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Recently Released WWE Superstar Feels She Never Received 'Fair Opportunity'

Despite asking for the opportunity to get in the ring more, Elektra Lopez was rarely given the chance prior to her WWE release.
Rick Ucchino|
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WWE logo | WWE

Karissa Rivera, formerly known as Elektra Lopez, is speaking out for the first time since her release from WWE.

The former manager for Legado Del Fantasma was let go back in February in a round of roster cuts that included Sonya Deville, AOP, Paul Ellering, Isla Dawn, The Good Brothers and multiple others.

Rivera was a guest on a recent episode of The Fan's View Podcast and said that she was definitely surprised when she was informed that she would longer be working for WWE. That news came just days after what turned out to be her last televised appearance.

"We had just gotten assigned a new writer. I was super excited. I had been pitching ideas for months. I was saying I wanted to be on live events and wanted to work with girls, because I want to wrestle. I don't want to just manage. I don't mind managing, but I want to be able to do both because of how it was when I was in NXT, I was mostly managing them and I wanted it to be different because I wanted to wrestle."

Karissa was adamant that she could both manage and wrestle. She wanted to build a name for herself, instead of just standing in the shadows of her male cohorts in Legado Del Fantasma.

She feels she was never properly given that opportunity prior to getting the call that she was being released from her contract.

"No reason given. Nothing. Again, I'm not saying anything bad about anybody, I don't want that to be misconstrued, but I had worked so hard for this and I feel like I wasn't given a fair opportunity. If I were given an opportunity and I failed, I can understand it, but you didn't really give me an opportunity to show you what I can do when I'm more than just a manager. You brought me up to be in the role and put me in a box and then you cut me because it didn't work out. You didn't let me open that box and show you what I can do."
Elektra Lopez

Rivera ended up being cut on the one year anniversary that she was brought up to the main roster from NXT.

She wrestled in just four matches on the main roster. The final one came in December of last year in the Women's United States Title Tournament. Karissa has not yet wrestled since leaving WWE.

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Rick Ucchino
RICK UCCHINO

Rick Ucchino is the Assistant Editor & Content Coordinator for The Takedown on SI. He also works full-time for 700WLW Radio in Cincinnati, Ohio as a local news and sports anchor, in addition to his time covering the Cincinnati Bengals for Sirius XM. Rick has been on the professional wrestling beat since 2019, having provided coverage for a number of outlets, including Fightful, SB Nation’s Cageside Seats and the Bleav Podcast Network. With an educational background in theater, creative writing and journalism, Rick focuses primarily on the storytelling aspect of pro wrestling, but he’s no stranger to the squared circle himself. He had the privilege of training with former WWE & WCW cruiserweight Jimmy Wang Yang for nearly two years and retired early due to back issues with a perfect 1-0 record in singles competition. Rick is a married father of two incredibly adorable children, who are budding pro wrestling fans themselves. Much to the chagrin of their mother. You can reach Rick at rwucchino@gmail.com

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