Jin Tala made it clear she wasn’t going to spend life after WWE sitting around waiting for another phone call. Nearly a year after her release, all that work on the independent scene has now taken her somewhere considerably bigger.
During the latest set of ROH television tapings at WJCT Studios, Tala, now competing under her real name Leigh Laurel, made her debut for the promotion. Her first opponent was no small assignment either, as Laurel stepped into the ring against The IInspiration’s Cassie Lee.
Since WWE released her from its developmental system in October 2025, Laurel has been keeping busy across the independent scene and working on becoming the wrestler she believes she needs to be for another major opportunity. ROH has now become the latest destination in that post-WWE run.
The timing is particularly interesting considering what Laurel recently said about her future. While speaking to Women’s Wrestling Talk, she made it clear she would gladly return to WWE if another opportunity came along, but she doesn’t want to go back as the same wrestler who was released.
“If WWE were to call me back, I would, you know, gladly accept. But I think before I go back, I want to make sure that I’m, like, as prepared as possible.”
For Laurel, that means improving virtually everything. She specifically mentioned her promos, character work and wrestling as areas she wants completely sharpened before another major opportunity comes her way.
“I want to make sure my promos are sharpened. I want to make sure my character is sharpened. I want to make sure my wrestling is sharpened.
WWE isn’t the only possibility she has been preparing herself for either. Laurel previously named AEW and TNA while explaining that her bigger goal is becoming someone any major promotion can put on television and trust to deliver.
“So that way, if I get a call from WWE, if I get a call from AEW, if I get a call from TNA, wherever, I know that I can be put on TV and I can perform.”
Now Laurel has found herself inside an ROH ring, and doing it against someone as experienced as Cassie Lee gives her an immediate opportunity to show how much progress she has made since leaving WWE.
Whether this was simply an ROH appearance or the beginning of something more remains to be seen. There’s no indication yet that Laurel has signed with the promotion, but after spending nearly a year trying to prove she can deliver when another major opportunity arrives, she just got the chance to do exactly that.
What did you make of Leigh Laurel showing up in ROH, and would you like to see the promotion sign the former Jin Tala? Let us know in the comments.
