Luke Harper has not been quiet about wanting his release from WWE. He’s been sparsely used, and they’ve added time he was injured to his contract to bench him for even longer. This is to try and kill his hype, especially as he is a fan favorite, and would be an excellent grab for All Elite Wrestling.
There has been a new development with him potentially leaving WWE, that being that he has filed for a copyright on his old name from the independent circuit, Brodie Lee. Trademarks don’t mean anything is certain, you can trademark anything not spoken for, but this news bodes well for fans of Luke Harper.
Luke Harper In WWE
Harper has been essentially tied up with The Wyatt Family and its members for 80% of his career in WWE, especially his tag partner Eric Rowan. They debutted as the first followers of Bray Wyatt in NXT, before following him to the main roster.
They would find some tag team success, and support Wyatt in 6 man tags, most notably against The Shield at Elimination Chamber 2014, a match that was possibly the best of that year for WWE.
Harper would go solo for a while, winning the Intercontinental Championship, before being sucked back into Wyatt’s backwater cult. During this time he had an unforgettable ladder match with Dolph Ziggler, again proving his star ability.
His breakout moment should have been when he turned on his master and new Wyatt initiate Randy Orton, as fans were clamoring for him to be added to their Wrestlemania match for the WWE Championship, especially after he gave a star performance at Elimination Chamber against Randy Orton.
Instead they did nothing with this naturally built star, except put him back with Erik Rowan as The Bludgeon Brothers. That was his last notable run, outside of him coming back to help Rowan in his feud with Daniel Bryan & Roman Reigns in a fantastic tornado tag match earlier this year.
Why Fans Want Him To Leave WWE
There is nothing wrestling fans hate more than seeing a talent they love just sit on the sidelines and waste away, which is exactly what WWE has done with Luke Harper. He is the latest victim to getting popular without Vince McMahon being a fan, thus being held down while Vince pushes the talent he wants to suceed.
2020 seems like the year that Harper will be free from his WWE shackles, and I don’t know if I’m looking forward to the “tell all” podcasts or matches he will have. I can’t help but imagine he has some stories to tell about these last few years in WWE.
He’s an insanely talented individual with lots to offer any company who wants to use him. AEW could debut him as a main eventer instantly, and few will argue that position once he tears through his competition once again.
