Released star wins major championship outside WWE

A former WWE Superstar recently won championship gold outside the Stamford-based company. The star recently returned to the squared circle for the first time following her release from the Stamford-based promotion.

Former NXT Women's Champion Indi Hartwell was released from her contract by the global juggernaut on November 1, 2024. The Aussie returned to the squared circle earlier today at the Northcote Theatre in Melbourne after fulfilling WWE's 90-day non-compete clause.

In her in-ring return, Indi Hartwell challenged Aysha for the Renegades of Wrestling Women's Championship. The 28-year-old put forth an impressive performance to emerge victorious and lift the title.

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Indi Hartwell opens up about her WWE release

In a surprise turn of events, WWE let go of three stars in November 2024. While the wrestling promotion released Indi Hartwell and Tegan Nox from their contracts, former Money in the Bank winner Baron Corbin was not offered a new deal after his contract expired.

Indi Hartwell opened up about her WWE departure a few days after her exit. She noted that the release felt unexpected after regular television appearances for a few weeks. However, Hartwell claimed she handled it very well and was focused more on the positives.

"A week ago today, I was released from my WWE contract, and it’s been a weird week of different feelings and emotions. It’s still pretty fresh, but honestly, I can say that I’m doing well, and I’m feeling good. Now, I’m sure a lot of people can say, ‘How didn’t you see this coming? You should have seen this coming.’ But honestly, the past few weeks, like maybe two or three weeks of being back on TV, I didn’t have that feeling at all, and I didn’t expect it. But, I took it like a champ. Honestly, the positive experiences that I had there and all my positive feelings, they outweigh any negative feelings. I am very much looking on the bright side of things. I love to keep perspective. So, that's why I feel like I've been so positive about this and I hope that's evident in the message that I put out on Instagram," she said. [From 6:24 onwards]

You can check out Indi Hartwell's comments in the video below:

Indi Hartwell has started her journey following her unexpected release in the best way possible. It will be interesting to see what lies ahead for the Aussie following her championship win.