Leigh Laurel to continue wrestling after WWE release

Jin Tala, who performed under the ring name Leigh Laurel, said Monday that she will continue her wrestling career after being among several NXT and Performance Center talents released by WWE in October 2025. In a post on Instagram, Tala reflected on her time with the company, described discovering a passion for professional wrestling and disputed suggestions that she lacked commitment.

"I found my passion, and I was all in," Tala wrote, adding that she had worked to improve weaknesses in promos and in-ring technique by drawing on coaching at the Performance Center and lessons from visiting main roster talent. She said recent matches showed development in both character work and aggression in the ring, and that, despite the release, she intends to keep pursuing wrestling. "At the end of the day, the only person I have to prove my worth to is me. I'm not giving up," she wrote.

Tala was part of the first season of WWE's reality series LFG and later appeared for the EVOLVE brand before joining WWE's developmental system. Her final WWE matches included a loss to Tyra Mae Steele on October 4 at an NXT live event in Gainesville, Florida, and a July appearance for EVOLVE in a Womens...