Over the weekend, the hot topic in professional wrestling was that The New Day, comprised of longtime WWE superstars, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods (real name Austin Creed) have exited the company. Their exit came after WWE released a list of several other notable names on their roster the week prior.

However, Kingston and Woods departure was reported to not be that they were released. Instead, although they had both signed long-term deals in 2025 set to expire in 2030, TKO, the parent company of WWE, asked the duo to restructure their contacts for a reduced payroll. That move, caused them to bolt from the company where for the last 12 years they were one of the preeminent tag teams on WWE.

Kingston joined WWE in 2006 and Woods joined the promotion four years later in a development deal. They were paired with Big E. in 2014 and formed “power of positivity” which was rejected by the fans which turned them into heels, and later became “The New Day.” Fast-forward to 2022, and after Big E suffered a career-ending neck injury, Woods and Kingston continued as a tag team which saw them go from babyfaces to heels. Kofi Kingston, also won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 36 becoming the first African-born champion in the company history.

Photo: WWE

On Monday, May 4, Kingston and Woods separately took to their social media accounts on Instagram and shared their thoughts, thank you’s, wisdom and more on their exit from the WWE and what the future may hold.

Kofi Kingston expressed, “It’s taken me two full days to respond to all my texts. I hadn’t been on social media until today and I’m overwhelmed by all the messages here too. So much love. So I can’t help but to be filled completely with gratitude… My story has been nothing short of remarkable and I am truly blessed to have had such an illustrious, accolade-laden and, most importantly, fun-filled career. I made my childhood dream become the most wonderful reality.”

Kingston continued, “Throughout this journey, I’m so thankful to have been surrounded by great friends and to have built so many unbreakable connections with people that I’m very proud to call my family. Most people go through life without ever experiencing a love like I have for Woods and E. That bond alone would have made this whole experience worth it. There are far too many people to mention by name here, but to everyone who has ever supported me, guided me, helped me, taught me, cheered for me, praised me, stood up for me, and even rooted against me: Thank you. I appreciate you more than words can say.”

As he concluded his post, Kofi explained, “My main mission has always been a simple one: To provide a comfortable life filled with heartwarming memories for my family. And, largely in part to all of you, I can proudly say that I have achieved that goal and more. This wasn’t supposed to be a novel, so let me wind it down with some advice: Do your best to live a life without regrets, control what you can control, always give it your all, and fight hard for what you believe in. Do not ever compromise or accept less than your due when it comes to your worth. Find the courage to believe in yourself and fearlessly pursue your goals and dreams, because anything is possible. The kid that was too small, short, skinny, and scrawny was never supposed to make it in this land of giants…yet here we are. And so… …as the sun sets on one chapter, so too must it rise in another. Tomorrow is indeed…a New Day.”

Photo: WWE

Xavier Woods shared, “For the past 16 years, WWE has been my home. It’s where I grew up, found myself, failed, learned, and got to live out things the younger version of me could only dream about. When I first walked into FCW, I just wanted a chance to prove I belonged and to bring something different to professional wrestling. That chance became a life full of moments I’ll carry with me forever — WrestleMania, championships, King of the Ring, arenas around the world, and the gift of connecting with all of you by being myself. The New Day gave me a bond with Kofi Kingston and Big E. that I’ll cherish for life. You believed in us, even when our ideas were wild, and because of that, we got to show people that being unapologetically yourself is a strength. UpUpDownDown became another piece of that same mission: a place for joy, friendship, and humanity.”

He continued, “I’m so thankful to everyone, past and present, who helped build it brick by brick. To the locker room, producers, trainers, crew, camera teams, ring crew, everyone behind the scenes, and the props department – thank you. WWE has the most special and hardest working props department that youll ever find. Love you guys and none of this happens without you. And to everyone who has been part of this ride: thank you for believing in me. Thank you for letting me be Xavier Woods. Thank you for giving me the confidence… to walk away as Austin Creed.”

So, are you heartbroken to see the New Day leave WWE? What did you think of their goodbye posts? Do you want to see them land in AEW, TNA, or New Japan? Weigh-in via the comment section.

It’s taken me two full days to respond to all my texts. I hadn’t been on social media until today and I’m overwhelmed by all the messages here too. So much love.

So I can’t help but to be filled completely with gratitude…

My story has been nothing short of remarkable and I am… pic.twitter.com/Tw7ZTpg9Q3

— Kofi Kingston (@TrueKofi) May 4, 2026

It’s taken me two full days to respond to all my texts. I hadn’t been on social media until today and I’m overwhelmed by all the messages here too. So much love.

