In an update on WWE announcing that they had chosen not to renew the contract of ring announcer Justin Roberts and that he was released from the company effective immediately just hours after he worked WWE RAW in Atlanta, Georgia, the announcement came as a huge surprise backstage as Roberts had a lot of support backstage in the company and was said to be a company man, with many thinking that the company had made an error on the official website.

There are reports attributed to PWInsider.com stating that Roberts was reportedly seen yelling at Michael Cole during the Dolph Ziggler vs. Randy Orton match on last night’s show and that Roberts reportedly “flipped the bird” at Cole, which led to Roberts being told by Kevin Dunn post-RAW that the company decided not to renew his contract. Roberts had worked for the company for 12 years and became the main ring announcer on September 28th, 2009 when Lilian Garcia departed the WWE.

As of writing, there is speculation that as of next week, Lilian Garcia will be doing the ring announcing for WWE RAW, while Eden will be doing the ring announcing for WWE SmackDown unless plans change. Roberts, who has a business venture outside of wrestling as the founder of Hands To Go, a portable massage system, has so far not commented on his release from the company.