Former WWE star Layla is open to making a return to wrestling before it’s too late.
The former Diva’s Champion was part of the WWE roster from 2006 to 2015. When she departed the company, the wrestling veteran not only took a break from the industry but she left the limelight completely.
The former champion was asked about a potential wrestling comeback now that she is back doing appearances during a recent interview with No Name Wrestling Podcast. Layla admitted that she would love to do something before it’s too late:
“Yeah, now there is. Before, absolutely 100% no. I was not open to anything. I wanted a break. I wanted to get away. But now, absolutely. Before I get too old and I can’t come back and do anything.”
One of the highlights of Layla’s WWE career was her partnership with Michelle McCool. The duo known as LayCool were partners for more than 2 years and they found success together, even leading to Layla winning the Women’s Title.
The 2006 Diva Search winner noted that she would love to have a reunion with Michelle if it’s possible and share the ring with her best friend one more time:
“Yeah, I would…one more time. I would honestly come back to do a LayCool reunion. If that is possible and if that is something that could happen, why not? It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.
And we did, we had a lot of fans when we were together. Lay-Cool was a stable for a while…we were together for what, two and a half years, I think. So I would love to reunite with my best friend. I really would. Just one more time.”
The WWE women’s tag team titles have gained a little bit of momentum with the recent reign of Jade Cargill and Bianca Belair. After Cargill was taken out by an unknown assailant recently, however, the future of the belts is in doubt.
With the Royal Rumble PPV coming up in 2 months, it’ll be the perfect opportunity for a LayCool return, with them having a short reign with the championships during the WrestleMania season.
– It appears that a movie or documentary on late WWE Hall Of Famer Dusty Rhodes is going to be released in 2017. Dusty’s son, Cody Rhodes (Stardust), took to social media on Friday to post the following teaser for the project, which he claims will be called, “The Last Cowboy.”
Official announcement & more details forthcoming…but here’s something to get excited for “The Last Cowboy” 2017 pic.twitter.com/yXmsVf5QU1
– Former WWE Divas Champion Layla and former WWE Superstar Ricky Ortiz were married earlier this month in Arizona. WWE has since acknowledged the marriage, as they wrote the following congratulatory message on their official website on Friday:
“After revealing their engagement this past summer, former WWE Divas Champion Layla and former WWE Superstar Ricky Ortiz (Richard Young) were married earlier this month. Join the rest of the WWE Universe in congratulating Layla and Ortiz on this exciting new chapter in their lives!”
Layla El married fellow former WWE performer Richard Young (Ricky Ortiz) at Christ Temple in Glendale, Arizona this past week.
Photos of the former WWE Diva in her wedding dress popped up on Instagram over the weekend from friends who attended the ceremony.
El announced her engagement to Young in July in a Periscope video and retired from professional wrestling shortly thereafter, prompting her departure from WWE after nine years.
Young is best known for his time with WWE performing under the ring name Ricky Ortiz. He wrestled for the company and its developmental promotions from 2006 through August 2009, when he was released from his contract. Prior to becoming a professional wrestler, Young spent time in the XFL, the Canadian Football League, the Arena Football League and the National Football League.
El and Young have been in a relationship since 2014. They briefly worked together on the SmackDown brand in 2009, which included an in-ring skit and El appearing on Young’s short-lived WWE.com show.
It has just been confirmed on the WWE website that Layla, who first appeared after winning the 2006 WWE Diva Search competition will be retiring from the company.
During her career in the WWE she managed to win the WWE Women’s Championship in 2010 making her the final champion before the title was retired that year.
In April 2012 she went on to win the WWE Divas Championship after returning from injury and she would go on to hold onto the title until September of that year.
She has given an exclusive interview to WWE.com which can be read in full by clicking on this link, below are some highlights.
