Six-Year AEW Veteran Parts Ways With The Company, Removed From Website

Another longtime AEW star has officially parted ways with the company.

Effective November 11, 2026, Tay Melo has been granted her release from All Elite Wrestling, concluding a nearly six-year tenure with the promotion.

Melo, who joined AEW in 2020, has also been removed from the official AEW roster page.

The exit had been planned for several months prior.

During the AEW Redemption media call on July 23, AEW President Tony Khan disclosed that Melo had personally requested her release following her June 6 appearance on AEW Collision.

According to Khan, Melo expressed a desire to step away from both AEW and professional wrestling at the time.

“Tay had said she wanted to step away from wrestling,” Khan stated. “I love AEW and I love the people here, but I want to step away from AEW and step away from wrestling.” That’s what she told me.

Khan admitted that the request caught him off guard, although he made it clear that there was no animosity between the two sides.

“That wasn’t in 2025,” Khan continued. “That was weeks ago at Collision after she wrestled against Divine Dominion. She came to me after the match and said, ‘I would like a release.’ I was taken aback, and we had a very nice talk. Since that talk, I haven’t brought her back or booked her, and I am going to give Tay that release.”

Despite Khan’s comments about Melo wanting to step away from wrestling altogether, the former AEW star later clarified that she had not actually retired.

Speculation about her in-ring future intensified in September when fans noticed that she had removed the word “wrestler” from her Instagram biography.

When asked by a fan who assumed she had retired that she was done, Melo responded with a brief clarification.

“Nope, I didn’t retire.”

With her AEW release now official, Melo is free to explore opportunities elsewhere in the wrestling industry.

As of this writing, the 31-year-old has not publicly announced any plans regarding her next destination or a potential return to the ring.

Tay Melo has been officially removed from the AEW roster page website.

— Drainmaker (@TheDrainmaker) November 11, 2026

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