Alba Fyre clears up WWE departure, was not released
Though she departed WWE in the company’s post-WrestleMania 42 roster cuts, Kay Lee Ray was not actually released from her contract.
The former Alba Fyre made her in-ring return for Pro Wrestling Eve in the United Kingdom on June 5. With her return coming just over a month after news of her departure broke, KLR clearly did not have a 90 day non-compete clause like some of the other wrestlers who were let go. She clarified in an interview with Daily Star that, rather than being released, her WWE departure was a non-renewal. She knew her deal was coming up and had been deciding whether to stay or leave at the time the roster cuts happened.
“My contract was up,” KLR said. “And I knew it was coming up and I had the decision of whether I wanted to stay or not. I know some other people got fired and they have the 90 days clause, but because mines was just contract ending, that means I didn’t have the 90 days and I was able to come and do this [Eve show]. And do it as like kind of a surprise but it wasn’t really a surprise. But, yeah, really glad that it worked out this way.”
KLR’s return to Eve was not officially announced in advance, but it was heavily hinted at. She answered an open challenge from Molly Spartan and got the victory with a Swanton. Her next Eve match will be on July 3 against UK indie wrestler Rhio. The winner becomes the number one contender to Eve International Champion Miyu Yamashita.
Kay Lee Ray sums up her WWE career —
During her WWE run, KLR was featured in NXT UK, NXT, and the main roster. She was on SmackDown prior to her departure and had been aligned with Chelsea Green and Piper Niven. While some fans wanted her to be involved in a more serious angle, KLR told Daily Star that she loved the Secret Hervice and had a lot of fun. She enjoys both serious and comedic professional wrestling.
Daily Star asked KLR to sum up her time in WWE.
“I had fun,” she responded. “Honestly, like, from start to end. I got the job that I wanted to and I had fun while I was doing it with my friends. And now I get to come back and almost start again — yeah, fun.”
The 33-year-old KLR is from Scotland and was already a star on the UK indies prior to her WWE career, including championship reigns for ICW and Eve.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.