Right after WrestleMania 39, reports started to circulate revealing NXT's Rip Fowler and Jagger Reid, formerly known as The Grizzled Young Veterans, had asked to be released. However, WWE seemingly denied that request as not only have Reid and Fowler remained on the roster, but they have been used on TV and wrestled matches. They even won a losers leave NXT match against The Creed Brothers. An odd choice considering they had previously asked to leave the company and their contracts were reported to be running out very soon.
The Dyad Has Finally Been Allowed To Leave
The rough date given for their contract expirations was October, but it seems Reid and Fowler have been let go early. Either that or the reported end date of their deals was slightly out. Dave Meltzer confirmed on Wrestling Observer Radio (via WrestlingNews.co) that the team known as The Dyad since their name change is no longer with WWE.
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"Rip Fowler and Jagger Reid are gone. Their contract is up, and I thought there was going to be some kind of angle or something, but it’s just, they’re gone," Meltzer said on WOR. It is strange that the team is now gone without any sort of storyline to write them off TV. WWE has continued to use them on an almost weekly basis since they requested their release, even putting them in Tag Title matches and keeping them a part of The Schism, a faction led by Joe Gacy and featuring The Rock's daughter, Ava Raine.
What's Next For The Grizzled Young Veterans?
Reid and Fowler naturally haven't had the chance to speak about why they want out of WWE, but we may well hear from them now they are no longer employed by the company. My hunch is they much preferred the work they did as Zack Gibson and James Drake, becoming a top team in NXT UK and then making the move to the US NXT roster. Making them Gacy's followers was a pretty sharp left turn. So much so that if someone who hadn't seen them for a while tuned in recently, I wouldn't be surprised to hear that someone say they didn't recognize them.
What their next move will be will also be very interesting. AEW prides itself on its tag division, and while some people might have forgotten how good they are after a stretch without them being Grizzled Young Veterans, Fowler and Jagger are pretty damn good. They may well have to sit out non-compete clauses too although again, that is currently unclear. If they do, hopefully it'll just be 30 days which is usually the standard in NXT.
