Mercedes Martinez Reveals Her Future Plans Following WWE Release

After just over 18 months with the company, Mercedes Martinez was released by WWE on August 6 as part of cuts to the NXT roster.

Martinez's 30-day non-compete clause has since expired and the 40-year-old revealed what she plans to do next during a virtual signing with K&S Wrestlefest.

"I think right now, presently, the independents is where I wanna be right now. I think with the creative freedom and the fans and just seeing the female wrestlers and guys, I want that atmosphere again. Sometimes when you’re in a big company, you don't see the people that you came up with and that's what I miss. I miss that camaraderie, that support and that love. Not that I didn't get it from over there but I do miss my girls and I miss my crew that I always travelled with. You do get - I don't know what to call it. Indie sick? Because I'd been on the indies for so long and I never thought in my life that I would get signed. So, you know, 19 years doing indies, you get this family that you're so used to and then you just kind of break apart and you go do your thing and whatever but just going back so right now, the indies is where I wanna be," Martinez said.

The former NXT Superstar didn't rule out a return to WWE, though, and Martinez also noted she would like to open up a wrestling school "down the line."

"Would I ever wanna go back to WWE? Of course. Never say never. Do I wanna go to other companies? Of course I do. Right now, I'm just in my prime and I wanna do as much as I can, my body's in great shape, I'm in great physical shape, everything's good and eventually down the line, [I'll] hopefully have my own school for females. Not to say that I don't wanna train the guys. However, training females is different when it comes from a female's perspective. We bump differently, we run the ropes differently. Everything, our movement patterns are different so I eventually wanna be a trainer, hopefully have my own school for female wrestlers so we can train and not just in the ring, but the etiquette, locker room etiquette, protect yourself, support and have that family atmosphere that I never had when I was coming up because it wasn't a lot of females. It was all males so, I definitely wanna do that at some point. When? We'll see," she added.

Martinez has been booked for several independent wrestling events since her release and she is set to be a part of IMPACT Wrestling's all-women's show, Knockouts Knockdown, on October 9.

H/T to POST Wrestling