“Feel like I’m getting punished,” 37-year-old star slams WWE for constantly ghosting her days prior to her release

The former Women's Champion last wrestled in March 2023 went on a maternity leave. Her pregnancy wasn't normal and exacerbated further.

“Feel like I’m getting punished,” 37-year-old star slams WWE for constantly ghosting her days prior to her release

Carmella was release by WWE in February [via- WWE]

WWE often releases talent, citing budget cuts. However, former women’s champion Carmella, real-life name Leah Van Dale, is a different case. After being with the company since 2013, the 37-year-old departed WWE last month after her contract expired. She later thanked her fans via social media for showing concern and promised she’ll dive into her fallout with WWE soon.

Carmella partook in a tell-all interview on the Barely Famous podcast. The full episode will be released later this week. However, a snippet of her conversation was shared by the host on Instagram. In the following clip, Van Dale could be heard lamenting the way her time with WWE ended.

YouTube video

She was ghosted by the company. They didn’t revert back to The Princess of Staten Island after informing her via phone call that her deal was going to be up in ten days. It felt to her as if she’s getting punished for having a baby, which brings one to what has transpired with Carmella in the past two years.

FS Video

It feels like a shit*y way to end a 12 year career with the company. I feel like I’m getting punished because I had a baby.

Carmella via Barely Famous podcast

In October 2022, the Massachusetts native revealed being crippled with an ectopic pregnancy. It unfortunately led to a miscarriage. Dale finally gave birth to a boy a year later in November 2023. The delivery had its complications.

Mella suffered a drop foot and had two herniated discs in her back—something that she never expected. She told Chris Van Vliet during WrestleMania XL weekend that she’d never been in such a place physically. She was in no shape to resume the required training for an in-ring return back then.

What were the highlights of Carmella’s WWE career?

Soon after her stay in NXT ran its course, Carmella was promoted to the main roster in July 2016. Within a year, she won the first-ever women’s Money in the Bank ladder match to guarantee herself a title shot. On the April 10, 2018 edition of SmackDown, Mella cashed in her MITB contract on Charlotte Flair and won the now-defunct SmackDown Women’s Championship.

Carmella
Carmella [via- Cageside Seats]

She held on to the strap for 131 days before dropping it to Flair herself at SummerSlam 2018 in a triple threat showdown that also featured Becky Lynch. Some other notable achievements of Carmella’s WWE career include winning the WrestleMania battle royal in 2019.

The self-proclaimed ‘Most Beautiful Woman in All of WWE’ also had a brief run with Zelina Vega as the women’s tag team champion. But now that Mella’s no longer with WWE, it’d be interesting to see what she does next. At the moment, she’s enjoying motherhood while also battling with her post-pregnancy complications.

Related: “Ashamed of himself,” Shannon Sharpe blasts John Cena for turning heel on Cody Rhodes; calls for mega SummerSlam match