So I can’t help but to be filled completely with gratitude…

My story has been nothing short of remarkable and I am… pic.twitter.com/Tw7ZTpg9Q3

— Kofi Kingston (@TrueKofi) May 4, 2026

WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus has had an incredible in-ring career, on and off for over 25 years. Having debuted as a heel back in 2000, she held the then WWE Women’s Championship for a record 445 days back in 2005 and into 2006, before dropping the title to her nemesis, Mickie James at WrestleMania 22, and is considered one of the best to ever to it by many in the women’s locker room, then and now. When it was her turn to be inducted into the Hall of Fame Class of 2013, she chose Stephanie McMahon (this year’s Hall of Fame class 2026) to do the honors at the ceremony.

Fast forward and April’s WrestleMania 42 week in Las Vegas, Michael Fairman TV had a reunion with Trish for this very special interview. For when Trish started in the WWE, Fairman was working as a writer/producer for ‘Raw’ and ‘SmackDown’ and as told in their discussion, recalled how he worked with an upstart Stratus to help her learn her lines for her promos and more. Now two and half decades later, we caught up at Trish’s WrestleMania 42 pop up at Flankers at Mandalay Bay entitled First Crush by Trish Stratus. Trish had created an immersive experience for wrestling fans, Trish fans, and offered on stage Q&A’s with special guests and much more.

Backstage, she sat down with us to take a trip down memory lane, share her picks for WrestleMania 42 in the top women’s bouts (see if she predicted, correctly!) and talked some of her greatest moments. opponents. and friendships in the ring and out, plus what keeps getting her to come back when she has already accomplished so much in her iconic career.

Photo: WWE

TO SINK OR SWIM IN THE WWE

Trish shared on being a rookie in WWE with little to no experience, explaining, “I was thrown right into it. I was a fan of wrestling, watching it, enjoying it. Started to dabble into fitness modeling. So suddenly, I was kind of a public figure all of a sudden. Modeling is very different than actually speaking. They (WWE) literally threw me into the water and it was like sink or swim. The wrestling was one thing and they threw me out there for my first couple matches. Most people come up in the independent wrestling circuits. I had done some wrestling, but it was foundational kind of stuff. It wasn’t like performance yet and they gave me my first promo and I was the green one.

In the world of pro wrestling its all about getting the moment to prove yourself and making something out of it, Trish did just that when she became the beautiful manager/wrestler of the late Test and Albert, and suddenly they were known as .. yup … you remember … ‘T and A.”

BAD GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE FUN

Photo; WWE

Stratus recalled, “I was sitting backstage waiting for them to find the storyline. I remember just chilling actually with Lilian Garcia (then the ring announcer.) We bonded right away. She was my little bestie. I was on the road for a couple weeks in a row and, and then finally they came to me like, ‘Today’s the day. … we’re putting you out there.’ So, there I was with Test and Albert, otherwise known as T-and-A … get it! Those were the days of the double entendres. We were told we were bad guys, and we had to flesh out our characters.   had to get people to boo me right off the bat.”

“I love being a heel” Stratus said passionately. However, when she comes out of retirement or makes special appearances, or comes back for a lengthy storyline she prefaces it with, “The thing for me to come back to the business for a little while means leaving my kids. I have to make sure that it checks all the boxes, right? I want be challenged as a performer, number one. I want to make sure I’m coming back and giving back to the businesses. Not just being self-serving.  So, when I can check those boxes, it’s exciting, and makes it fun to come back.”

BECKY LYNCH AND MICKIE JAMES

Photo: WWE

Trish revealed her favorite WrestleMania moments through the years and her perfect opponents; the women she feels she created magic with in the ring. “When I returned in 2023, we had done the babyface come back. I’ve come back and they’re cheered me and they’re excited to see me. Nobody expected that, and that’s what I love doing. I love the unexpected. I was working with Becky Lynch.  I knew she was the perfect babyface to be a bitch to and to turn on; bringing in the bestie so that I could turn on her with all those years of history, that’s juicy to me. I love it.”

As to her WrestleMania match resume, it was an easy pick fo Stratus, “I’m going to do with Mickie James WrestleMania 22. We like to call us the hashtag ‘longest rivalry in history.’ Becky Lynch and I might have rivaled that rivalry just because we did have a lot. But, I’m all about the stories, and to make sure there’s a meaning behind it. I want to foreshadow a little. I want to understand what my character’s thinking when I go into this. We had the fans captivated. I think at WrestleMania 22, with the way the crowd reacted and the way they were so invested in our storyline, I feel like we got them.”

