The first episode of SmackDown on FOX featured an appearance from boxer Tyson Fury and the surprise WWE debut of former UFC star Cain Velasquez. The latter made his way to the ring for a confrontation with then WWE Champion Brock Lesnar, and while the two men had a lot of history in the MMA world, wrestling fans for the most part didn't really seem to care.
That was evident from the muted response their Crown Jewel match received, a bout which actually saw Lesnar defeat his old foe in short order.
Well, it now seems as if that was the extent of Velasquez's WWE career as Dave Meltzer has reported on the latest edition of Wrestling Observer Radio that he has been released by WWE. While he signed a big money, multi-year deal with WWE, the company is able to cut anyone at any time, so that's likely what happened here.
Velasquez has been sidelined with knee injuries since joining the company, so it's possible that played a role in WWE's decision. Clearly, there wasn't room for him in their budget following the recent, COVID-19 related cuts, and it will now be interesting seeing whether he heads to AAA or All Elite Wrestling, two companies that previously expressed an interest in him.