"That's wrestling, it is what it is" - Former independent wrestling star was close to joining WWE before Canyon Ceman got fired (Exclusive)

Salina de la Renta has revealed that she was close to joining WWE before Canyon Ceman's release in July 2021. The former MLW star is widely considered one of the top young talents in wrestling, and she opened up about her WWE tryout during this week's UnSKripted episode.

After experiencing a satisfying tryout session with the Stamford-based company, de la Renta had promising conversations with Canyon Ceman and Camille Levin, who were in the talent acquisition department.

Ceman told Salina that Vince McMahon's company was looking for a top Hispanic talent and felt she met all the requirements to become a WWE Superstar. However, he was ousted as the promotion's Senior Director of Talent Development, and Salina was informed about the unfortunate news through an email.

"When I was on my way out, I had a conversation with Canyon, and he was like, 'We're looking now for a young Latino talent, and this is going to be perfect,'" Salina recalled. "I should be calling you in like two days, and I was like, 'Perfect, then I would be hearing from you.' A month goes by, and nothing and I was like, what is happening," revealed Salina de la Renta. "And then I decided to email them, and I got an email back from them, the WWE, saying that these two people that I was contacting got fired. Welp, that's wrestling! It is what it is." [21:17 - 21:52]

Salina de la Renta on her WWE tryout experience

During her WWE tryout, Salina de la Renta got to work with several experienced coaches, and she got the chance to pick the brains of Norman Smiley and Drew Gulak, among others.

The Puerto Rican performer said that she showcased her in-ring skills and felt she looked more comfortable than other prospects that attended the tryout.

"I got to train with Norman Smiley, and I met Drew Gulak, and they were amazing," added de la Renta. "I actually started training with them, and unlike a lot of people that were there that were already signed that were very new, I actually knew how to wrestle from before. So, it was like muscle memory; it all came right back." [20:15 - 20:35]

While Salina was well-versed with the wrestling process, she learned many new aspects of the art form during her three days at the Performance Center.

"The Puerto Rican Power Broker" witnessed instant improvement in her wrestling and admitted that she enjoyed every second of her time during her audition.

"They were just teaching me the right ways, and I've been taught by so many different people how to wrestle, but until I was there, I really understood there is a different way to doing a lot of the things that I'm doing," Salina continued. "By just perfecting those little things, I could see my wrestling improving so much. I was only there for three days, but they were so amazing. An amazing experience." [20:37 - 21:16]

Salina de la Renta also revealed why she has no intentions of working with a 21-year wrestling veteran, and you can read more on that story here.

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