In mid-October, Mike Kanellis took to Twitter to request his release from WWE. That was not granted and he's now stuck in the company after signing a five-year deal with them (which will likely take him up to the end of his wrestling career). During a recent interview on The Smarks & Stripes podcast, he opened up on that decision and why he things WWE won't let him go.
"For me, it was all personal," Kanellis explained. "It had nothing to do with the company. Since the minute I got to WWE, they've treated me great; they've treated my wife great; they've treated my daughter great. They've treated me great. When I came out and said that I had an addiction, there was no negativity from anybody - it was just constant support."
"I blew four years of my life doing drugs and now I felt like my mind is clear, my head is clear, and I just wanted to work," Kanellis continued. "I just wanted to wrestle. I just want to work. Like, I feel like I could do and have my best matches right now and it's extremely difficult when there [are] so many people on the roster and you just don't get that opportunity."
He added that he would happily return to television if the opportunity were to present itself but pointed out that with so many established stars on the roster right now, he doesn't see that happening.
Kanellis also reflected on why he thinks WWE wouldn't grant his release. "As far as not giving me my release, I think it's like anywhere. The Patriots aren't going to release someone they think the [New York] Jets are going to pick up. And I think we have to think of it like that. It's not negative - that's just how it works! It works in sports and it works in [pro] wrestling."
It remains to be seen what becomes of Kanellis moving forward but it sadly seems as if he'll be forced to remain unhappy being under contract with WWE and not working on a regular basis.