Patrick Clark, (AKA: Velveteen Dream) released a statement on Instagram detailing his release from the WWE and the accusations made against him.
“The allegations from April 20, 2020 have effectively derailed any upward momentum I had professionally and has ultimately resulted in my termination with WWE,” stated Clark confirming what many have thought was happening behind the scenes at NXT and WWE.
Clark began his statement by stating his appreciation for the fans who supported him during his NXT run.
“Thank you to any and everybody who enjoyed and allowed me to be my character, whether you paid a ticket or walked up on me in Walmart. My goal was to provide you with the same escape that I was offered when I first started watching. My job was to play a character and to help advance storylines and drama for the fans who cared to tune in,” wrote a grateful Patrick.
Patrick stated the situations he was embroiled in began when he opened the direct messaging option on his Instagram account.
“I received a few different messages ranging from support, to heckling, and some inquiring about how to get started in pro wrestling. I responded to a few, but not all, and of the few I responded to one account accused me of solicitation. The account belonged to a 17 year old aspiring wrestler Jaccob, before he deleted it. In the conversation Jaccob shared his interest in working as a wrestler one day and asked what steps would be required,” wrote Patrick who says he responded by giving the teen tips of how to improve, what to focus on and advised him to attend a wrestling school.
Patrick says when the teen asked that he verify he was the real Velveteen Dream, he sent him a voice message asking the same questions. They then traded messages back and forth about the wrestling business.
“April 21st I woke up to notifications and tags of created screenshots and videos of a conversation that I didn’t have with Jaccob. I immediately contacted WWE’s talent relations and social media departments as to begin an investigation. Even after the investigation, WWE released a statement maintaining my innocence. The part that hurt for me was having a personal picture that I’ve used in my personal life, on apps, being used to label me as a predator. I am in no way of the word a predator. This is the first and only time I’ve been accused of any solicitation to anyone,” Patrick explained.
Patrick then detailed the accusations that he was “grooming” another fan, Joshua Fuller. According to Patrick, they developed a friendship through a mutual trainer and texted each other here and there.
“Josh alleged that I made him feel uncomfortable but contradicts himself twice by saying I was never sexual toward him. For those willing to research Josh’s tweet accusing me; Josh’s messages are in blue and mine in grey. Josh claimed that he was a 16 year old high school graduate and that he takes ‘yearly trips’ with his friend to Orlando, FL. I doubted what he told me, yet I kept my replies diplomatic and professional. The reality of the situation is that I was very helpful and respectful to Josh. Josh lives with his grandparents in rural southern Maryland. Josh got a concussion (2017) and against my advice, insisted on wrestling. My worry came from Josh severely injuring himself, specifically his brain. I suggested he take time off from training to see a doctor. He declined because he believed he could work through the concussion, and I cut all communication with him in 2018 because I didn’t want to be partially responsible had he worsened his injury. So to have him accuse me of predatory behavior because I chose not to help was spiteful,” wrote Patrick.
Patrick notes that:
- Josh Fuller reached out to Jaccob over social media before Josh put out his own accusation. When this came out Josh Fuller temporarily deleted his twitter account @joshfullerpw. Which is important because in all the social media confusion, Josh Fuller is the only one who suggested that an investigation had not been done and that he had not been contacted.
- Jaccob deleted his social media after he was outed for being a member of an anti-black group chat.
- There is a public forum, wwe Ipsg stars where people are buying selling and sharing explicit photos and videos of multiple wrestlers and no one has done anything to have this site taken down.
“All in all this entire experience defamed my character and ultimately accomplished what it sought out to do and that was to see me released. My hope is that over time people can put 2 and 2 together and realize that all the allegations surrounding me were baseless and untrue from jump. I felt strongly about not needing to defend myself on social media for a while now, but I understand the audience I work for and those who know me deserve clarity. I’m thankful for the opportunities afforded to me and the memories I have as a receipt. GOD HAS ALWAYS HAD ME AND HE ALWAYS WILL. DREAM IS OFFICIALLY OVER,” Patrick concluded.
Clark was awarded a developmental contract with the WWE after participating on their reality show Tough Enough in 2015. He debuted the Prince-inspired character in NXT two years later and went on to win the North American Champion defeating Johnny Gargano in 2019 and had critically acclaimed matches, feuds against Aleister Black, Gargano, Ricochet, Adam Cole and Matt Riddle.
