Jeff Cobb is out of WWE after a run that lasted barely a year, with the company releasing JC Mateo in early May 2026 and moving him to its Alumni page on May 2. The former New Japan Pro-Wrestling standout, who debuted under the new name JC Mateo at WWE Backlash in May 2025, was allowed to leave early even though his contract technically ran to Spring 2028.
Cobb, who had been presented as a major signing when he arrived in 2025, quickly fell into Solo Sikoa’s MFT faction on Friday Night SmackDown. He worked alongside Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa, but most of his time on television came as a background presence rather than a centerpiece. His last televised match came on April 24, 2026, when he and Tonga lost to Damian Priest and R-Truth on SmackDown.
The release lands with added weight because it closes a stretch in which several fans and rivals had already begun treating Cobb as a wasted piece. On February 18, 2026, MJF posted, “Remember Jeff Cobb? He was freaking AWESOME. Miss that guy.” Kyle Fletcher also said he could “send you to MFT purgatory in a heartbeat,” a line that captured how little oxygen the faction often gave its members outside Solo Sikoa.
Cobb’s exit fits a broader pattern in WWE’s handling of the group. MFT was built around Sikoa, Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa, with Mateo added after his rebrand, but the unit never fully became the showcase act its early framing suggested. WWE released Cobb along with Tonga Loa and members of The New Day in early May, then moved him to the Alumni page two days later, making the separation official in everything but the paperwork.
Where Cobb goes next is the real question now. AEW has not made any official move for him, while New Japan Pro-Wrestling remains a possible future destination for the former Jeff Cobb. For now, the cleanest read is simple: WWE took the player it once pushed as a get, kept him mostly in the background, and let him out years before the contract was set to expire.
