Ex-WWE star says she was gaslighted, ignored, and released two days later

WWE usually cuts several wrestlers from its roster after WrestleMania every year. In a new interview, the recently released Elayna Black disclosed details about a disappointing meeting shortly before her departure.

Black performed as Cora Jade on WWE's NXT brand for four years. Although the 24-year-old won the NXT Tag Team Championship with Roxanne Perez, she never held a singles title in WWE.

On Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Black revealed she had a problem with one of WWE's higher-ups. She accused the unnamed person of "gaslighting" after a conversation about creative ideas two days before her exit was confirmed.

"I had set aside my personal feelings for this person, given so many ideas, was very professional," Black said. "We had what I felt was a great conversation. He's pulling out his laptop, typing out all these ideas, basically gaslighting me, and then two days later I get fired. So, it was like, why even do that? Why have me give you all these ideas?" [6:50 – 7:16]

Black also discussed the meeting in a separate interview on Mandy Rose's Power Alphas podcast. She clarified that the person was not NXT coach Matt Bloom, booker Shawn Michaels, or main roster creative figurehead Triple H.

Elayna Black claims text to WWE higher-up was ignored

In her final match as Cora Jade, Elayna Black lost to Sol Ruca at an untelevised live event on April 25. She also appeared in a storyline with Roxanne Perez on NXT before her release.

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Black went on to criticize the higher-up for failing to reply to a text message about her ideas:

"You asked me to come in for this meeting. I had asked to have a meeting prior, but you asked me to come in on that day at that time, typing in, 'All these ideas are great,' and then [released] two days later, and then can't even respond to a text. Like, come on." [7:17 – 7:34]

In the same interview, Black addressed whether she could tempt former Divas Champion AJ Lee out of retirement one day.

Please credit Insight with Chris Van Vliet and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.

About the author

Danny Hart is a journalist who has been reporting on pro wrestling (WWE) at Sportskeeda since 2017. He grew up as a massive fan of football/soccer and wrestling, leading him to pursue a career in sports journalism.

Before assuming his current role, Hart worked as a football writer at Goal.com between 2009 and 2016. He prides himself on writing original content that is fact-based and highly accurate. Hart thoroughly proofreads his work before submitting it and relies only on credible sources for information.

Hart’s favorite pro wrestler is The Undertaker. He admires the 2022 WWE Hall of Famer’s ability to reinvent his character and remain relevant across his decades-long career. If given the keys to WWE’s creative department, he would bring back The Phenom for a farewell bout against AJ Styles in a stadium full of fans. Not only that, but he would love to have the multi-time world champion’s greatest rivals seated at ringside for the spectacle.

When not watching and covering sports, Hart enjoys long-distance running, playing video games, and listening to audiobooks and podcasts.

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Edited by Danny Hart