A.J. Francis, better known to WWE fans as Top Dolla, was released by the WWE for the second time earlier this week. He had been back with the company since August 2022 and had built up something of a feud with WWE's play-by-play commentator Michael Cole, who consistently poked fun at Francis for infamously botching his attempt at a tope outside the ring. He revealed in a tweet over the weekend that he talked with Cole about setting up a match between the two, but nothing materialized.
Cole has competed in 12 matches during his decades with WWE, most of which came in 2011 when he was portraying a heelish persona and feuded with Jerry Lawler. Francis noted he would've happily put Cole over.
"I offered to put Cole over & he wanted to do it too... we talked about it at length of how we could build it... even had him winning by a small package out of a stalling suplex... they didn't care beyond having him drag me every week... which made ppl talk about me so I loved it," Francis wrote.
I offered to put Cole over & he wanted to do it too... we talked about it at length of how we could build it... even had him winning by a small package out of a stalling suplex... they didn't care beyond having him drag me every week... which made ppl talk about me so I loved it ???? https://t.co/sHtNmuzebq
-- Dolla ? (@AJFrancis410) September 22, 2023
WWE's Latest Releases
The latest wave of WWE releases featured everyone from Performance Center trainees to former world champions and tenured veterans. Some of the big names cut were Matt Riddle, Dolph Ziggler, Shelton Benjamin, Dana Brooke and Mustafa Ali.
The releases came on the same day WWE announced a new billion-dollar television deal with NBCUniversal to bring SmackDown back to the USA Network and less than two weeks after the UFC x WWE merger into TKO Group was made official.
"This is the culmination of a decades-long partnership between Endeavor and WWE across strategic initiatives including talent representation and media rights. Given our collaborative, trusted relationship and Endeavor's incredible track record of success growing UFC, we believe WWE is optimally positioned for future growth and success as part of TKO. Our focus remains on delivering for our fans across the globe as we take the business to the next level alongside UFC and Endeavor," Vince McMahon stated in a press release regarding the merger.
WWE Pay-Per-View Schedule for 2023
WWE has three main roster pay-per-views left on the 2023 schedule. That includes Fastlane on Oct. 7 (Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis), Crown Jewel on Nov. 4 (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) and Survivor Series on Nov. 25 (Allstate Arena outside of Chicago).
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