Tessa Blanchard made her return to TNA Wrestling at TNA Final Resolution in December, attacking Jordynne Grace.
Blanchard parted ways with the company during the pandemic after a fallout while she was the reigning TNA World Champion. Blanchard took time away from wrestling for the majority of 2020 through 2022 before taking consistent bookings in 2023.
Speaking to Battle on Battleground, Blanchard discussed her break from wrestling return.
"I decided to go back to wrestling when CMLL called me, and go out to Mexico, and I fell in love out there. Fell in love with the country, the culture, the people, Arena Mexico. It solidified the fact and reassured me that I still am great and I can still do this, and this is where I need to be: in a ring. TNA and I had talks way back in January (2024) and Hard to Kill. For me, it didn't seem like the right time to go back. I was happy in Mexico. I had finally found my happiness again. I know how much anxiety I had acquired over the past few years. It's hard to explain anxiety if you don't experience it. It's like a weight on your chest that you can't get off. For me, personally, I shut down and closed myself off. I can't really speak about it. I was like, 'I'm happy in Mexico. These people don't judge me. These people don't think something about me. These people don't have any preconceived notions, and I can just wrestle and do what I love. I don't want to give that up.' It didn't seem like the right time.
"I talked to Scott (D'Amore) and Gail (Kim) at the time, and it didn't seem right, so we didn't do it. Months and months later, looking at my life, I'm 29 years old now, I always said in my head, I have a good solid number in my head of when I don't want to be a wrestler past, and one day I would like to have a family. Putting all of those things into perspective and prioritizing what I need to prioritize, I was like, maybe now is the time that I need to jump in and see if there is something there. See if there is a chance to return, and not be the exact same Tessa that I was because I'm such a different woman now, but see if there is still success for me out there, doing what I love. Speaking to Gail and Ariel (Shnerer), it seemed like a good time to try it out and return."
Blanchard once again stated that she is not signed to TNA.
She is set to face Grace at TNA Genesis on Sunday, January 19. Fans can check out the lineup for the show by clicking here.
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