Former WWE Star Shotzi Talks Returning To The Independent Scene Following Release
Since her departure from WWE, Shotzi has returned to the Independent Circuit, where she seems to be not only enjoying herself but already experiencing success amongst the Indie audience. Not too long ago, Shotzi was asked about her experience now that she's back on the Indies as well as her thoughts on the self-proclaimed Indy God, Matt Cardona, who set the blueprint for wrestlers to succeed after WWE.
"It's bittersweet because I loved my time with WWE, but you know what? I haven't been doing anything for a while, so it feels good to come back to the indies and just start off so hot!" she expressed during an interview with "Podcast Heat Wrestling." Shotzi further expressed that she's excited to wrestle anywhere now and that she looks at her 2025 wrestling schedule with pride. "This is, like, the biggest the Indies has ever been, like, I am coming back to the Indies at it's peak!" she added.
Shotzi then clarified why she's currently targeting Cardona, explaining that it's simply because he's at the top of the mountain and the Indies are like "Game of Thrones." "I want to sit in the Indie Iron Throne, and if I want to sit on it, I have to take out the king! And right now, Matt Cardona is the king; we all know it," she said. "Some of us don't want him to be there, but I will gladly take him out and become the new Indy God!"
'I was right on the cusp of becoming, like, The Guy!'
Shotzi was also asked why she's embracing her current run on the Independent Circuit so deeply, to which she explained that this is essentially a second chance for her. "I've done it before. Like, when I left the Indies, I was right on the cusp of becoming, like, 'The Guy!'" she explained. "I was starting to get booked everywhere, starting to get flown internationally, and then I got signed. So, I never really got to see my full potential as an independent wrestler." Shotzi also added that her WWE run has actually given her more legitimacy on the Indies.
"Right now, I am just focused on doing me, having fun, and just growing as a wrestler, because I haven't been doing much the last couple years I was with WWE," she explained. "I feel like I lost myself, and I feel like, you know, wasn't growing much as a wrestler...So, now, it's time to reestablish who I am and show the world!"
Additionally, Shotzi was asked whether or not she would step into Matt Cardona's specialty – Deathmatches – and face off against the "Indy God." "You know what? I would. I would give him a death match, but he said that he retired, and he said that he would only come out for Nick Gage, so I don't know. Maybe there's a really awesome three-way right there, you know what I'm saying?" she noted.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Podcast Heat Wrestling" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.