WWE Releases Hit Main Roster & NXT Talents
On the heels of the record-breaking WWE WrestleMania 41 event, WWE unleashed another wave of talent releases, both from its main and development roster, last week.
Names affected by this move include Dakota Kai, Shayna Baszler, Katana Chance, and Kayden Carter. All of them recently resided on the WWE Raw brand.
In Kai’s case, she leaves WWE as a two-time WWE Women’s and NXT Women’s Tag Team Champion. She last wrestled on the March 27 episode of WWE Main Event with a win over American Made’s Ivy Nile. For the last three years, Kai had been featured as a member of the Damage CTRL stable.
Baszler exits WWE as a two-time NXT Women’s Champion and three-time WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion. Her latest match took place against Konami at Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport XIII on April 17. Prior to that, she competed in a tag team contender’s gauntlet match alongside Zoey Stark on the April 11 episode of SmackDown. That match served as Katana Chance and Kayden Carter’s last in WWE a well.
Attached to Kai, Baszler, Chance, and Carter’s departures comes a 90-day non-compete clause.
Departing NXT Talents
Within the realm of WWE NXT, the company released the likes of Cora Jade, Gigi Dolin, Jakara Jackson, and Dani Palmer. Former NXT Women’s Tag Team Champion Shotzi will also depart soon, as WWE opted not to renew her contract, which is slated to expire in the coming weeks.
Dolin’s WWE exit comes on the heels of back-to-back tag team title matches in WWE NXT and TNA. On April 22, Dolin unsuccessfully challenged for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships alongside Tatum Paxley on NXT. Five days later, she and Paxley vied for the TNA Knockouts Championships at Rebellion. The latter match also involved Jakara Jackson, who competed alongside her partner Lash Legend.
In the case of Cora Jade, she leaves as a former NXT Women’s Tag Team Champion. Most recently, she challenged Sol Ruca for the NXT Women’s North American Championship at an NXT live event. Before that, Roxanne Perez abandoned Jade during their four-way tag match at NXT Stand & Deliver, which also involved Dolin and Paxley, Jackson and Legend, and Fallon Henley and Jacy Jayne. Jade has since returned to her former ring name of Elayna Black. Similarly, Dolin is once again Priscilla Kelly.
Dani Palmer, a former member of Baylor University’s Acrobatics and Tumbling team, has declared her WWE exit as the end of her athletic career as well. Palmer initially signed to WWE in the summer of 2022.
“The Ballsy Badass” Shotzi returned to NXT in December, and in doing so, forged an alliance with Dolin and Paxley. The three regularly competed against Jayne, Henley, and Jazmyn Nyx of Fatal Influence. Shotzi last wrestled on the February 19 episode of WWE Speed.
The aforementioned NXT names, minus Shotzi, have a 30-day non-compete clause.
Two More International Signees Come Aboard To TNA Wrestling
At the 2025 Rebellion event, TNA Wrestling confirmed Indi Hartwell as an official member of its Knockouts division. Hartwell, a native of Australia, previously worked for WWE from 2019 until her release in November 2024. Now, she will begin her next chapter in TNA, home of former tag team partner and fellow Aussie Steph De Lander.
Earlier this week, Fightful Select reported that two additional international talents have joined Hartwell on the Knockouts roster.
Firstly, Harley Hudson officially comes aboard after her TNA Gut Check win in October 2023. The Liverpool, England native reportedly had visa issues that prevented her from appearing on TNA programming. To expedite the visa process, former TNA Head of Talent Relations Gail Kim pushed for the company to send Hudson a contract, which she signed last year. Hudson finally took on fellow England native Myla Grace at TNA’s May 1 tapings in Irvine, California. The following night, the two teamed up against Lei Ying Lee and Xia Brookside.
Who else is joining Hartwell and Hudson? According to Fightful, Myla Grace herself. Like Hudson, Grace has reportedly been under contract with TNA since last year thanks to a backstage push from Gail Kim.
Last year, Grace embarked on an eight-month run with Marigold, led by STARDOM co-founder Rossy Ogawa. During that time, Grace notably challenged for the Marigold Superfly and Twin Star Championships.
INTERVIEWS
WWE ring announcer Alicia Taylor appeared on Busted Open After Dark to talk about her love for metal music, her 18-year-long career in music, how she got her start in WWE, working as a ring announcer, and more.
Former WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Dakota Kai joined Stephanie Hypes of BodySlam.net to talk about her Damage CTRL partner Iyo Sky being overlooked by Bianca and Rhea heading into WrestleMania 41, the possibility of returning to NXT, her thoughts on the possibility of a second WWE Evolution event, and more.
New TNA Knockouts Indi Hartwell sat down with Chris Van Vliet to discuss signing with TNA and being in the crowd at Rebellion, her WWE release happening during SmackDown, keeping her WWE name, the Dexter Lumis romance storyline, winning the NXT Women’s Championship in a ladder match, wrestling in Australia, finally getting a match with Mercedes Mone and more.
WWE Women’s Intercontinental Champion Lyra Valkyria chatted with My Mom’s Basement to discuss making her WrestleMania debut in Las Vegas, teaming with Becky Lynch before she was turned on, the current feud between Irish superstars leading into Backlash, which opponent she’d like to wrestle in the future, and more.
