Impact EVP Scott D'Amore hinted at the imminent arrival of one released WWE Superstar and overtly mentioned another by their full name.
We are coming off the back of what might have been the biggest weekend of the year so far for returns. CM Punk on Rampage, and then Becky Lynch and Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam. Odds are the returns are going to keep on coming. WWE has released a lot of wrestlers this year, and many of them will be finishing up with their non-competes in the coming weeks.
Non-Competes Are About To Come To An End
One of the most notable dates of all coming up is August 31. A lot of wrestlers previously employed by WWE will be allowed to appear and wrestle elsewhere from that day onwards. Ruby Riott, who will be known as Ruby Soho going forward and is rumored to be headed to AEW, to name one.
Judging by a clip posted on Jade Chung's Twitch, wrestling fans can expect a couple more former WWE Superstars to show up elsewhere very soon. Not in AEW, but on Impact Wrestling. The clip kicks off with Impact EVP Scott D'Amore leaning in and telling fans to tune in to Impact this Thursday when Buddy Murphy debuts. Possibly a joke, but interesting if not as Murphy, who now goes by Buddy Matthews, is assumed to be tied to a non-compete until August 31 like Soho.
Braun For Glory
The bigger and less overt tease comes later in the clip, again courtesy of D'Amore. The EVP refers to Impact's upcoming PPV Bound for Glory as Braun for Glory, obviously hinting that Braun Strowman might well be in attendance. Bound for Glory is one of Impact's biggest events of the year. Since it won't be taking place until October 23, Strowman's non-compete clause with WWE will have long since expired if he does want to show up.
Strowman has gone on record in the past as not wanting to wrestle anywhere outside of WWE. Things have obviously changed a lot since he said that and if he wants to keep wrestling, he will have to do it elsewhere for the time being. As for Murphy, he has already started to tease what's next. The former Cruiserweight Champion posted a teaser on Twitter showing himself breaking out of prison. A common theme for wrestlers who have left WWE.