In the latest edition of The Wrestling Observer, Dave Meltzer notes that according to multiple sources, WWE Hall of Famer Jesse “The Body” Ventura reportedly been quietly let go from WWE. The company brought back a year ago to be part of the Saturday Night’s Main Event broadcasts. It is believed that Ventura had only signed a one-year deal with WWE and was scheduled to part of all four of the SNME specials in 2025.
Meltzer also indicated that WWE soured on using him going forward after comments he made during commentary on back on the May 24 edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event. Ventura was verbal during the live broadcast as it pertained to the finish of the cage match between Damian Priest and Drew McIntyre, with Priest escaping through the cage door to get the victory. Venture was heard saying, “Wait a minute, what kind of BS is that?”, as he went on to state in what is described as an over the top derogatory tone noting one must escape over the top of the cage to win.
Ventura’s comments were edited out of WWE’s official highlight video of the match when it was later uploaded to YouTube.
Meltzer, calling the Priest/McIntyre bout a ‘cage match fiasco performance’, said the following:
“I don’t know that factually and in checking, the only thing we got was that it was not a major topic of discussion, but after the cage match fiasco performance in the McIntyre vs. Damian Priest match, we were told the die was cast as far as using him going forward. He was downplayed on the next show while still under contract and not on this show, nor ever referenced. They also didn’t bring in stars from the past or air nostalgia clips.”