WWE: Competitors Announced for World Title Tournament, Colby Corino Departure, Backlash Match Producers

May 7, 2023

WWE Announces Full Field of Competitors for World Heavyweight Title Tournament

WWE announced the full field of competitors for their upcoming World Heavyweight Championship tournament, which takes place starting at this Monday’s RAW show in Jacksonville, Florida and concludes on May 27th at Night of Champions 2023 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Seth Rollins
The Miz
Shinsuke Nakamura
Cody Rhodes
Finn Balor
Damien Priest
Edge
Rey Mysterio
Sheamus
Bobby Lashley
Austin Theory
AJ Styles

12 WWE Superstars from #WWERaw and #SmackDown look to claim the World Heavyweight Title at #WWENOC.

Find out who they are NOW! 👀 pic.twitter.com/v5qvYFx5eH
— WWE (@WWE) May 7, 2023

Colby Cornio Reportedly Departed from WWE Over Contract-Related Issues

As noted before, former National Wrestling Alliance talent Colby Corino signed a contract with WWE this past February.

BodySlam.net’s Cassidy Haynes reported that his sources stated that Corino recently departed from WWE and is currently a free agent. Haynes reported that the reason for his departure is due to issues related to his contract status in the company. Corino and WWE officials reportedly had agreed to a deal between the two sides but nothing was ever officially signed.

Haynes reported that the reason for this issue was due to WWE entering a “hiring freeze” earlier this year which affected the status of Corino’s contract with the company. This “hiring freeze” reportedly was caused by WWE’s sale process at the time, which resulted in Endeavor’s agreed purchase of the company.

WWE Backlash 2023 Match Producers

Fightful Select reported that the following people were the match producers for WWE’s Backlash 2023 event on Saturday in San Juan, Puerto Rico:

IYO SKY vs. Bianca Belair (c), RAW Women’s Championship – TJ Wilson
Seth Rollins vs. Omos – Adam Pearce
Bobby Lashley vs. Bronson Reed vs. Austin Theory (c), WWE United States Championship – Chris “Abyss” Park
Zelina vs. Rhea Ripley (c), SmackDown Women’s Championship – Shawn Daivari
Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest, San Juan Street Fight – Jamie Noble
Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, & Matt Riddle vs. The Bloodline – Jason Jordan
Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar – Michael Hayes