Carmella is officially retired, and she wants everyone to know it’s a good thing.
On the latest episode of her podcast, Hot Mom Sh*t, Carmella (real name Leah Van Dale) sat down with businesswoman and author Laura Clery to talk relationships and mom life. Somewhere in the middle of it, she made the call official.
“I’m a Mom. I Have Kids. I’m Retired.”
The topic came up while Carmella was describing how she met her husband, WWE commentator Corey Graves. Here’s the exchange, transcribed by Fightful (h/t Hot Mom Sh*t for the interview, h/t Fightful for the transcription):
“We worked together and met through work. We worked together all the time, and then we were home. I related a little bit to your book when you were saying, ‘Our dates were half romance, half business planning.’ We did that. Luckily, I don’t…I’m retired now. It’s definitely a little bit different,” Carmella said.
When Clery said she loved that Carmella is retired, Carmella confirmed it in the plainest terms possible: “I was a professional wrestler. I can’t wrestle anymore. I’m a mom. I have kids. I’m retired.”
She hasn’t wrestled since 2023, when she stepped away from WWE to give birth to her first son. She’s dealt with drop foot, a nerve-related pregnancy complication, ever since. Carmella and Graves welcomed their second son this past October.
Carmella also gave a glimpse of what “retired” actually looks like day to day, telling Clery that her toddler hasn’t quite figured out the new arrangement yet (h/t Slam Wrestling for the transcription):
“My two-year-old does not understand because my husband travels so much for work still. I’ll be like, ‘Okay, I have to go work.’ And he’s like, ‘But you’re going downstairs.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, but that’s mommy’s work.’ I know he doesn’t understand but it is funny.”
The Career She’s Walking Away From
Carmella leaves the business with a real resume. She won the first-ever Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match in 2017, then cashed in the following April to beat Charlotte Flair for the SmackDown Women’s Championship. She defended it against Flair again at Backlash and then against Asuka at Money in the Bank 2018, becoming just the second Superstar to beat Asuka in a singles match at the time.
She later added a WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship reign alongside Queen Zelina Vega in 2021, on top of stints on Total Divas that made her one of the more recognizable faces of that era’s roster.
Carmella and Graves got married in April 2022, welcomed son Dimitri Paul Polinsky in November 2023, and added son Bram Julian Polinsky this past October. These days, the only title she’s chasing is the one on her podcast.
