Adam Cole's departure from NXT caught Scotty 2 Hotty by surprise.
In August, Fightful reported that Adam Cole's NXT deal was set to expire very soon after he signed a short-term extension in July. Even he admitted later on that he thought there was another six months remaining.
Cole had been with NXT since 2017 and not only served as a founding member of Undisputed Era but also as the longest-reigning champion in NXT history. Cole had his swan song with NXT at NXT Takeover 36. Following the main event of AEW All Out on September 5, Adam Cole made a surprise appearance and was soon revealed to be All Elite.
Speaking with Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp, Scott 2 Hotty (Scott Garland) shared that he didn't know Cole was gone until after he had already left.
"Dude, I didn’t know until after Cole was gone. I saw him before his last match and somebody said, ‘He’s pretty upset’ before he went out there and then he came back and I saw he looked like he was upset. Regal was talking to him over in the corner. We were kept in the dark on a lot. Everything was very hush-hush there, and I didn’t know until after he was gone. Even with Gargano—is he gone? Is he not gone? I don’t know. I see he opens his ProWrestlingTees store, so I assume he’s gone. Even when I was there it was like that," he said.
It was this type of lack of communication that played a role in Garland ending his five-year run as a coach at the WWE Performance Center.
Now, Scott Garland looks to relive his dream all over again as he begins anew on the independent circuit. Scott already has dates booked with GCW and ISPW. Scott recently open the YouTube channel and posted a video reflecting on his 30-year Journey. You can view the video here.