Proud of what she and Mickie accomplished, Trish added, “They were like, ‘the women can hold a crowd, like the men can.’ I think that was like the moment we kind of had arrived. I have to say the Jazz/Trish stuff, the Victoria/Trish stuff, this is all stuff that planted the seeds. Mickie James and I, right there at WrestleMania, and we’re talking about a WrestleMania moment. I’m also going to give a shout out to WrestleMania 19 with Jazz and Victoria and Steven Richards … who took the best Stratusfaction I’ve ever seen!”

THE STACKED WWE CURRENT WOMEN’S ROSTER

Photo: WWE

While WrestleMania 42 is in the record books, we asked the Hall of Famer, her picks for the key women’s championship title match-upsbetween: Stephanie Vaquer vs. Liv Morgan, AJ Lee vs. Becky Lee, and Jade Cargill vs. Rhea Ripley as you will see below in our video chat.

Trish went three for three and had nothing but high praise for all six of the women who laid it all on the line less than two weeks ago at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Now below, watch this exclusive conversation with Trish Stratus. For more WrestleMania 42 week interviews, make sure to check them out on You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel.

Let us know, have you been a fan of Trish through her years in the WWE? Do you agree with her favorite WrestleMania moment with Mickie James? What has been your favorite match and story in Trish’s in-ring career? Share your thoughts via the comment section.

When AJ Lee stepped back into a WWE ring after ten years over eight months ago, it was earth-shattering pro wrestling and pop culture news. The pop she received in Chicago, where she resides with her husband and hometown hero, WWE superstar, CM Punk, was deafening inside the United Center back on the September 5 episode of SmackDown.

Fast-forward to a week and a half ago and on April 18, Lee was featured in a rematch with Becky Lynch for the WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 42 from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Now, on Tuesday, April 28, AJ took to her Instagram and reflected on returning to WrestleMania after 11 years, working with Lynch, and being in the Women’s locker room again with so many WWE superstars. Lee’s message seemed to indicate that she is taking a hiatus and would be off television and WWE programming.

Photo: WWE

Lee (who is also know as AJ Mendez) is also a mental health advocate, openly discussed her battles with bipolar disorder, depression and even an event where she considered taking her own life, when she appeared on an important episode of Maurice Benard’s (Sonny Corinthos, General Hospital) You Tube series, State of Mind, back in 2021. AJ continues to spread the word about taking care of oneself and your inner being. She has written a book entitled, Crazy Is My Superpower to help others.

AJ LEE REFLECTIONS ON HER RETURN

In her look-back at the last 8 months and appearing at WrestleMania 42, Lee shared, “Allow me to be sappy and then forget this ever happened. Rebecca, you’re selfless, hilarious, and pure joy to spar with. Thank you for keeping me safe and making me better. Jess, thank you for being a true partner in our matches and always calming my anxiety. Carla and Aoife, I fell in love with wrestling again by seeing it through your eyes. I’m so proud to be a teeny part of your journey. You’re way cooler and more talented than I ever was. But I still have to kick your asses one day. Pam, you’re the undisputed GOAT. Thank you for going out of your way to help me train, to make every show so f’ing fun, and for healing my jaded heart. To all the women in the locker room, I admire and respect you so damn much. You are my wildest dreams for women’s wrestling come true. Thank you for making me feel so welcome and supported and dealing with my obnoxiously loud laugh.”

AJ LEE LIGHTS IT UP ACCOMPANIED BY LITTLE AJ’S AT WRESTLEMANIA

Photo: WWE

For those who were lucky enough to be at WrestleMania 42, Lee’s entrance was one of the most memorable of the weekend, when she appeared along with a bunch of little girls all dressed just like her!

As she signed off for now, AJ ended her post with “To my AJ Leegion, my mania entrance was a love letter to you, and to every girl who will become her own superhero. Thank you for supporting me for two decades, selling out my merchandise, giving me record-setting views, and making Converse a small fortune with your AJ cosplay. Your passion kept me coming back. Stay weird, see you soon.”

Now below, check out AJ Lee’s entrance from WrestleMania 42, her episode of State of Mind, and then let us know via the comment section, have you loved seeing AJ back in the WWE? Hope he returns in the near future? Let us know!

 

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