Why walking away is going to be such a challenge:
“I feel like deciding to retire from the ring has been a hard decision to make because I’m passionate and I love performing. I’ve known everybody in that company now for nine years. They’re family. I spend more time with crew and Superstars and Divas on the roster than I did with anybody else. It becomes part of your life. And not only that, it’s hard walking away from the fans. Part of me feels a little bit guilty for walking away because [WWE fans] are 100 percent loyal and have supported me since 2006. I wouldn’t even have this job if the fans didn’t vote in the Diva Search. I was able to win that competition because of them and I was blessed. But sometimes you just need to step out and take a risk and move onto the next phase in life.”
The key factors that led to her decision to leave the WWE:
“I’ve been traveling the world for nine years now and sometimes it’s just time to start the next chapter of your life. Traveling on the road was fun, but the older you get, it takes more time for recovery. I just got tired of the travel part.”
What’s next for Layla? Where does she go from here:
“What’s next for Layla? To be perfectly honest, the first two weeks, I’m doing absolutelynothing. [laughs] No, I have stuff that I would like to do. I would maybe like to do some TV stuff, whether it’s in the States or in the U.K. I’ve talked a little bit about maybe going back into my dance background. I’m going to start choreographing and might even go back to the Heat to start choreographing with them.
And then, of course, I’m engaged now to my fiancé Richard. We’re going to get married and then later on, in a few years, I want to have some kids and start my family life.”
You can read the full interview and her final message to the WWE Universe at this link.
Posted July 29th, 2015 in News, WWE. Tagged: Layla.
– With Monster Jam holding events in Stafford Springs, Connecticut this weekend, WWE cameras followed Madusa (also known as Alundra Blayze) around at her job.
The 2015 WWE Hall of Famer and monster driver wrote Friday on Instagram, “What an amazing day!!! Did some filming today for @wwe thank you to the crew and staff at both the WWE and @monsterjamlive #Lifeisgood #AlundraBlayze #Madusa.
She added Saturday, “Great filming crew today @wwe had a blast cannot wait until it’s ready! Thank you.”
– Miss USA 2010 and one-time Tough Enough contestant Rima Fakih attended Saturday’s WWE live event at the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California.
– Layla revealed Friday night on Periscope that she is engaged. The WWE Diva showed off her ring and told those watching that she is getting married.
Layla’s fiancée is Rich Young, who wrestled as Ricky Ortiz for WWE in 2008 and 2009. They have been dating since last year. The couple briefly worked together on the SmackDown brand in 2009, which included an in-ring skit and Layla appearing on Ortiz’ WWE.com show.
WWE taped the following matches for this week’s edition of WWE Superstars on Monday prior to WWE RAW.
– Paige def. Layla in Divas action in the first of two matches taped for the show. The finish saw Paige score the pinfall after hitting Layla with her “Ram-Paige” finisher. Jimmy Uso was on commentary during this match.
– The Ascension def. The Lucha Dragons in tag-team action in the second of two matches. The crowd chanted “Lucha! Lucha!” a lot during the match. In the end, Kalisto scored the pin on Konnor, giving The Lucha Dragons the victory.
– Longtime WWE employee and former wrestler Steve “The Brooklyn Brawler” Lombardi is celebrating his 54th birthday today. Also celebrating a birthday today is WWE developmental talent Zahra Schreiber, who turns 28 years old.
– The latest edition of WWE Top 10, which you can view below, looks at the ten biggest breakups in WWE history.
– After returning to action at Tuesday’s WWE television taping in London, England, Layla is sparking rumors that she will be hosting a show.
The 37-year-old updated her bio on Instagram to list herself as a host, in addition to WWE Diva, dancer and actress.
– This week on WWE Superstars, R-Truth takes on Curtis Axel while Zack Ryder goes one-on-one with Heath Slater. Highlights from both contest are as follows:
– Celebrating birthdays today are The Brooklyn Brawler, who works behind-the-scenes for WWE, and WWE developmental talent Zahra Schreiber. The Brawler turns 54-years-old, whereas Schreiber turns 28 (according to her profile on ExploreTalent.com).
WWE Diva Layla made her in-ring return at the WWE live event in Dortmund, Germany on Friday night.
