Layla El may not be among the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Divas who immediately come to mind but she has been around. And now at 38 years of age, the former WWE Divas champion and Diva Search winner is stepping away from the WWE, a decision that she claims was pretty hard to make.
El first made her way into the WWE scene winning the Diva Search in 2006. She stayed on with the company, quietly as many may figure, but rose to the limelight in 2010 when she became the WWE Divas champion.
El made the formal announcement via WWE.com, citing that she plans to move on to the next chapter of her life. She also mentioned that the heavy traveling in the last nine years somehow took a toll on her, adding that she needs to take time out and recover.
"Traveling on the road was fun, but the older you get, it takes more time for recovery. I just got tired of the travel part," she said in an interview via WWE.com.
As to what her future plans are, Layla says that she doesn't have anything lined up just yet, although she did mention in the same interview that she could probably do some TV shows or even do some choreography work.
She could also choose to settle down since Layla is engaged to former wrestler Richard Young, who is better known in the wrestling world as Richard Ortiz.
Aside from being a WWE Diva, Layla has also made a living dancing. She used to dance for the Miami Heat and also for other celebrities like Kanye West and P. Diddy before joining the WWE Diva Search.
In parting, Layla issued a statement to the WWE, with a note to her fans saying, "'Thank you'" for always being loyal to me. They've seen me through my good times and in my bad times. In one of the first interviews when I won the Diva Search, I said to the fans, 'I won't let you down,' and I truly feel like I can walk away saying I have attained anything that any Diva was able to attain."
