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What’s the story?
In an interview with the WWE, Carmella opened up on a myriad of topics.
Carmella revealed the reason she chose to cash in her Money In The Bank contract on the SmackDown Live episode after WrestleMania 34, and not at ‘Mania itself. Besides, Carmella spoke about how she felt upon winning her first title in WWE; while also addressing her social media detractors.
In case you didn’t know…
Carmella, whose real name is Leah Van Dale, has performed for WWE since 2013—boasting an athletic background in dancing and cheerleading.
Carmella performed in NXT until her main-roster call-up to SmackDown Live in 2016.
“Princess Mella” won the inaugural Women’s Money In The Bank ladder match last year, and successfully cashed in her contract on Charlotte Flair on the SmackDown Live episode after WrestleMania 34 last month—winning the WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship.
The heart of the matter
Carmella explained that the primary reason she didn’t cash in her Money In The Bank contract at WrestleMania 34 is that considering the sheer volume of big moments at ‘Mania, she didn’t want her moment to get lost in the shuffle.
Carmella added that the post-WrestleMania SmackDown Live episode was the perfect opportunity for her to cash in the contract, given that everyone would be talking about her moment—besides, her parents and family were also present at the tapings.
Additionally, Carmella elucidated that upon winning the SmackDown Women’s title, the first thoughts that came to her mind were being the last draft pick from NXT, not debuting on the main-roster with Cass & Enzo, people doubting her, and things of the sort.
The blue brand’s reigning queen continued that she loves proving people wrong, and regardless of what they say about her, she’s still champion and did it her way. Carmella also spoke about the social media detractors who opine that the only reason she’s champion is that The IIconics attacked Charlotte Flair before ‘Mella cashed in—
“At the end of the day, it doesn't matter what anyone thinks I deserve—I don't deserve anything; I earn it—I worked hard and put in the effort. People say that I went off what The IIconics did, but that's what every single Money in the Bank holder did—wait for the perfect opportunity.”
“You don't just wait for the champion to be up and then have a normal title opportunity—you have to be sneaky. You have to do it in the way that guarantees a title win. I didn't want to cash in and lose it—at the end of the day, I don't care what anyone says because I did everything the way I wanted to do it, and I won.”
What’s next?
Carmella is presently the reigning SmackDown Women’s Champion, and experts believe that she’s likely to continue being featured as a top-tier talent on the WWE’s blue brand in the months to come.
Author’s take
Carmella is excellent on the mic and seems to be steadily improving on the mat as well.
The Princess of Staten Island is spot-on with her analysis of the social media hate directed towards her since one can’t possibly fault her for taking advantage of an incapacitated champion, in order to cash in and win championship gold.
