WWE ID Program Under Fire as PRODUCE Wrestling Promoter Claims Talent Were Misled About Commitments

Independent wrestling promoter Adam Abdalla has gone public with sharp criticism of WWE’s ID program, arguing that the initiative has misled talent and caused real harm to the independent scene — and to fans.

The controversy stems from a series of last-minute talent withdrawals from an upcoming PRODUCE Wrestling event. Abdalla, speaking on X, was quick to clarify that his frustration isn’t directed at the performers themselves. His argument is that WWE ID participants were pitched the program as something resembling a developmental grant — an opportunity to grow — only to find themselves locked into scheduling obligations that prevented them from honoring prior independent bookings.

“The point of my announcements was not to name and shame talent,” Abdalla wrote. “It was to highlight the fact they were promised the equivalent of a grant program and were conned into doing scabwork. This should be widely understood.”

He was blunt about his intentions: “I’ll take 1000 bullets personally if it brings sunlight to things that will make folks think twice about screwing talent or the fans.”

Promoter Bret Lauderdale entered the conversation to address speculation that the cancellations were connected to PRODUCE’s relationship with myAEW. Lauderdale rejected that idea outright, saying the real culprit was WWE scheduling EVOLVE tapings on July 17th and 18th — requiring talent to be in Florida on July 16th — after those performers had already committed to the PRODUCE booking.

Abdalla wasn’t entirely satisfied with that explanation either, questioning why talent would need to cancel bookings a full day before tapings that are roughly a two-and-a-half-hour flight away. “If you’re on RAW, you arrive the same day,” he noted, adding that no clear reasoning was provided to him.

This isn’t an isolated incident. Just last month, Dreamwave Wrestling was forced to restructure its All Star Weekend card after WWE ID talents Laynie Luck, Sloane Jacobs, Veronica Haven, and Anya Rune were all pulled due to WWE contractual obligations.

The pattern is drawing increased scrutiny from the independent wrestling community. Whether WWE addresses the scheduling and communication concerns raised by promoters like Abdalla remains to be seen, but the noise around the ID program is getting harder to ignore.