It’s a New Day for New Day members Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods. It was reported yesterday that WWE released JC Mateo, Tonga Loa, and 13-time Tag Team Champions, The New Day. This marks the end of Kofi Kingston’s 20-year run and Xavier Woods’ 15-year career with the company. The New Day’s release was shocking as the duo signed a multi-year contract last year. However, TKO attempted to restructure the team’s contracts, leading all parties to agree to part ways. Now, rumors are rampant that New Day is going to AEW.
Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods Gone from WWE
While The New Day have been tight-lipped about their WWE departure, a lot of reports are coming out about why they decided to leave the company. TKO wants WWE to be a younger product, which is why many of the releases were veteran Superstars.
That said, New Day has notoriously been WWE’s top merchandise seller. Last year, TKO locked Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods into seven-figure deals that would last into 2030.
Financial outlets report that TKO is in serious debt from the UFC-WWE merger and is looking to recoup costs. While TKO didn’t want to pay the initial deal to The New Day, the company still saw value in keeping the veteran Tag Team around.
However, the conglomerate’s proposed deal was seen as an insult by the creators of Booty-Os. As a result, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods requested their WWE release. TKO granted the stars their wishes, and they will enter a 90-day non-compete clause.
Reports: Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods Going to AEW
AEW is typically heavily criticized for signing recently released WWE talent. However, it seems like the wrestling world is in a collective agreement that The New Day going to AEW is good for business.
AEW’s Tag Team scene has always been burgeoning, and it seems to be on the cusp of heading to the next level. There were reports that AEW was interested in bringing in the Motor City Machine Guns, two of the many veterans a part of last week’s WWE releases. Now, The New Day are reportedly going to AEW when their non-compete is up.
AEW Superstars React to New Day Coming to AEW
For almost two decades, fans have clamored to see The Elite clash with The New Day. It’s only gone down once, and it was during a rousing game of Street Fighter V at E3 2018. Now, it looks like The Young Bucks and New Day are going to take it from the screen to the ring.
The Young Bucks were the first AEW Superstars to react to The New Day’s release. As soon as news hit the net, Matt and Nick Jackson retweeted their original AEW announcement post from 2019 with the caption:
“Let’s change the world.”
MJF even chimed in with an IG story:
With Bobby Lashley and Shetlon Benjamin recently returning to AEW, as well as Cope and Christian reuniting, it looks like the AEW Tag Team Title scene is about to enter a renaissance.
Big E Reacts to New Day Leaving WWE
While Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston have exited WWE, there is still one New Day member left. Although he is retired, Big E has become an analyst for many WWE shows. The former WWE Champion didn’t release a statement about The New Day’s departure.
However, Big E did share a very sad cartoon posted by The New Day’s costume designer:
Just one week after the shocking firing of Kairi Sane, the WWE Universe is left stinging once again. It’ll be interesting to see if the crowd takes over Raw with “New Day Rocks!” chants on Monday.
New Day Wasn’t Used at WrestleMania 42
That said, many look at this as a positive for the veteran team. Although they had lucrative contracts, they weren’t being used to their fullest potential.
In fact, many criticized WWE for not following up on their heel turn and incorporating Big E into their storyline. Over the past few months, The New Day has been grooming Grayson Waller to join their group. Things aren’t looking up for the former Aussie Superstar, as he was jobbed out quickly to Oba Femi this past week.
Xavier Woods has been absent from television for months, with Danhausen petitioning to become the newest member instead. The group had no storyline leading into WrestleMania.
At an event where Kofi Kingston won the WWE Championship, The New Day weren’t even featured at WrestleMania 42. It was a big fall for a team that was once the hosts of the Showcase of the Immortals.