Swerve Strickland Reveals Backstage Incident That Led To Hit Row’s WWE Release

Swerve Strickland is shedding new light on the behind-the-scenes drama that led to the abrupt end of Hit Row’s run in WWE back in 2021. In a candid interview with VladTV, Strickland detailed a chain of events and backstage heat that he believes played a key role in the group’s downfall—most of which stemmed from one member’s behavior, whom he referred to as “the big guy.”

Hit Row—comprising Strickland, Top Dolla, Ashante “Thee” Adonis, and B-Fab—quickly rose to prominence in NXT before being called up to the main roster. But their time on SmackDown was short-lived, and the group was released shortly after debuting, leaving fans stunned.

According to Strickland, the trouble began when one of the members allegedly got into a tense phone exchange with a WWE office employee over B-Fab’s flight details. That call led to a stern hallway meeting with Vince McMahon, who was not pleased:

“We’re meeting with Vince. He was apparently upset… He’s like, ‘First off, that’s none of your business. You’re a talent… Don’t worry about anybody else, even if it’s in your group.’ … Vince is just barking at us with Bruce Prichard and John Laurinaitis behind him like puppy dogs. I was just like, wow.”

Strickland noted that although Vince initially seemed to move past the incident—praising them after a segment with Sami Zayn—the mood quickly shifted behind the scenes:

“We come in the back, shake Vince’s hand—‘That was great.’ Then Sami comes back and says, ‘Apparently Vince hated it.’ We’re like… we just saw him five minutes ago.”

Strickland believes it all stemmed from one member’s conduct backstage, saying:

“Apparently, he upset somebody in the back somewhere, somehow… I’ll never forget, Bruce Prichard looks at me and says, ‘You’re the veteran of the group… take control.’ Two weeks later, we all get let go.”

He later added that he heard directly from trusted WWE talent that one specific individual caused what was described as “speculative heat” and internal tension that may have triggered the group’s release:

“Then all these reports start coming out… which might have been true. Then I’m hearing from talents I’m close with, they’re like, ‘Yeah, it was him.’ I’m like, damn.”

After their release, Strickland would go on to sign with AEW in March 2022, while the other members had a brief return to WWE, with Top Dolla being released again in 2023.

Strickland’s story adds context to one of the most puzzling mass cuts of WWE’s post-pandemic era—highlighting how one misstep backstage can have ripple effects for an entire faction, regardless of their on-screen potential.

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