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Lena Yada recently shed light on why she only appeared in one match on WWE television before leaving the company.
Yada featured in two Diva Search contests before signing a contract with WWE in November 2007. The 45-year-old worked as a backstage interviewer and on-screen valet before making her in-ring debut on the November 3, 2008, episode of RAW. Seven days later, she received her release.
On Ring the Belle, Yada said she was taking care of her father at the time after he underwent a double lung transplant. WWE's higher-ups wanted her to relocate to work on her in-ring skills, but she chose not to:
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"They wanted me to go to Tampa to train more, and I couldn't commit to that because I was still taking care of my father," Yada stated. "For them, as a company, they were questioning my commitment to the company, which when you're thinking from a business perspective, yes, and black and white, cut and dry, my commitment to the company was going to come second to my family." [27:38 – 27:59]
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In her only televised match, Yada teamed up with Beth Phoenix, Jillian Hall, Katie Lea, Layla, Maryse, Natalya, and Victoria. They defeated Brie Bella, Candice Michelle, Eve Torres, Kelly Kelly, Mae Young, Michelle McCool, Mickie James, and Tiffany. Yada did not get tagged in during the 93-second encounter.
Lena Yada on comparisons to former WWE wrestler Gail Kim
WWE re-signed another Asian star, Gail Kim, toward the end of Lena Yada's run with the company.
It was widely speculated that Kim's return played a part in Yada's departure, but the former WWE Diva does not believe that was the case:
"There's been all these rumors because Gail Kim was appearing backstage at that time," Yada continued. "There was a crossover, and perhaps, we can speculate all we want, maybe they were sending me to train more to give her the limelight and maybe they were gonna pair us off together, maybe we were gonna see where things go, we don't know." [28:12 – 28:30]
Yada added that people used to think she looked like Kim, so much so that co-workers often confused them backstage.
Do you have any memories of Lena Yada in the wrestling business? Let us know in the comments section below.
Please credit Ring the Belle and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.