Layla has been on the sidelines for the past few weeks dealing with an injury, however she finally returned to in-ring competition, as she worked a Divas six-person tag-team match on the show.
Layla teamed up with Emma and Natalya to defeat the trio of Cameron, Tamina Snuka and Rosa Mendes.
The WWE Diva wrote the following on social media about her return, which includes a photo of her at the show.
– There is talk that a former WWE Diva Search contestant will be hosting the new season of the show when it returns on the WWE Network. The only former contestants of the show that are still affiliated with WWE in some form or fashion are Layla, Rosa Mendes, Maryse, Michelle McCool and Eve Torres.
– With Michael Cole off of television selling the attack by Brock Lesnar at last week’s RAW, the commentary on SmackDown this week was handled by Byron Saxton, Jerry Lawler and Tom Phillips. Main Event commentary was done by Rich Brennan and JBL.
– WWE executive John Laurinaitis praised the efforts of Summer Rae and Emma on Twitter on Tuesday, putting over the match the two had in Dallas last night, which was taped for this week’s edition of WWE Main Event. Laurinaitis wrote the following:
I really enjoyed the competition ton Main Event between Emma vs Summer. #PeoplePower@WWE @EmmaWWE @RealSummerWWE if you get a chance, watch
WWE Diva Layla underwent surgery this past week. Online reports claimed the surgery was for an “unknown injury,” however the WWE Diva is denying those claims, pointing out that the surgery was “personal.”
Layla wrote the following about the rumors on her official Instagram page.
“I am Not Injured … I had a personal Surgery. I am Healthy & I am 100% Gonna be Back at Work soon!!!! #DontAlwaysBelieveEverythingYouRead Miss You All ….. Love Love”
The following are results of this week’s edition of WWE Main Event on the WWE Network. The report was written by Chris Aiken of F4WOnline.com.
WWE Main Event from Fort Wayne, Indiana featured a fairly hot crowd compared to crowd reactions over the last few weeks on WWE TV. The show opened with Miz cutting a promo in the ring shadowed by Mizdow. Miz basically put himself over and also said he wanted to thank someone for helping him win the titles. Mizdow became giddy until Miz said he wanted to thank his moneymaker. By the way, Mizdow was way over with this crowd as this act continues to grow in popularity.
>Tag team champions The Miz & Damien Mizdow beat Los Matadores (with Torito). The bullfighters got in some offense early on. Mizdow caused a distraction and got knocked off the apron, allowing Miz to cut off the bullfighter. Miz started to get heat on him as the crowd chanted “we want Mizdow.” Likewise, the crowd kept popping for Mizdow’s faux-selling and antics during the match. Eventually, the matadors made a hot tag and the fresh matador ran wild with a flying headscissors and a senton off the top rope. Mizdow lowbridged the top rope and sent the fresh matador sailing out to the floor. Mizdow made a blind tag and the crowd popped before he delivered the skull crushing finale. Miz made a bling tag and covered the fallen matador for the pinfall.
Backstage, Renee Young tried to interview Fandango and Rosa Mendes but the couple just gazed lovingly into each other’s eyes. They made out before leaving Renee hanging on the interview.
Fandango (with Rosa Mendes) beat Adam Rosa (with the Bunny & the Rosebuds). The crowd seemed to be unsure who to cheer for. Fandango showed a lot of fire and aggression. He backdropped Rose on the ring apron at one point in the early portion and dominated most of the match. The Bunny led cheers for Rose before flirting with Rosa at ringside. Rose made a comeback and executed a swinging neckbreaker only to run into a boot when charging into a corner. The Bunny tried to cause a distraction but Fandango knocked him off the apron. Fandango threw a clothesline and Rose took a Curt Hennig bump. Then, Fandango delivered a legdrop off the top for the pin.
