Backstage Reaction To Ruby Riott & Buddy Murphy's WWE Releases

Buddy Murphy and Ruby Riott were amongst the wrestlers released by WWE yesterday, as the promotion moved into its third month of heavy roster cuts by shedding six wrestlers from Raw, SmackDown, and NXT.

Per Fightful Select, Riott's departure had a particularly notable impact on the WWE roster. The outlet states that the former Heidi Lovelace was a universally popular figure in the locker-room, with her release shaking the people they spoke to more than others. In particular, Riott's worth ethic was frequently commended.

This sentiment appears to be shared by Bayley, who tweeted the following on Wednesday night:-

Dori got all the dog Moms roses on Mother’s Day, sent me flowers when my grandma passed away, organized locker room birthday parties, sent a gift to Chelsea from all of us when she got hurt, made Jess a video to tell her we miss her AND is one of the greatest wrestlers out there.

— Bayley (@itsBayleyWWE) June 2, 2021

Riott's WWE tag partner, Liv Morgan, added the following:-

Whoever is lucky enough to get Heidi Lovelace on their roster, you win.

— LIV Morgan (@YaOnlyLivvOnce) June 2, 2021

As far as Murphy goes, Fightful notes that while the Australian had recently been the subject of pitches that would have seen him reunite with former partner Wesley Blake, these were rejected. Murphy wasn't on WWE's creative horizon at the time of his release, though he was easy to work with.

Murphy has issued the following statement on his departure:-

So Today ends my 8 years with WWE! What a crazy ride! Highest of Highs, Lowest of Lows, but weather I had 3 minutes or 20 minutes I put all my effort into my performances! Nothing is harder when all you want to do is wrestle but you can’t! In my opinion I haven’t even hit my peak

— Buddy Murphy (@WWE_Murphy) June 2, 2021

If the released wrestlers are bound to standard WWE 90-day non-compete clauses, they will be free to sign with another promotion from 31 August.