Shotzi addresses her WWE departure

Shotzi is keeping a positive attitude as she enters post-WWE life.

It was confirmed last weekend that Shotzi is departing WWE amid a string of roster cuts made by the company. Shotzi was not officially released, but she was informed that her WWE contract will not be renewed when it expires. She will be free to wrestle elsewhere this July.

On Busted Open Radio today, Shotzi gave her first interview since the news of her WWE departure broke. After mostly just sitting at home for the last couple of years, Shotzi is excited to get back to work.

“Honestly, I didn’t expect this but I just feel so free. And I just feel like this weight is lifted off me,” she said. “I just feel like clarity and I just feel extremely motivated and excited for the future. And I’m just ready to get to work. Because I have just been sitting at home it feels like for the last two years. And I’m just excited to get back at it.”

Shotzi was sidelined for 10 months in 2024 after suffering a torn ACL during a match on NXT. She returned to action in December but was not reintroduced to the main roster aside from her last match for the company taking place on WWE Speed.

“When they’re utilizing you, it’s the best job in the world,” Shotzi told Busted Open. “It’s so much fun and it really is the best. But like when you’re in the dark and you’re pitching things and it just feels like no one wants to talk to you and it just feels like no one believes in you and you’re just sitting at home or you’re sitting in catering for months, it’s mind-numbing. And it’s confusing. And it’s boring as hell. So I’m just excited to finally get to go out there and just kick ass on my terms — and I get to make my schedule. Like, I’m not going to put myself in catering. I’m going to get out there and I’m going to wrestle my butt off.”

Shotzi said she’s “so grateful” for the five-plus years she spent in WWE, and her initial NXT run in particular was the greatest year of her life. She praised the WWE women’s locker room and is thankful for all of the awesome women she got to work with.

In her second NXT stint, Shotzi was aligned with Gigi Dolin & Tatum Paxley. She fell in love with working with them and was hoping the trio would go to the main roster together. But Dolin also departed WWE as she was released in this round of talent cuts. Paxley is still with the company.

Shotzi mentioned that WWE had plans for her to come back to the main roster for a storyline with Chelsea Green, but it kept getting pushed back and never happened.

When asked about potential opponents she’d like to face, Shotzi named TNA’s Masha Slamovich and AEW/ROH’s Billie Starkz. She’s open to wrestling both men and women on the indies. Shotzi is already taking bookings and is excited by the overwhelming response she’s received.