Somewhere backstage with a Thanksgiving feast as a backdrop, Natalya told Tyson Kidd she was thankful for him. Layla and Summer Rae interrupted a loving embrace and stormed into the scene. Layla said Tyson is thankful for headphones because Nattie talks a lot. Tyson laughed and Nattie was mad he failed to take up for her. Tyson agreed his wife did talk a lot. Layla then shoved a pumpkin pie in the face of Nattie and Summer sprayed whip cream on her face. The heels stormed out as Tyson held Nattie back. He told her to save it for the ring.
Natalya (with Tyson Kidd) beat Layla (with Summer Rae). This was a good, albeit short, match as Nattie sold really well throughout and the crowd was into it. Nattie still had pie on her face as the match began. At the outset, Nattie jumped out of the ring to shove Summer down at ringside. Natalya was a house of fire until Layla cut her off. The crowd would start chanting “Nattie’s husband” at Tyson and he would put on his headphones to drown out the chants. The more Natalya sold the more the crowd got behind her and they even started chanting “Nattie” at one point. Layla applied an upside down vertical leg scissors over the top rope only to get sent crashing to the floor. Nattie made a comeback. Layla missed an attempted double springboard crossbody off the middle rope. Directly thereafter, Natalya applied the sharpshooter and Layla tapped out for the submission.
Dean Ambrose beat Kane. They brawled early on before Ambrose executed a tornado DDT followed by a neckbreaker. Kane cut him off and began to pummel him. Ambrose fired up, hit a dropkick, then a crossbody and he sent Kane over the top rope to the floor. Ambrose looked to do a tope but Kane cut him off before a commercial. After the break, Kane grounded Ambrose and began to get heat on him. Ambrose fired up again and went for his slingshot clothesline but ran into a big boot. Kane got heat on him as the crowd started a “let’s go Ambrose” chant.
Ambrose started a comeback and dove off the middle rope with a missile dropkick. Ambrose followed up an elbow smash in a corner with a running bulldog for a nearfall. Ambrose again went for the slingshot clothesline and Kane once again cut him off. Ambrose blocked a chokeslam and sent Kane over the top rope to the floor. Ambrose dove through the ropes with tope. At ringside, Kane rammed Ambrose into the ringpost. Kane draped Ambrose on the top turnbuckle and went for a superplex. Ambrose blocked it and shoved him off then dove off the top with a flying elbow drop on a standing Kane.
Ambrose climbed to the top again and dove off into a chop to the throat from Kane. Ambrose escaped the clutches of Kane when he went for a tombstone. On the third attempt, Ambrose hit his slingshot clothesline. Kane countered Dirty Deeds and Ambrose countered a chokeslam. A moment later, Ambrose rolled up Kane with a schoolboy for the pinfall.
Survivor Series is mere hours away at this point. This baby is totally free, so anyone paying for this pay-per-view is doing it all wrong. In total, there are five matches on the main card, including a traditional Survivor Series tag team main event. Without further ado, here are my predictions for tonight’s Survivor Series pay-per-view.
Fandango (with Rosa Mendes) vs. TBA
Although Fandango’s opponent has yet to be announced, I’d put my money on Adam Rose serving as the punching bag. The match will likely be used to further tension between Adam Rose and the Bunny, while also allowing Fandango to pick up a victory in his return to action.
Winner: Fandango by pinfall
Alicia Fox, Emma, Naomi, and Natalya vs. Paige, Cameron, Layla, and Summer Rae (Divas Elimination Match)
This will be similar to last year’s Divas elimination match in that it will be total waste of ten minutes (and if we’re really lucky, we might get to see it again on Raw tomorrow!). This could go in many directions, but my guess is that Paige’s team wins after last eliminating Natalya.
Winners: Paige, Cameron, Layla, and Summer Rae by pinfall
The following are complete spoiler results of the WWE SmackDown taping from Liverpool, England.
– Chris Jericho opens up the WWE SmackDown taping for this week. He comes out to a huge pop from the Liverpool audience. It’s time for the “Highlight Reel” segment. Jericho’s guests, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, make their way out to the ring. The fans break out in a “Where’s Our Network?!” chant, much like at Monday’s RAW, which was also taped in Liverpool, England. Not a lot of details about what was said, just that this was apparently a really good segment.
