Andrade speaks on his WWE Wellness violation, firing, and non-compete negotiations

When his second WWE run ended in September after a reported Wellness Policy violation of some kind led to his contract being terminated, Andrade showed up in AEW to start his second stint at that company as a member of The Don Callis Family. He disappeared from television after his re-debut however, which we soon heard was due to a year-long non-compete clause in his WWE contract.

AEW’s Tony Khan has thanked everyone who asks him about Andrade’s status for their question while offering no comment. Andrade’s danced around the subject… until he sat down with Azteca Deportes for an interview posted last night (Nov. 26).

The interview is in Spanish, but internet translation of Andrade’s remarks include an explanation that his Wellness Policy violation was due to things he’s free to use in Mexico, but that you apparently aren’t allowed in either WWE or the United States.

“I returned to WWE a year and a half ago, I was in AEW, and at that time I was happy earning millions but I was married. My ex-wife’s name is Charlotte Flair and the idea was to return to WWE, to be with her, and many things happened. We got divorced and I was not comfortable in some things. I had a warning call because many medicines and supplements that in Mexico can be consumed but not there. We have certain restrictions on recipes that we cannot consume as athletes because of doping and things like that. I was also a little annoyed.”

Andrade said he had to change attorneys when he and Flair divorced, and pointed to that as a reason the year-long non-compete went unnoticed:

“I talked to WWE, we reached an agreement to leave WWE and we ended up in the best way in that time. Then I returned to AEW, I imagine they [WWE] didn’t like [that]… I really don’t know. I’m very grateful to WWE. Since the lawyer I had was also my ex-wife’s lawyer, you can’t use the same lawyer anymore. The contract I signed, the lawyer did not realize a clause of 12 months without competition, and from there they took that clause. Right now we are in that phase. It wouldn’t be a year, we’re negotiating. I’m going to be 3 months inactive and I can’t compete worldwide.”

That three months estimate would seem to stem from negotiations Andrade’s current lawyers are having with WWE. He said they could fight the non-compete in total, but was advised that could take longer and be more expensive. Instead, the 36-year-old second-generation luchador said he doesn’t know the exact date but ”let’s hope it’s in a month, a week, or before.“ He then explained:

“… they are trying to negotiate so as not to go to court. They have reached a good arrangement and are doing things better. I think I have a date [when he can work for other promotions]… but it remains for WWE to officially sign it to say ‘okay, this is the day Andrade returns to the ring.’”

Here’s Andrade’s appearance on Azteca Deportes: