Free agency in professional wrestling was a major story in the last two years. Several top names have jumped between WWE, NJPW, and AEW, creating a healthy amount of buzz along the way. Fightful has reported that three top members of the NJPW roster are coming up on the end of their contracts. David Finlay, Clark Connors, and Drilla Moloney are interesting prospects in the upcoming free agency market.
Collectively, this group is known as the War Dogs and they’ve run wild in New Japan Pro Wrestling as an offshoot of the Bullet Club. All three are looking to explore their “options” once their contracts come up. According to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful, NJPW is “hopeful to keep all of them.”
David Finlay, Drilla Moloney and Clark Connors of the War Dogs all have contracts coming up, and are exploring their options.
— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) December 29, 2025
NJPW is hopeful to keep all of them. pic.twitter.com/Q2OLxA96yN
David Finlay, Clark Connors, and Drilla Moloney on the free agency market
Finlay, Connors, and Moloney are interesting names on the free agency market. They each bring qualities that can impact a roster as individuals or as a group. But one has to wonder what their ceilings are if they were to fully depart.
At first glance, the “Go to AEW” narrative will remain strong. Connors has already appeared on an AEW PPV, and NJPW has close ties to that promotion. But AEW’s roster has long felt “bloated” and adding three names of their stature doesn’t do much at the top of the card. Finlay has the most upside of the three, but it would be hard to see him in the main event instead of several of the names AEW already has under contract.
In WWE, things would be different. WWE has a serious issue with booking names from other companies. While their initial signing feels “big,” their momentum quickly dies off. Look at Ricky Saints and Blake Monroe’s tenure in WWE NXT. There are others to add to that list like KUSHIDA and Sareee. Connors, Finlay, and Moloney would certainly have an impact on NXT, where there’s a lack of talent in the men’s division, but their ceiling doesn’t seem much higher than that.
TNA Wrestling would be a surprise landing spot for the trio. As TNA heads into 2026, the company is starting a new television deal and the partnership with WWE is reportedly ending. The company will need some new names to keep the momentum. Signing Finlay, Connors, and Moloney would be a big surprise to the wrestling world and one that could potentially get some much needed eyes on the product.
Fans and performers alike should be excited for free agency in professional wrestling. It is what the business needs. David Finlay, Drilla Moloney, and Clark Connors are three men who are looking to test the waters heading into 2026.