Why Johnny Gargano Didn’t Re-Sign With WWE, Penelope Ford – AEW

Finally, Johnny Gargano is opening up about why he didn’t re-sign with WWE. Also, fans are wondering if Penelope Ford is still part of AEW.

Why Johnny Gargano Didn’t Re-Sign With WWE

NXT 2.0 is very different from the original version. A major change is the roster.

Basically, nobody is left from the yellow and black days. Instead, WWE brought in new talent, while the then current NXT wrestlers went to the main roster or were released. 

There were a few who simply let their contracts run out. One of those wrestlers was Johnny Gargano.

For many people, they consider Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa the staples of the brand during that period. Ciampa is now on RAW, where he does little.

Gargano spent 2016 until 2021 with WWE. During that time, he was a face and heel.

While on on Good Karma Wrestling, Gargano discussed why he did not re-sign with WWE.

“I had this guaranteed contract with WWE I could take for a lot of money, and I could come back and I could keep doing what I’m doing,” said Gargano. “I just knew that, with the baby on the way, I didn’t want to have anyone else being in control of my time, because I’m really only getting one shot at this.”

“Me and Candice only plan on having one kid. So I want to be there and try to experience everything I can with Quill for his first year before I do anything else.”

His wife Candice Lerae became pregnant towards the end of her contract. She gave birth, but never returned to WWE.

Unlike with most contracts, WWE did not freeze it for the time Candice was out. Now, both are free agents that are yet to wrestle since NXT.

Johnny Gargano And His WWE Accomplishments 

Gargano made tons of history in NXT. He appeared on the most Takeover cards with twenty-three. 

Also, he is the first ever triple crown champion. He accomplished that by winning the tag titles with Ciampa, North American and World Championship.

Many have called Gargano and Ciampa the greatest feud in NXT history. And, those people were right as the yearlong angle was perfect.

Gargano’s final NXT match was at Takeover WarGames in 2021. He was on the losing team that night.

Penelope Ford – AEW

AEW’s roster has changed dramatically over the past few months. Many wrestlers are out with injury and a bunch of the original wrestlers to join were not offered new deals.

Penelope Ford has not been seen on TV for a while, leading to questions if she left. Tony Khan took to Twitter to update fans.

Khan did not disclose the injury or a return date.

This year, Ford only wrestled twice. First, she teamed with The Bunny and Nyla Rose to defeat Kris Statlander, Leyla Hirsch and Red Velvet at the January 12 Rampage. 

Then, on the January 15 episode of Dark, she defeated Angelica Risk. That was the last fans saw her appear on TV.

The women’s division needs to grow and Ford deserves to be in the mix. She will bring a new challenge to whomever is the champion at the time.