night, and it’s believed that WWE will put Andrade on Raw, with his future wife. In the new brand split era, they’ve worked to keep couples on the same shows whenever possible. Thanking Zelina makes sense.
While it’s easy to think Andrade might be frustrated, what wouldn’t make sense is Vince McMahon letting the handsome 30 year old walk - even if he doesn’t think highly of him. The former La Sombra would have no trouble getting work with AEW, New Japan, Impact, Ring of Honor, AAA, or his old CMLL stomping grounds.
But we’ll take Mamí’s word for it. Andrade’s not going anywhere. We’ll see if he’s soon escorted to the ring by his Queen, though.
He did say he was open to an on-screen pairing with Charlotte...
* Charlotte’s clarification followed by his deleting the tweet would indicate that wasn’t what he wanted us to think. She needs to talk to him about how much we English-speaking fans will read into anything.