Former WWE Women Who Faded Away After Retiring

There aren't many female wrestlers who can say that they have had a lengthy career, which means that there are a number of former wrestlers who have disappeared or faded away since they left the company. Wrestlers come and go, and while some still stay connected to the business in some way, some employees simply fade with time. Sometimes they become totally unrecognizable or get new jobs that once since inconceivable.

Everyone is replaceable in the wrestling business and this could be why many of these women have been released from the company over the past few years. While there are a number of women like Torrie Wilson and Trish Stratus who have remained in the headlines since their retirement, there are a few who haven't been able to stay in the spotlight and have for all intents and purposes faded away. There are a number of former wrestlers who have normal 9-5 jobs now that they have put their wrestling days behind them. This must have been hard to adapt to after their 15 minutes of fame came to an end.

The following list looks at just 15 wrestling women who have faded away ever since they left the business. Whether they had a lengthy wrestling career or a less than memorable stint, these are the women who have been off the radar of the WWE Universe ever since they laced up their boots that final time.

15 Aksana

Aksana made her WWE debut as part of the first and only ever all-female version of NXT. She was unable to win the competition but was involved in some interesting storylines with Goldust and Ted DiBiase during her time in NXT before she was promoted to the main roster.

Triple H was said to have been a huge fan of Aksana, which could be why she lasted as long as she did. She was released back in 2014 when the women of Total Divas began taking over the Women's Division and Aksana obviously didn't fit in. Following her surprising WWE release, Aksana went to work for a health club chain in Florida, before starting her own business as a personal trainer, a business that she has continued over the past few years.

14 Dawn Marie

Dawn Marie became a popular star in WWE when she became embroiled in a lesbian storyline with Torrie Wilson and her real-life father Al. The duo was part of a number of awkward segments before Dawn then married Torrie's father and he died on their wedding night while consummating the marriage.

Marie didn't add very much to the division at that time so it wasn't that much of a shock when WWE released her back in 2005 when she was on maternity leave. Since then Marie has gone on to marry and give birth to her second child. While Dawn has attempted to remain in the spotlight and worked for a number of promotions since her WWE release, she has now become accustomed to life as a full-time mother.

13 Ariel

The newer members of the WWE Universe won't even remember Ariel for her short stint in ECW when WWE attempted to rebrand the company back in 2005. Ariel was a vampiress who was seen alongside Kevin Thorn and even though she only had a handful of matches, she became popular with the ECW crowd and was seen as part of The New Breed during their feud with the ECW Originals.

She was released from WWE back in 2007 and then had a brief stint in Impact Wrestling where she was unable to make the desired impact. The former ECW star is now considered to be retired from the wrestling business, but instead uses her skill set as she fights as part of the Lingerie Fighting Championship where she has been quite successful.

12 Victoria

Victoria is a former Women's Champion in WWE and Knockout's Champion in TNA under the ring name Tara, but Victoria was unable to create a legacy much like the ones that surrounded Trish Stratus and Lita, who were part of the company at the same time as her.

Victoria has been part of a number of business ventures outside of WWE, she owned a custom car shop back in 2009 before later moving on to own The Squared Circle Restaurant alongside her husband, but after opening in 2013, the restaurant closed a few years later. Victoria has remained in the wrestling business since she left TNA and currently works on the Independent Circuit, it was a shock that she wasn't invited back to WWE for the Women's Royal Rumble earlier this year.

11 Stacy Carter

Stacy Carter was known as both Miss Kitty and The Kat during her time in WWE, a company that she was introduced to by her husband Jerry 'The King' Lawler. Carter had a lot of heat on her backstage in WWE but she was still able to become a Women's Champion when she won the title in a pudding match.

Carter was released from WWE back in 2001 while she was part way through a storyline with Right To Censor, Lawler quit in order to protest this decision but later returned to the company after he and Carter decided to divorce. Carter went on to marry fellow wrestler Kizarny, but the couple later divorced. Stacy then earned her real estate broker’s license following her release and currently works as a realtor in Dallas, Texas.

10 Cherry

Cherry arrived on the scene back in 2007 when she accompanied Deuce and Domino and became known as the girl from the other side of the tracks. Cherry was only able to perform in a handful of matches before she was released from the company in 2008 after a dispute centred around her weight. Cherry has since remained good friends with Natalya and has even appeared on a number of episodes of Total Divas alongside her longtime friend.

The former star is now working for Sea World in Orlando, Florida after retiring from the wrestling business after her release. She is completely unrecognizable compared to the woman the WWE Universe cheered for more than a decade ago, which must make it much easier to work a normal job after her stint in the biggest wrestling company in the world.

9 Debra Marshall

Debra is perhaps best remembered as the valet of both Stone Cold Steve Austin and Jeff Jarrett, but her wrestling career was a relatively short one, since she decided to leave the company to pursue a career in acting. Debra also married Steve Austin back in 2000 but after a rough few years, the duo divorced back in 2002. After her marriage broke down because of reports of domestic violence, Debra went on to work for a number of charities that specialized in the treatment of victims of domestic abuse.