– Vince McMahon came out of nowhere and cut a promo at the top of the stage. He came out after some more “Where’s Our Network?!” chants broke out. He insulted the fans in attendance, saying that Liverpool sounds like a “skin disease.” This was apparently a dark segment that won’t air as part of the broadcast this Friday night. For a photo of Vince at the SmackDown taping in Liverpool, click here.
– Bray Wyatt def. Sin Cara in what was basically a brief squash match. Wyatt dominated from bell-to-bell, picking up the win with his “Sister Abigail” finisher for the 1-2-3. After the match, Wyatt cut a promo, which prompted Dean Ambrose to come out. Wyatt fled the scene before Ambrose could get to him. The segment ended with Wyatt at the top of the stage laughing at Ambrose.
– Goldust and Stardust def. Adam Rose and The Bunny in tag-team action. This was said to be a decent match, but mostly a comedy bout. They teased more issues between Rose and The Bunny.
– The talk within WWE is that they have a working plan to turn Randy Orton from his current heel character to a babyface in the near future. The current word going around is that the turn is planned for about three or four months from now, which would be around Royal Rumble time, meaning Orton would be a face during the build up to next year’s WrestleMania.
– WWE Diva Layla noted via social media recently that she is currently dating former WWE Superstar Ricky Ortiz in real life.
With Total Divas season three beginning this Sunday, September 7th, WWE fans will notice the newest member of the group Rosa Mendes on the show. This was a surprising move by WWE to add Mendes out of all the divas on the roster. She is never on WWE programming. Even when she was on, Mendes was only there for her looks as a valet.
WWE fans will already notice that WWE is going to showcase Mendes a bit more since she has become part of the Total Divas show. She teamed with Natalya against Summer Rae and Layla on the September 1st edition of Main Event.
With all this said, here are three better options WWE could have chosen for the newest member of Total Divas.
Layla
Speaking of Summer Rae’s new best friend, Layla would be a very appropriate addition to the E! reality show. Layla has had a very successful career in WWE. She is a former Women’s and Diva’s champion. Her run with Michelle McCool as LayCool was one of the best storylines divas were having at that time. WWE is capitalizing on the success of LayCool by having Summer Rae join Layla in the 2014 version.
With Layla partnering with a current member of Total Divas already in Summer Rae, the choice to add her to the show is a logical one. WWE fans would see how the two work together backstage before they enter ringside together as partners.
Alicia Fox
Alicia Fox is a diva who has an on again off again relationship with WWE programming. She had a great run as Divas Champion in 2010, but since then has been used as a jobber until a few months ago. Fox took on the role of a crazy diva, similar to AJ Lee, and found herself as the number one contender to the divas title. While she didn’t win the gold, at least she was showcased more temporarily.
Because of this run as the number one contender, she would be a logical choice to join Total Divas in season three. It wouldn’t be so obvious that WWE was only giving Fox TV time because of the show like they are doing with Mendes. Plus, Fox can play the role of a babyface or heel so WWE would have options with her direction on the show.
Eden
Cody Rhodes, I mean Stardust’s real life wife Eden would be an excellent addition to third season of Total Divas. Like Summer Rae and Eva Marie, Eden would give fans the prospective of a newcomer. However, unlike the other newbies, Eden would give viewers a look into the development of an announcer rather than a wrestler.
Eden also makes a great addition to the cast due to her relationship with Rhodes. Clearly WWE loves when the divas have real life relationships with their superstars. Nattie and Tyson Kidd, The Bellas with John Cena and Daniel Bryan. Eden would add a nice combination of being a newcomer and having a relationship with a WWE superstar.
Who do you think should have been the newest member of Total Divas? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
Seth Guttenplan is a math and computer technology teacher for special education students in New Jersey. In his free time, Seth writes about wrestling. Follow Seth on twitter @sethgutt
Eva Marie, who has previously eloped with her longtime boyfriend Jonathan Coyle, re-married the part-time Total Divas star in California recently. WWE had cameras at the ceremony to film the footage for a future edition of Total Divas, the third season of which premieres on Sunday, September 7th on E!.
