There were few releases more surprising and sudden than that of Justin Roberts. On October 13th, immediately following an episode of Raw, it was announced that Justin Roberts had been relieved of his duties as Raw Ring Announcer after 12 years with the company. It was as shocking as it was sudden. The WWE apparently decided not to renew his contract, which is strange seeing as he was a staple with them for much of the 2000s, and was only 34 years old, which meant he obviously had several years worth of announcing left in his body. It was rumored that he may have had an issue with Michael Cole, but the more likely explanation is that the WWE just wanted to head in a new direction and save a few bucks. Though it may seem inconsequential, Justin Roberts being ushered out is fairly significant. Not having him does in fact fundamentally change the way that Raw has sounded for the last 5 years. Lillian Garcia took over his duties as Raw Ring Announcer (a position Roberts took over from her when she departed the company in 2009) and Eden Stiles took over Lillians old role as Smackdown Ring Announcer. Its cool to have two ladies in such prominent roles on both shows, but that doesnt change the abrupt and unpredictable way Justin Roberts departed from the WWE, which is why his release is on this list.
Matthew J. Douglas is an emerging screenwriter born in Toronto. A lifelong fascination with what makes a compelling story and the Toni Morrison quote "If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it." led the often opinionated Matthew to the life of writer. Matthew is also a lifelong WWE fan, and a self diagnosed Reality TV Junkie.
