Departing WWE personality pens emotional message after final appearance on SmackDown; addresses Cody Rhodes and Triple H's reactions

After nearly eight years, a WWE personality made her final appearance on SmackDown last night ahead of her departure from the company. After Cody Rhodes bid farewell to her after SmackDown went off-air, she penned an emotional message stating that she could not have asked for a "better goodbye."

The name in question is none other than Kayla Braxton. The 33-year-old joined the Stamford-based company in 2016 and has worked in several roles, including being a backstage interviewer on WWE programming. However, she recently decided to leave the company as her contract expired. She made her final appearance on SmackDown last night.

After the show, Cody Rhodes invited his former colleague on the stage for her to bid farewell to the crowd. Earlier today, she took to Instagram to share the emotional moment with The American Nightmare, penning a heartfelt message in which she addressed Cody and the fans. Braxton also disclosed that Chief Content Officer Triple H and others were waiting for her backstage after that emotional moment to congratulate her:

"I'm so overwhelmed. So thankful. Wow. I still can't put what last night meant to me into words. But to have @americannightmarecody buying me out into MSG to bid my farewell to all of you while @tripleh and members of my WWE family were waiting for me in the back to congratulate me … I couldn't have asked for a better goodbye. This family is truly special and I plan to always be a part of it. I love you all more than you know. And thanks to one of my closest friends @viewsfromsant for capturing this moment. Love you so much.❤️"

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Kayla Braxton will step away from the wrestling industry after leaving WWE

After announcing her exit from the Stamford-based company, rumors suggested that Kayla Braxton could join AEW. However, the former SmackDown backstage interviewer took to X (formerly Twitter) to debunk those rumors.

The 33-year-old revealed that she plans to step away from the wrestling business following her departure:

"The support from u guys has been overwhelming. I am so thankful for u. But I did wanna make 1 thing clear as I enter my final week in WWE: if I wanted to keep working in wrestling, I wouldn't be walking away from the largest wrestling company in the world. Nice try, rumor weeds!"

Braxton's work in the Stamford-based company has been appreciated by many fans and experts. It will be interesting to see the next step for the former host of The Bump.

What did you think of Kayla Braxton's eight-year WWE run? Hit the discuss button and sound off.