Steph De Lander Comments On TNA Departure

The now former TNA star Steph De Lander has commented on her decision to leave the company.

Earlier this week, it was reported that De Lander and her husband Mance Warner had quit TNA over their refusal to clear De Lander as a wrestler after she underwent spinal fusion surgery in October 2024.

Speaking with TMZ, De Lander reiterated that she received medical clearance from WWE's spinal surgeon. TNA, however, were unmoved and informed her that they would not let her wrestle moving forward, leading her to hand in her notice:

"I actually went to WWE's spinal surgeon to do the surgeries and I got clearance a few weeks ago.

"I received a phone call on Monday of this week that basically they never wanted to let me wrestle at TNA again. They just didn't feel comfortable with that. So then I made the decision to leave, and my husband did too in solidarity".

Continuing, De Lander claimed that TNA's decision was of a personal nature and alleged that the company didn't evaluate her medical history or consult her surgeon before making it.

"I was like, 'Well, I'm literally fully cleared'. And he [TNA President Carlos Silva] said, 'Yep, not into it'. And then I asked, 'Do you know what my injury is?'. And he didn't know. He couldn't tell me what my injury was. It's definitely based off personal feelings. I have not been evaluated by any medical professional on the TNA end. They haven't evaluated my medical history. They haven't contacted my surgeon. They haven't looked at any of my medical stuff. It's just they made a personal decision", she said.

De Lander added that she paid for her surgery and physical therapy herself. She also stressed that she had a one-level fusion, noting it as something many wrestlers in WWE and AEW have come back from to wrestle.

H/T F4W Online