Report: Drake Maverick Didn't Know WWE Was Going To Offer Him A New Contract Until The NXT Cruiserweight Championship Tournament Final

Back on April 15, WWE released 37 Superstars including EC3, Doc Gallows, Karl Anderson, Matt Cardona, Drake Maverick, and Heath Slater. The releases came after the company announced they would be making cutbacks because of the coronavirus pandemic. 

In the moments after his release, Maverick posted a tearful video on social media in which he announced he would still be competing in the NXT Cruiserweight Championship Tournament and would give fans everything he has in his final three matches. 

WWE then turned the video into a storyline on NXT where the former 205 Live general manager was wrestling to save his job and Maverick was offered a new deal by the company on the June 3 episode of the black and gold brand. 

Some fans suspected Maverick's release had been a work the whole time, but Mike Johnson at PWInsider reported Drake didn't know he was going to be offered a new WWE contract until the tournament final taping on May 27. Maverick even filed trademarks earlier in the day for "Rockstar Spud" and "Spud" as he planned to revert to his old ring name after his 90-day non-compete clause expired.