Tessa Blanchard has been terminated from her contract with IMPACT Wrestling.
IMPACT Wrestling has terminated Tessa Blanchard’s contract and stripped its historic world champion of its top title. Blanchard was set to defend the championship at Slammiversary on July 18 against Eddie Edwards.
Per PWInsider (h/t Wrestling Inc), Blanchard’s departure came after the two sides failed to come to terms on a new contract. Blanchard’s departure is not related to any of the recent controversies that plagued her earlier this year. A tumultuous run with the outlier promotion, Blanchard came under fire this past January after several wrestlers came forward with allegations of bullying and racism.
From a talent standpoint alone, Blanchard’s termination should make her the top free agent in pro wrestling, even among a historically rich class following WWE’s massive layoffs in response to COVID-19. Despite her supreme talent while entering the prime of her career at the age of 24, Blanchard is a polarizing figure within the pro wrestling community.
Many of the women who spoke out against Blanchard were former colleagues of the now-former IMPACT world champion. Complaints against Blanchard ranged from her mistreatment of co-workers to allegedly racist remarks.
Blanchard released a statement on the matter, denying allegations of racism:
“While I did not do what was claimed, I stand stand ready to use my platform to support the fight against racism however I can.”
Blanchard now enters an uncertain free agent market. Neither industry-leading promotion (WWE and AEW) is looking to spend big money amid the continued spread of COID-19. Both promotions have been affected by the recent COVID-19 spike within the state of Florida. Multiple WWE employees, including announcers Renee Young and Kayla Braxton, confirmed they tested positive. Young’s husband, and AEW world champion, Jon Moxley was pulled from AEW Dynamite as a precautionary measure.
On-paper, Blanchard represents a much-needed addition to AEWs’ fledgling women’s division. She would also bolster a WWE women’s division in need of a change in status quo. The lack of parity within the women’d division was the subject of biting remarks from Paige on a recent edition of WWE Backstage.
Blanchard was the first woman to become IMPACT world champion. Whether or not her controversial past will overshadow her unquestioned talent will be a compelling story to follow throughout her free agency.
