Samantha Irvin had one of the most memorable calls in WWE history when she announced Cody Rhodes as the new Undisputed WWE Champion at WrestleMania XL. However, she now looks back on that moment with regret, saying she let her emotions take over and felt she failed as an announcer.
“I was not there for work. I was literally there, like, just as me, just Sammie,” Irvin admitted on Busted Open.
“I started crying before the finish. I started crying when The Undertaker came out. And then Cody winning… it all just came crashing down. Every sad thing, every crazy thing, all the stuff in wrestling that you can’t talk about. It just all came out in that moment.”
Irvin felt so overwhelmed that she immediately questioned whether she belonged in the role.
“I felt absolutely terrible. I said—okay, I have to leave now, obviously. I’m done. Because I’m a terrible announcer. Because I prioritized being a fan in that moment.”
Her emotional delivery resonated with fans, making her one of WWE’s most beloved voices, but for Irvin, it was a sign that her future lay elsewhere.
Having moved on from WWE, she’s returning to her roots in music, with her debut single “Make Me” dropping on February 14.