WWE News: Three Huge ROH Names Reportedly Leaving Company Soon

2017 has been a very chaotic year concerning wrestlers jumping to other major promotions. The battle for top talent between WWE/NXT, Ring of Honor, and Impact Wrestling appears to be feverish, with many talents making surprise appearances for the rival promotion. As widely known, the most pleasant shocker was the appearance of Matt and Jeff Hardy at Manhattan Mayhem to continue their Expedition of Gold. The Hardys would win the ROH World Tag Team Championship from the Young Bucks and confirm that they will be with the company for the time being.

However, as reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the Broken Brilliance of the Hardys will not last long in ROH. In fact, the plan is for the Hardys to depart the company after their scheduled match at the Supercard of Honor on April 1.

Other talents are in the process of leaving the company as well. However, when ROH caught wind of talent tampering with their contracts by speaking to representatives in the WWE, legal action was administered and talks had to be halted. Recently, names such as Lio Rush, Donovan Dijak, and Kyle O’Reilly all have departed from ROH. Roderick Strong made his NXT debut, while Bobby Fish has recently announced that he is opening up his schedule for independent bookings.

Another ROH loyal looks to be another person who is on the outs. Former three-time Ring of Honor World Champion Adam Cole is reportedly the next person heading out of the company, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

“Adam Cole dropped his ROH title to Christopher Daniels in the main event of the 3/10 PPV show in Las Vegas. The next day, he was kicked out of the Bullet Club. His contract expires on 5/1. It’s well known WWE has been after him for some time to be a star on the NXT brand. It’s possible he could do a New Japan/ROH deal or go to WWE. Certainly the ROH booking feels like they are not planning on him to be a key player much longer.”

Cole has been in talks to depart WWE for quite some time but has remained with the company despite numerous reports. As a result of Cole’s loyalty, he became the first ever three-time ROH World Champion by defeating Kyle O’Reilly at the Wrestle Kingdom 11 event. As mentioned, Cole would lose the championship to Christopher Daniels at the ROH 15th Anniversary pay-per-view, and get kicked out of Bullet Club shortly after.

This omen was similar to what happened with AJ Styles before he appeared in the WWE. At Wrestle Kingdom 10, Styles had a hard-fought match against Shinsuke Nakamura for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship but failed to leave the match victorious. This caused dissension in the Bullet Club, which he was kicked out of shortly after in order for Kenny Omega to assume the leadership position. Styles would debut in the WWE weeks later as a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble match.

For Cole, his time in ROH seems to be coming to a close. Perhaps the last effort of keeping him in the company was for him to have a leadership role in the Bullet Club. However, with Cody Rhodes as a member, the role looks to be usurped by the American Nightmare.

If an NXT appearance is indeed on the horizon for Adam Cole, it would be a very good addition to the roster. It would be very interesting to see how Cole would be inserted in the mix, seeing how Bobby Role in currently the top heel of the company. With names such as Kassius Ohno and Roderick Strong now on the roster, old rivalries can be revived for Cole.

[Featured Image by Ring of Honor]