Dolph Ziggler Reveals the Real Reason Behind His Final WWE Deal

Nic Nemeth says he knew exactly what his final WWE contract was really about — and it had nothing to do with keeping him happy. It was about keeping him away from AEW.

The former Dolph Ziggler appeared on Off the Ropes with Jonathan Coachman and explained that he deliberately asked WWE for more money than he expected them to pay, fully intending to leave when they declined. They didn’t decline. “My last contract was to keep me from going to AEW. That was it. It was winked and not said, but it was completely understood,” Nemeth said. “I go, I’m asking for this elaborate amount because I know you won’t pay me what I’m worth. I’m gonna make a move. I’m going elsewhere. They go, nope, we’ll do it. I go, what? Okay.”

Nemeth Was Released by WWE in 2023 With Time Still Left on His Deal

The exact timing of that final contract remains somewhat unclear. A 2018 report indicated Nemeth had signed a two-year deal believed to be worth $1.5 million per year, and he likely signed an extension at some point after that. When WWE released him in September 2023, Nemeth later revealed he still had a year and a half remaining on his deal at the time of his departure.

Since leaving WWE, Nemeth has made a name for himself on the independent circuit and in TNA Wrestling. He announced in January that he had re-signed with TNA, though the length of the new deal was not disclosed.