WWE.com wrote the following regarding Marie and Coyle’s marriage:
Eva Marie marries Jonathan Coyle
Congratulations to Eva Marie on her official marriage to Jonathan Coyle!
Eva Marie, who had previously eloped with her boyfriend Coyle, sealed their union with a ceremony in Napa, Calif., that she dubbed the #RedWedding on Twitter. Eva’s fellow Divas Summer Rae, Cameron, Brie Bella, Nikki Bella and Layla were in attendance, as was an E! camera crew who captured the evening’s festivities for the upcoming season of “Total Divas,” which begins Sunday, Sept. 7, at 9/8 CT.
Former WWE Diva Michelle McCool took part in the ALS “Ice Bucket Challenge” recently. Prior to taking the ice bucket of water, McCool extended the challenge to Layla, Booker T, Chavo Guerrero, Vickie Guerrero, Chilli, MVP and her husband, The Undertaker.
Below is a video of McCool doing the “Ice Bucket Challenge.”
http://youtu.be/w2gLJBFmN7M
Her husband, The Undertaker, accepted the challenge. Below is his “Ice Bucket Challenge” video.
– Several wrestling legends, as well as current talent have been praising Paul Heyman and John Cena for their promo work in the opening segment of this past Monday’s RAW. WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, for example, tweeted the following:
@HeymanHustle serves up a tremendous promo for @JohnCena on #RAW. Cena returns fire with an A-1 promo. Great work by both guys. #wwe
– For those unaware, the agents used in the RAW segment with Roman Reigns and Kane on Monday night were Jamie Noble, Fit Finlay, Dean Malenko, Joey Mercury and Mike Rotunda. Reigns shoved Noble across the ring and speared Finlay. Finlay was actually trending on Twitter after the segment, as several fans noticed who he was.
– Also at RAW last night was former WWE Tag-Team Champion Sylvain Grenier.
– The following are the extras for WWE’s 2014 Money In The Bank DVD, which is scheduled for a July 29th release:
Daniel Bryan Interview (Money In the Bank Kickoff)
Fandango & Layla Interview
Money In The Bank Moment 1: Jack Swagger
Money In The Bank Moment 2: Daniel Bryan
Money In The Bank Moment 3: Dolph Ziggler
Money In The Bank Moment 4: Randy Orton
– Infamous Reddit user “Dolphins1925” had one of his worst prediction outings in recent memory, as he missed several of his picks for Sunday’s event. Dolphins, who for the longest time went flawless with his pay-per-view predictions, missed on the main event, picking Kane, as well as Summer Rae over Layla and Luke Harper & Erick Rowan over The Usos.
– Below is the official trailer for the “EXCUSE ME! – A Cougar Countdown” special on Vickie Guerrero, which airs on the WWE Network this Tuesday night at 9pm EST.
The following is the final card for tonight’s WWE Money In The Bank pay-per-view:
Money In The Bank Ladder Match (WWE World Heavyweight Championship)
– John Cena vs. Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton vs. Cesaro vs. Kane vs. Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio
Money In The Bank Ladder Match (Briefcase For Title Shot Up To One Year)
– Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Jack Swagger vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Bad News Barrett*
WWE Tag-Team Championship
– The Usos (c) vs. Luke Harper & Erick Rowan
WWE Divas Championship
Paige (c) vs. Naomi
Divas Match (Special Guest Referee: Fandango)
– Summer Rae vs. Layla
Tag-Team Match
– Goldust & Stardust vs. Ryback & Curtis Axel
Singles Match
– Rusev vs. Big E.
* – Barrett suffered a separated shoulder during the SmackDown taping this past Tuesday, however WWE has yet to announce whether or not he has been pulled from his match.
Make sure to join us here later tonight for the absolute best live play-by-play results coverage of the fifth annual WWE Money In The Bank pay-per-view!