The former Diva has since appeared in minor roles in a number of movies as well as being able to graduate from the University of Alabama and is now looking at finishing her Master's Degree in Criminal Justice.

8 Jazz

Jazz is a former two-time Women's Champion and was one of the first women to wrestle a man live on WWE TV, which at the time was more acceptable that it would be in the current society. Despite her obvious talent and ability, Jazz was released from WWE in 2004 but she hasn't allowed her passion for the business to fade with this and still regularly performs on the Independent Circuit under her real name Carlene Moore.

Jazz has since married and now has twin daughters which she welcomed back in 2008, she also owns her own wrestling school with her husband, former WWE wrestler Rodney Begnaud. The couple calls their wrestling school The Dog Pound and it's located in Louisiana, which is where the former WWE stars currently reside.

7 Jillian Hall

Jillian Hall isn't one of the most memorable WWE Divas, but she did have one of the most memorable gimmicks where WWE allowed her to sing badly and even let her record her own entrance theme. Jillian managed to ride this gimmick all the way to the Divas Championship, even though she didn't hold it for longer than two minutes.

Jillian was released from her WWE contract back in 2010 and she has since begun working for a law firm and a number of advocacy groups for women but Jillian is still keeping her wrestling dreams alive and appears at Independent Wrestling events. Jillian also has a teenage daughter from her first marriage whom she often updates images of on Twitter, stating how proud she is of her.

6 Katie Lea Burchill

Katie Lea Burchill was once seen as the sister of pirate Paul Burchill during her time in WWE before she made the switch over to Impact Wrestling and became known as Winter. Burchill was a talented star and was able to become quite popular, but even though she hasn't made many headlines in recent years, Burchill is still part of the wrestling business.

Burchill studied acting and film for three years before she decided to pursue a career in the wrestling industry and most recently she has been dipping her toe in the acting pond and has a new film out right now called "Killing Joan." the 40-year-old is currently still working regularly on the independent circuit as well as working as an actress on the side.

5 Sable

Sable is a former Women's Champion in WWE and was one of the first WWE Divas in the company back in the 1990s. Sable also posed for Playboy magazine and her cover is still one of the best selling magazines of all time. Despite all of this success, Sable walked away from WWE back in 2001 before returning in 2003, which is when she met her future husband Brock Lesnar.

Sable is now 50-years-old and she has made the decision to step out of the spotlight and now spends most of her time looking after her two sons and supporting her husband, who is the current Universal Champion in WWE. Sable has also been spotted supporting her husband throughout his UFC career as well, something that will no doubt continue in the future.

4 Layla El

Layla burst onto the scene when she won the annual Diva Search back in 2006 and her background in dance obviously helped her to adapt to a career in the squared circle since she managed to rise through the ranks quite quickly and is now a former Women's and Divas Champion.

After nine years with the WWE, Layla decided to retire from professional wrestling back in 2015 after a few years of being misused by the company and has since married fellow wrestler Ricky Ortiz. Layla has decided to step completely out of the spotlight ever since she left WWE and has even deleted her social media since she has now begun working as a realtor for a company called Keller-Williams in Glendale, Arizona, which is where she and her husband reside.

3 Ashley Massaro

The winner of the 2005 Diva Search made quite an impact during her short stint in WWE and was even able to wrestle in a Women's Championship match at WrestleMania back in 2007. The former Playboy cover girl requested her release from WWE back in 2008 so that she could look after her sick daughter and hasn't returned to the wrestling business since.

Ashley has instead been attending a number of public events as a host/presenter and is now seen as something of a public face and is said to be dealing with head injuries that are from her time in the wrestling ring. Ashley is one of a number of women that obviously didn't get the call when it comes to returning to the company earlier this year.

2 Candice Michelle

Candice Michelle came through the annual Diva Search, but even though she didn't win the competition, like many other women at that time she was still signed to the company. Candice became the first Diva Search contestant to win the Women's Championship in 2007, Candice is a Playboy cover girl, like many other former WWE Divas from her era.

Candice suffered through a number of injuries in the later stages of her career and was released from WWE back in 2009. Despite her earlier release, Candice only officially retired from the business back in 2017 when she faced Victoria in her final match at House of Hardcore. She has since given birth to three daughters and has now decided to focus her time on her growing family and her marriage to chiropractor Ken Gee Ehrlich.

1 Kristal Marshall

Kristal Marshall's most memorable storyline was alongside SmackDown General Manager Teddy Long when the latter suffered a heart attack on their wedding day. Kristal wasn't given much of an opportunity in the Women's Division so it wasn't that much of a shock when she was released in 2007.

Kristal and former WWE star Bobby Lashley began dating during their time in WWE and Kristal and Lashley later worked together in TNA. Kristal gave birth to the couple's first child a son called Myles back in 2008 and their second, a daughter called Naomi in 2011 after it was revealed that they had gone their separate ways. Kristal has since stepped into the world of acting and has become part of the International Federation of BodyBuilding & Fitness as a bikini fighter.

NEXT: Controversial Confessions Made By Current & Former WWE Women