Published: 3 minutes ago by Jamie Toolan | Last Updated: 7 hours ago by Jamie Toolan
Jamie has been covering the world of wrestling for four years and currently holds the position of Assistant Editor of WrestleTalk.com. During his time working for WrestleTalk.com he has written and published over 4,000 news and feature articles covering events and happenings from WWE, AEW, TNA and a variety of international and independent wrestling promotions.
WWE
The WWE ID program lost two of its most notable names this week as both Laynie Luck and Marcus Mathers’ contracts have expired.
Luck had only just seen her 320 day WWE ID Women’s Title reign come to an end, while Mathers was one of the program’s original signees, had appeared regularly on WWE Evolve – similarly to Luck – and at 23 years old, was considered by many fans to be a future WWE NXT star.
According to Fightful Select, these latest departures have led to multiple WWE stars questioning the WWE ID program, and it’s easy to see why.
It feels as if Luck and Mathers did everything they could have in the program to result in them being signed afterwards, or at least having their ID deals renewed, but WWE instead have allowed them to walk.
For WWE it appears as if it is on to the next, as Fightful Select is also reporting that at least five wrestlers who attended the most recent set of WWE tryouts over SummerSlam week have been offered WWE ID deals.
Conan Lycan, who attended these tryouts was offered a WWE ID deal this week on EVOLVE, but which other names could potentially be in line to join the ID program? Here are three names who could sign.
KJ Orso
KJ Orso, who some may remember as Fuego Del Sol in AEW, was one of the standout indie names at the WWE SummerSlam tryouts. The 30-year-old famously earned himself an AEW contract back in August 2021 after failing to dethrone Miro (Rusev) for the AEW TNT Championship.
That moment where he earned his deal was about as good as it got for Fuego in the promotion however, and he departed the company two years later. After his AEW exit he unmasked and rebranded himself as KJ Orso and has been a regular in promotions such as GCW and has also made appearances in TNA and back under the AEW umbrella for ROH.
With his in-ring talent proven over the past decade, Orso could certainly be one of the new ID signees picked out from this Summer’s tryouts.
Josh Bishop
Josh Bishop should be another leading candidate for a WWE ID contract.
The MLW standout has reportedly been the subject of interest from TNA and it’s not hard to see why when you see him in action. The 29-year-old is an impressive physical presence and has slotted in perfectly as Dijak’s new tag team partner in The Skyscrapers – stepping in for Baron Corbin following his own return to WWE in the Summer.
Hopefully Dijak doesn’t lose another tag partner to his former employer just yet, but signing any kind of deal with WWE would certainly be a great opportunity for Bishop.
Brooke Havok
We finish up with an uncertain one, as Brooke Havok’s recent injury setback has cast doubt on her immediate future in the WWE ID program.
Havok was “at least internally planned for a WWE ID deal” after she underwent her WWE SummerSlam 2026 tryout according to Fightful Select, but on September 11, the former Nightmare Factory student announced that she’d torn her ACL and meniscus, and would be forced to undergo surgery. It was also reported that Havok was considered to win the WWE ID Women’s Championship before her injury, an honor that would instead go to Monica Monroe.
It’s not clear whether she signed her deal prior or after her injury, or if WWE are holding off, but one would think she should have some sort of future in the company once she’s recovered.
To make sure you stay up to date with all the biggest wrestling and WrestleTalk news, follow us on Threads by clicking this link!
