What happened to Mark Andrews? The former champion in WWE has not been seen in the company since August 2022, just weeks before Clash At The Castle.
The Welshman made history at NXT Takeover: Cardiff, when he became the first Welsh wrestler to hold gold in the WWE.
Alongside his tag team partner Flash Morgan Webster, Andrews beat Gallus and GYV to win the NXT UK Tag Team Championships. They are the first, and so far only, Welshmen to hold title belts in the company.
However, by the end of 2022 he was back on the indie scene, having missed out on a historic Pay Per View event at the Millennium Stadium. Keep reading to find out what happened to Mark Andrews, and why he was released by the WWE.
What Happened To Mark Andrews?
Mark Andrews was fired by WWE on August 18th, 2022, along with a host of other European WWE talent.
This included his tag team partner, Flash Morgan Webster, and other top stars of the UK scene, like Dave Mastiff and Sha Samuels.
The release came in the wake of NXT UK being shut down by the UK. It was to be replaced by NXT Europe, although no more news about this promotion has been revealed, at the time of writing.
Mark Andrews went to work on the UK indie scene, as well as continue with his BBC Podcast “My Love Letter To Wrestling”. He has wrestled for Progress, reuniting with Eddie Dennis with their tag team FSU.
The former TNA star also recently reopened his own promotion, Attack Pro Wrestling, based in his hometown of Cardiff. Keep reading to find out more about the new wrestling company.
Why Was Mark Andrews Released By WWE?
Mark Andrews revealed that he was fired by WWE over a phone call, as he waited to here from the WWE as he saw wave after wave of his friends text him, revealing their releases.
The former TNA star had been expecting to be released many times over the years, having spent the past five years signed to the company after his debut in the WWE’s United Kingdom Championship Tournament.
He was fired due to WWE shutting down the NXT UK division in mid 2022, in a bid to create new NXT Europe some time in the near future.
While he would surely have been a valuable asset for the company to keep, his position was likely untenable due to issues travelling to-and-from mainland Europe due to the consequences of Brexit.
The Welsh Superstar was sacked just two weeks before Clash at the Castle, the first ever pay per view in his home city of Cardiff. He noted this was “weird timing” and that he should have been fired by WWE “a year ago!”
Speaking on his My Love Letter to Wrestling podcast on the BBC, Mark Andrews reflected on his firing by the WWE in August 2022.
“You just essentially sat there waiting for a call. It was a big group call where it was kind of hinted at that a few people might be losing their jobs. Then, the boys group chat, one by one, ‘I’ve been released.’ ‘I’ve been released.’ ‘Me too.’ ‘Me too.’ The thing is, when it comes to being a professional wrestler, especially when you’re working like a bigger company like WWE, you do expect these things.
I remember Drake Maverick texted me years ago when I first signed to TNA, ‘It’s not what you make, it’s what you save.’ That’s got to be your mindset being a pro wrestler because these things happen. The same with American football, they get drafted and they can get let go. It’s kind of the nature of the business. That’s something I’ve been prepared for.
There have been numerous occasions in the last six years working for the company where I felt I was going to get released. This one actually surprised me. All the other times, ‘we’re on our way out.’ This one, ‘Oh, two weeks before the big Welsh show? That’s weird timing. Surely this should have been a year ago,”
Attack Pro Wrestling
Mark Andrews has recently announced the return of Attack! Pro Wrestling. The Cardiff-based promotion opened it’s doors in 2011, but was put on hiatus while Andrews made his way in the WWE, and due to the global pandemic.
Speaking to Herald.Wales, Mark Andrews said about the return of Attack Pro Wrestling;
“We’re bringing back Attack Pro Wrestling, and we feel this is the perfect time to do it with everything that’s happened over the past few years, and we’re all very excited about what’s coming next.
“We started it originally back in 2011 just doing small shows in places like Cardiff and Birmingham, in front of small crowds as a place to express ourselves, but it quickly grew a very loyal fan base and became what I would say is the spiritual home of Welsh wrestling.
“If you look at the big names to come out of UK wrestling over the past few years such as myself, Eddie Dennis, Pete Dunn, Wild Boar, and Flash Morgan Webster most of them trace their roots back to these first Attack shows, and we hope we can launch the next generation of talent from the area here as well now.
Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster Debuted In Impact Wrestling In 2023
A year after being released by the WWE, Mark Andrews made his second debut in Impact Wrestling.
Having previously been signed by the company as part of the 2014 series of British Bootcamp, he made his first appearance in six years in the company, and was joined by his debuting partner Flash Morgan Website.
The two Welshman wrestled their first match together in Impact on May 25th, 2023, at Impact Wrestling’s Under Seige pay per view.
In London, England, they failed to take the tag team titles from ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey), although they put on a fine performance that wowed the live crowd.
The next night, Subculture (their tag team name, alongside their valet Dani Luna) wrestled a dream match against the Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin).
Andrews and Website put on a good showing, but faced defeat for the second time in two nights. They lost the bout on the June 1st episode of Impact, but impressed in the ring and have likely drawn interest from all over the world for their tag team services.
While what happened to Mark Andrews when NXT UK went under wasn’t ideal, he has certainly made the most of it, and still has time to become a big star in the future.
