Sometime in the next few weeks, Dean Ambrose will depart the WWE when his contract comes to an end.

Despite being offered a new multi-million dollar deal, the former WWE Champion opted to walk away from the business for an undisclosed amount of time, maybe forever?

It certainly came as a shock to the WWE Universe back in January, and some were still in hope that it was simply being done for storyline purposes.

But he really is done, and he may have already had his last match with the company, in a Last Man Standing match loss to Drew McIntyre on Raw two weeks ago.

Just after it was revealed to the world that he was leaving, Ambrose underwent another shift in character, reverting to his babyface persona just three months after becoming a dastardly heel when he turned on Seth Rollins.

Many will remember that was the same night that the third man of The Shield - Roman Reigns - revealed his leukaemia battle to the world, so it was a very hard-hitting turn of events, but that little caveat seems to have been swept to the side now.

Rollins has now spoken out about the departure of his best friend, and he admits that it's tugged on his heartstrings.

“It breaks my heart. I get it, you know. I understand. This place can be frustrating and he’s a guy who’s been doing it nonstop for 15, 16, 17 years now," Rollins told Cathy Kelley, per Cageside Seats.

"And so sometimes, you just need to step away and take care of yourself. And I wish him luck obviously in whatever he wants to do, and we’re still going to be friends and brothers and I’ll love him for as long as we can, but he just marches to the beat of his own drum.

"He’s like a wild animal. Sometimes you just can’t put him in a cage or tame him. That’s just not how he operates.

"I know how he feels about his creativity and sometimes when it pulls him in a different direction, that’s just how he’s gotta be.

"I never imagined the three of us working anywhere else, or not being here at the same time. But I never imagined, you know, me and Roman here, or me and Ambrose here and Roman somewhere else, or Ambrose, or me... you know I just never saw it that way.

"So it’s gonna be weird to come into a locker room and he’s not there and knowing he’s not coming back anytime soon. So it certainly tugs on my heartstrings a little bit, but I support him in whatever decision he’s gonna make.”

It will be strange to see an Ambrose-less WWE, especially after being such a mainstay on the main roster for over five years, but there's always a chance he could return sooner than anticipated, such is the pull of professional wrestling.