Laurel Van Ness is looking to leave Impact Wrestling, according to sources within the company.
Van Ness, aka Chelsea Green, girlfriend of WWE superstar Zack Ryder, has reportedly asked to be released from her contract following the most recent set of Impact Wrestling episode tapings. Impact has thus far not provided an official response or set a date for Van Ness to leave the company.
The news of Impact's bad fortune was revealed on the most recent edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, where host Dave Meltzer stated that Van Ness was dissatisfied with Impact's management and had been angling to leave since the first day of filming.
This puts Impact in a tight spot, as Van Ness actually won the Knockouts Championship during recordings last November, defeating Rosemary to win the recently vacated title after Gail Kim retired. That episode is set to air on Dec. 7, 2017, making it difficult for Impact to write her out of the Championship in an extremely short time frame.
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Meltzer alluded to the fact that Van Ness may have kept Impact management in the dark about her intentions to leave. Impact was angling to give Van Ness a bigger role in the promotion, as evident by the fact she was about to become Knockouts Champion. With Gail Kim’s recent retirement, Impact had been scrambling to find a replacement to be the new face of Knockouts, and Van Ness’s psychotic, Harley Quinn-esque gimmick seemed to be working well for her.
Rumors are swirling that Van Ness’ eagerness to be released may have something to do with her return to the WWE. Green was briefly on WWE’s Tough Enough where she appeared as Daniel Bryan’s physical therapist. Now, it's rumored that WWE wants to bring her onto the roster - a prospect that seemed too good to pass up for Van Ness.
Van Ness signed with Impact back in 2016, and would soon form an on-screen relationship with fellow wrestler Braxton Sutter. After being left at the altar by Sutter, Van Ness began her maniacal persona by appearing in her trashed wedding dress, wrestling barefoot and carrying an empty wine bottle. She got jilted again after Grado proposed and subsequently called off the wedding after finding out Van Ness was Canadian.
Seems that the jilted lover angle is getting old for Van Ness. If she goes, she’ll be joining MJ Jenkins, Taryn Terrell, and Madison Rayne as recent Knockouts deserters.