10 Hottest Free Agents LEFT In Wrestling Today

1. Samoa Joe

Tessa Blanchard
WWE.com

Right now, Samoa Joe is somebody who could thrive as a top tier attraction for any single pro wrestling company on the planet. Which makes it all the more baffling that WWE opted to release the Samoan Submission Machine as part of their annual post-WrestleMania cuts.

For WWE, they had a special talent on their hands in Joe. This is someone who is believable as all hell, who can work with any style of wrestler, who can be a truly despicable heel or an ass-kicking babyface, who is great on the mic, who elevates everyone he works with, and is a talent and a person held in the highest regard by his peers.

It's still utterly insane to think that WWE chose to release Samoa Joe, but hey, Vince McMahon's loss is the wrestling world's gain. Wherever Joe ends up, he can be a genuine gamechanger.

Should he go to AEW, that's a phenomenal addition to the All Elite locker room. Should he head back to Ring of Honor where it all began, that's a huge shot in the arm for ROH. Should he decide to stop off in the NWA, that's finally a viable contender to dethrone NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis. Should an IMPACT Wrestling return be on the horizon, that's a perfect person to lead IMPACT in its battle against Don Callis and his cronies. Should he take a trip to New Japan Pro Wrestling, that's one stunning attraction for NJPW.

The point is, Samoa Joe is one of the best all-round talents on the planet - and right now, he's unquestionably the hottest free agent in the industry.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.