New details have surfaced regarding the sudden departure of Andrade El Idolo from WWE. According to Jon Alba’s The Takedown on SI via Sports Illustrated, Andrade’s exit was not a mutual decision but a release initiated by the company due to disciplinary reasons.
This follows initial reporting from Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer, who confirmed Andrade’s departure stemmed from a disciplinary issue. The Takedown on SI has since added further context, with multiple sources indicating that Andrade “had at least one wellness policy violation during his most recent WWE run.”
The specifics of the violation—whether it involved a positive test for a banned substance or a failure to comply with testing—remain unclear. The report notes that Andrade was suspended without pay as a result.
Additional details suggest that Andrade was told to leave a SmackDown taping last month and was “escorted out of the building.” A high-level source told SI that his removal was tied to the suspension and ultimately disrupted “major creative plans for his tag team with Rey Fenix.”
This is not the first time Andrade has faced disciplinary action under WWE’s wellness policy. Back in January 2020, during his initial run with the company, Andrade served a 30-day suspension for his first violation. He later left WWE in 2021, competing in AEW until his return at the 2024 Royal Rumble.
Since the TKO merger in 2023, WWE has not publicly acknowledged any wellness policy violations, making this situation particularly noteworthy. A separate report from Cory Hays of Bodyslam.net indicated that WWE officials had been trying unsuccessfully to contact Andrade for several weeks prior to his release.
As of this writing, WWE has not commented publicly on the specifics of Andrade’s release, and Andrade himself has not issued a statement. His last WWE appearance was in the Six-Pack TLC Match at SummerSlam.
