The situation with former WWE star Andrade's release and subsequently re-joining AEW has gotten murkier with a new report, as he was hit with a cease-and-desist from his former employer.
After making his return to AEW during the October 1, 2025, edition of Dynamite, Andrade immediately went missing. According to Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Radio (via Wrestle Zone), Andrade's absence had nothing to do with any injury. Instead, it sounds like he did not abide by his non-compete clause, which both sides were confused about.
“I was told that he’s not hurt. He didn’t get himself fired, but apparently something is up involving his WWE non-compete,” Alvarez explained. “Maybe they figure maybe we can get this worked out in time to put the Kenny Omega match on, but they didn’t. I don’t know, but I was given the impression it could be something that could be resolved quickly, or it could be something that might not be resolved for a while.
“But it’s something related to the non-compete. When he was fired [from WWE], remember we were told they didn’t care?” he continued.
Apparently, they did care about him jumping ship so quickly. WWE sent AEW a “letter,” causing them to pull Andrade from their programming.
“That is what I’ve been hearing was WWE sent a letter,” David Meltzer revealed. “[AEW] obviously didn’t know. AEW obviously believed that there was no non-compete. There were people who talked to people in WWE who also believed that there was no non-compete, but WWE apparently, that’s the story is that they said that there’s he can’t do [shows] for 90 days.”
Andrade immediately jumped ship to AEW after his WWE release
Andrade was released by WWE in September 2025 for the second time. Just a couple of weeks later, he popped up in AEW, indicating that he didn't have the standard non-compete clause due to the circumstances of his exit.
However, that no longer appears to be the case. So, AEW fans will have to wait a few months before seeing him back in the ring. According to PWInsider, via Wrestle Zone, WWE is enforcing a different kind of non-compete clause.
It is a murky situation. Expect more details to come to light in the near future. For now, Andrade is not officially signed to any promotions.
