WWE just took a chainsaw to its developmental system.
What started with Jasper Troy being shown the door on September 4, 2026 quickly turned into a full-blown wave of cuts across NXT, WWE Evolve, LFG and the Performance Center. By the time the dust settled, 10 names were confirmed out — ranging from longtime developmental talent to prospects who barely had time to get started.
The cuts appear to be centered on developmental, with no main roster departures expected as part of this round. But inside NXT’s system, WWE definitely wasn’t messing around. The full list includes Jasper Troy, PJ Vasa, Wendy Choo, Adriana Rizzo, Zena Sterling, Braxton Cole, Anya Rune, Marcus Brown, Ellen Akesson and referee Gary Wilson.
Jasper Troy
Jasper Troy was the first name to drop, and his exit got people paying attention fast. The former WWE Speed Champion signed with the company in 2022 and eventually became one of the more recognizable big men in the developmental system. Troy also won the first season of WWE LFG and had been featured on NXT before disappearing from television.
His last televised NXT match came on June 9 against Dion Lennox. By September, Troy was already dropping clues that something was coming. He wrote about giving everything he had to wrestling, promised he wouldn’t be denied, and then pinned a cryptic “30 Days” message to his Twitter profile before his release became public. That countdown suddenly made a whole lot more sense once WWE started making cuts.
PJ Vasa
PJ Vasa didn’t leave fans guessing. Vasa, whose real name is Penina Tuilaepa, confirmed her own WWE exit on Twitter and thanked the company for giving her a door into professional wrestling. She wrote, “God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good! Fa’afetai I le atua,” before thanking WWE for the journey and saying she was looking forward to “more motion, more blessings, more life.”
Vasa came into WWE after a rugby background and became a familiar face through WWE LFG before getting more work on Evolve. She was still trying to turn that exposure into a permanent NXT spot when WWE ended the run.
Wendy Choo
Wendy Choo was easily one of the most established names caught in this round. Choo had been around WWE developmental for years and somehow survived multiple completely different versions of herself. She first appeared as Mei Ying before transforming into the pajama-wearing Wendy Choo in 2022, complete with pillows, naps and a character built around sleeping basically anywhere.
That gimmick actually got her some major opportunities, including a challenge for Mandy Rose’s NXT Women’s Championship. WWE later took Choo in a much darker direction before shifting her toward Evolve.
She won the Evolve Women’s Championship in April 2026 and held it until Nikkita Lyons defeated her on June 24. WWE was also using Choo on LFG in a player-coach role, giving newer talent somebody with years of Performance Center experience to work with. After all those reinventions, Choo is now officially out.
Adriana Rizzo
Adriana Rizzo’s release hit differently because she had become such a recognizable part of The D’Angelo Family.
Rizzo, whose real name is Anna Keefer, became “Big Rizz” alongside Tony D’Angelo, Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo and Luca Crusifino. She started as part of the group’s backstage business before getting increasingly involved inside the ring. Her run also got derailed by a serious knee injury, forcing her into a lengthy recovery before she finally worked her way back.
Instead of that comeback turning into a fresh singles run, WWE pulled the plug. Rizzo went from fighting her way back into the ring to being back on the market in a matter of weeks.
Zena Sterling
Zena Sterling was still trying to climb the ladder when WWE decided it had seen enough. Sterling had been getting developmental reps through the Performance Center, LFG and Evolve, where WWE was giving her more chances to establish herself in the women’s division.
She was still very much in the “prove yourself” stage of the process and had been trying to build toward a bigger opportunity on NXT. That opportunity never came. Instead, Sterling became another name caught in a round of cuts that clearly wasn’t only targeting veterans who had been sitting around for years.
Braxton Cole
Braxton Cole was another LFG and Evolve prospect whose WWE run ended before he ever made it to a regular NXT role.
Cole, whose real name is Camden Gagnon, entered WWE with a football background and the kind of size that immediately got attention. WWE eventually repackaged him as Braxton Cole and started putting him into more prominent developmental programs. His biggest run came through a rivalry with Harlem Lewis that stretched across LFG and Evolve. Cole also got an Evolve Championship opportunity in a three-way match with Lewis and Aaron Rourke. That looked like WWE was starting to see what it had in him. Apparently, the answer wasn’t enough to keep him around.
Anya Rune
Anya Rune barely got started before WWE pulled the plug. Rune, whose real name is Airica Demia, came through WWE’s February 2026 tryouts and was quickly moved into the developmental pipeline. WWE connected her with the Anya Rune name and started getting her matches on Evolve.
She worked with several other women in the system and was still extremely early into figuring out where she fit. Now she’s gone less than a year after getting her WWE opportunity. That makes Rune one of the clearest examples of how ruthless this round was. Some names had years to prove themselves. She barely got months.
Marcus Brown, Ellen Akesson and Gary Wilson
Then WWE dropped three more names at once. Marcus Brown, Ellen Akesson and referee Gary Wilson were all added to the cuts, pushing the total to 10.
Brown had only recently joined the Performance Center. He came into WWE as a bodybuilder and fitness influencer with no major wrestling background, making him one of the raw athletes the company planned to build from scratch. WWE officially introduced him as part of a new Performance Center class in May 2026. That project lasted only a few months.
Akesson’s stay wasn’t much longer. The Swedish athlete came in with a serious strength-sports background, including powerlifting and world-level arm wrestling. She took part in WWE’s SummerSlam tryouts in 2025 before joining the Performance Center system in 2026. Like Brown, she barely got the chance to get comfortable before WWE moved on.
Wilson was the odd man out because he wasn’t a wrestler at all. Gary Wilson, whose real name is Edwin Franken, had worked as a referee throughout WWE developmental and became a familiar face officiating NXT matches. His inclusion shows this wasn’t simply a talent purge — WWE was cutting deeper into the developmental operation itself.
That brings the full list to 10:
- Jasper Troy
- PJ Vasa
- Wendy Choo
- Adriana Rizzo
- Zena Sterling
- Braxton Cole
- Anya Rune
- Marcus Brown
- Ellen Akesson
- Gary Wilson
This wasn’t one type of WWE cut. That’s what makes it sting. Wendy Choo had years in the system. Jasper Troy had championships and LFG success. Adriana Rizzo had already fought through a major injury. Braxton Cole and Zena Sterling were still trying to break through. Anya Rune, Marcus Brown and Ellen Akesson barely got started. Gary Wilson wasn’t even competing.
WWE basically went top to bottom through developmental and started making decisions. Ten names are already gone, and the biggest question now is whether WWE is finally done making calls — or whether September 4 is about to get even uglier.
What do you make of WWE cutting 10 names from NXT and developmental in one night? Which release surprised you the most, and who do you think will make WWE regret letting them go? Let us know what you think and leave your feedback in the comments.
