"Happy Retirement" - WWE's Zelina Vega reacts to major star's heartbreaking announcement

Zelina Vega had a rough start on WWE SmackDown heading into WrestleMania 41 as she was defeated by Piper Niven. Meanwhile, the wrestling world was shocked when Homicide announced his heartbreaking retirement from in-ring competition, and Vega sent him a message.

Homicide has been in the wrestling industry for three decades as an active performer and broke barriers as a wrestler of color across the globe. Unfortunately, the 48-year-old star had to end his career due to a cyst in his brain and retired from wrestling following his last match in New York.

Many in the industry reacted to the heartbreaking announcement as no one saw it coming. Recently, Zelina Vega, who was once known as Rosita in TNA Wrestling, where she shared the locker room with Homicide, sent the veteran a heartfelt message after he announced his retirement from in-ring competition.

"Happy Retirement OG! Love you Dee! 187! Thank you for changing the game and reppin for us for so long. Much respect!" Vega wrote.

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Zelina Vega lost her first match back on WWE SmackDown

Last year, Zelina Vega started to stand out on her own and away from the Latino World Order when she went head-to-head against Liv Morgan. Later, she entered the tournament to become the first-ever Women's Intercontinental Champion but failed to win it.

Earlier this year, she was moved to Friday Night SmackDown and parted ways with the Latino World Order. The 34-year-old WWE star slowly made her presence felt on the blue brand as she eyed Chelsea Green and the Women's United States Championship.

However, title matches aren't given away for no reason, and Piper Niven decided to take a stand against the potential challenger for Green's title. On the latest edition of WWE SmackDown, Niven went one-on-one against Vega in Bologna, Italy alongside Chelsea Green's Regime.

After a series of distractions from the faction outside, Piper Niven hit a running crossbody to win the match. It'll be interesting to see whether Zega secures a title match for Chelsea Green's United States Championship heading into WrestleMania 41.