During her tenure with WWE, former five-time women’s champion Melina made a strong mark during a period when women's wrestling wasn't prominent in the company. Melina eventually departed from the WWE in 2011, but still wrestles on the independent scene.
Despite having such a strong presence during her time with the promotion, the former women’s champion is rarely acknowledged during this day and age, and she has surprisingly not been called back for pervious events such as the Royal Rumble or the first-ever all-women’s pay-per-view, Evolution.
The former WWE superstar spoke with Lilian Garcia on her ‘Chasing Glory’ podcast and was questioned on whether there’s any ill will towards the company for not being invited back. Melina makes it clear that she’s happy with what she accomplished during her time in the WWE, and doesn’t have any negative feelings towards not being welcomed back (transcript courtesy of fightful.com):
“I’m okay, because maybe that plays a factor. I don’t know, but I’m secure in what I’ve done, and I’ve come to terms -- I guess back then before people started acknowledging me because it was not until recently people were looking back at videos and matches that I’ve had and actually really appreciating them or being able to be open about it, because it was taboo to like Melina, and now people are starting to see it and it makes me… when people tell me I’m gonna be in the Hall Of Fame and what not, I tell them it’s okay if I’m not. Like I saw Chyna and Chyna, she deserved to be in it and she wasn’t in it for so long that I’m like, ‘See, that’s proof right there that even a person who’s deserving…’ I knew she was supposed to be in there but she wasn’t and it’s okay because I’m not in there doesn’t mean I wasn’t deserving."
"I was secure in what I accomplished, and Melina, the human being Melina will survive regardless. It’s a hard thing. Sometimes when your TV or wrestling persona is no longer valued, it kinda hurts a person’s ego and how they carry themselves in their real life and I know that’s painful. But I realized, I’m still okay. I’m still Melina, I’m still strong, I’m still creative, I’m still happy, and that’s the part I needed to find was to find that happiness and that value outside of the ring.”
Check out the
full interview where Melina speaks about other moments that were the highlight of her career and much more.