KEY POINTS

  • Johnny Gargano is yet to agree to a new deal with WWE, and NXT 2.0's most recent episode may be a sign of what happens next
  • Wrestling insider Dave Meltzer reports that Gargano's contract is only until December 3
  • Candice LeRae, Gargano's wife, may also ask for her release if her husband decides to leave

Beloved NXT star Johnny Gargano is the next big-name superstar whose contract is set to expire, and tonight’s results may have given a hint as to what happens next for him.

As reported by Wrestling Observer Radio’s Dave Meltzer, Gargano’s contract is only until December 3 and that fans should look to the result of tonight’s NXT 2.0 main event between Gargano, Pete Dunne and NXT North American Champion Carmelo Hayes.

“If Johnny Gargano somehow wins the match, that to me would be a sign that he must have signed a new contract. His deal [is] up December 3rd, and he had not signed as of a couple of days ago. So he would be a favored, unless that somehow changes, he would be favored to lose in this match–be the one that gets beaten, if he doesn’t re-sign,” said Meltzer.

On the most recent episode of NXT 2.0, Hayes retained his NXT North American Title after a stellar match that Bleacher Report awarded with a grade of B in its post-show analysis.

It was a highly-energetic match from all three men involved, but the result would end up in the favor of the reigning North American Champion as he successfully pulled off his finishing move--a diving leg drop--on Gargano and pinned him in the process.

If Meltzer is to be believed, then Gargano taking the finisher and eating the pin certainly means that a new deal has yet to be agreed upon between the decorated NXT superstar and WWE.

In recent months, the NXT roster has been gutted of recognizable talent that came from the independent wrestling scene in favor of homegrown talent from the WWE Performance Center.

Gargano has been teasing his exit from the company for some time now, most recently in October when he removed all references of NXT from his social media.

Should Gargano leave NXT 2.0, notable superstars remaining from the Triple H’s iteration of NXT would be Tommaso Ciampa, Kyle O’Reilly, Roderick Strong, Io Shirai and Dakota Kai, among others.

NXT already felt the brunt of losing a major cornerstone when Adam Cole decided to leave the company and join rival promotion AEW.

If Gargano and WWE could not come to terms by next Friday's December 3 deadline, his wife Candice LeRae could ask for her own release by that date since her contract expires sometime in 2022.

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