Who is Leah Van Dale?
Leah is an American professional wrestler, model, and dancer, who is best known under her ring name Carmella. She currently performs under the Raw brand of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
Leah Van Dale Wiki: Age, Childhood, and Education
Leah Van Dale was born on 23 October 1987, in Spencer, Massachusetts, USA. She is the daughter of Paul Van Dale, a former mixed martial artist and professional wrestler who was under contract at the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and was a jobber, which meant that his main job was to lose in the matches he was involved in. There is no information about Paul’s wife and Leah’s mother.
She grew up in her hometown, where she went to David Prouty High School, from which she matriculated in 2006. She enrolled at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, from which she obtained her bachelor’s degree in 2010.
Before she launched her wrestling career, Leah was a cheerleader for the New England Patriots American Football team during three seasons, which ended in 2010. Furthermore, Leah was a Laker Girl in the 2010-2011 season after successfully auditioning for the Los Angeles Lakers basketball dance team.
Career Beginnings
Leah was interested in wrestling from an early age, and signed her first contract with WWE in June 2013 – she first applied in 2010 to become a part of WWE Tough Enough, but dropped out of the process as she was accepted into the Laker Girl squad.
Nevertheless, in 2013 she became a part of NXT, a development league under the WWE brand. She assumed the ring name Carmella, and made her debut on 4 September 2014. However, her first fight was on 16 October against an unnamed opponent involved in a storied feud between her and wrestlers Amore and Cassady.
Her character continued to develop as she feuded with several wrestlers, including Eva Marie. She eventually won a battle royal, and got a chance to challenge Bayley for NXT Women’s Championship, but unfortunately lost the match.
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid0ZduHRLYVZBcxQgnj5Yjv2K6yFVxFKMmZ5ZDT1C6pqKLvLiNKYfzC9DbbqWa1nH61l&id=101320205575251
She was drafted to the Smackdown brand on 19 July 2019, and on 9 August, she had her first victory when she defeated Natalya.
She continued with old habits, making enemies wherever she went, and started a feud with Nikki Bella. However, she did make some friends, allying with the Welcoming Committee alongside Natalya and Tamina. The trio started a feud with Charlotte Flair, Naomi, and Becky Lynch, and the six women entered a tag-team match on 21 May at Backlash, which Leah and her two teammates won.
Her subsequent victory was at the Money in the Bank match. She was the first winner of the women’s match as James Ellsworth obtained the briefcase and gave it to her. However, she was stripped of her briefcase, and another Money in the Bank match was scheduled.
She won this one as well, again with the help of James Ellsworth. Leah improved as a wrestler and participated in several high-profile matches. She participated in the first women’s Royal Rumble match and also appeared in the first WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal at WrestleMania 34.
Smackdown Women’s Champion
Leah waited for her first try at Smackdown Championship for more than 285 days. She had a few unsuccessful attempts to cash in her briefcase from the Money in the Bank match and fight for the title, and was eventually granted a chance on 10 April 2018, defeating Charlotte Flair to win the SmackDown Women’s Championship for the first time in her career.
She defended her title multiple times against Flair, Becky Lynch, and Asuka, but ultimately lost the title in a triple-threat match at Summer Slam on 19 August. She fought with Flair and Lynch, and Charlotte pinned Lynch to win the championship and eliminate Leah.
Her reign ended after 131 days.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cmmzi3zhgJ-/
During 2018 and 2019, Leah teamed up with R-Truth to form a mixed tag team, The Fabulous Truth. After an unsuccessful start, Leah and R-Truth defeated Rusev and Lana. They lined up a few victories in the tournament, however, it was only in Season 2 that the two won the Mixed Match Challenge tournament.
In 2021, Leah was drafted to the Raw brand. Her first fight and victory under the new brand was against Liv Morgan in the Queen’s Crown tournament. Unfortunately, she lost to Zelina Vega in the semi-finals.
To speak further of Leah’s accomplishments, she won the Women’s Tag Team Championship with Queen Zelina on 22 November 2021, when they defeated Rhea Ripley and Nikki A.S.H.
Thanks to her popularity and success, Leah was made into a playable character in WWE games. She made her debut in WWE 2K17, followed by WWE 2K18, WWE 2K19, then WWE 2K20, WWE 2K Battlegrounds, and recently WWE 2K22.
Moreover, from 2015 to 2019, Leah starred in the reality TV show “Total Divas”, and made her acting debut as Samantha in the comedy film “The Beach Bum” (2019).
Net Worth
According to sources, Leah Van Dale’s wealth is estimated at $2 million as of late 2022, while her annual income is around $300,000.
https://twitter.com/herfabulousways/status/1432682015132995584
Personal Life, Dating, Married, Husband, Children
From 2013 to 2017, Leah dated professional WWE wrestler William Morrissey, better known as Big Cass. The two broke up for reasons unknown to the public.
In 2019, Leah started a romantic relationship with Matthew Polinski, better known as Corey Graves; he was a professional wrestler and is now a color commentator and analyst. The couple married on 7 April 2022, and in October, Leah announced that she’d suffered a miscarriage after having an ectopic pregnancy.
She and her husband host a weekly podcast, “Bare With Us”, in which the duo discusses different relationship problems, including their own.
Moreover, she has launched her own wine label entitled Capo Cagna.
Appearance and Vital Statistics
She has green eyes, and her natural hair color is dark brown, though she often dyes it blonde. She stands at a height of 5ft 5ins (1.65m), while she weighs approximately 120lbs (55kgs). Her vital statistics are 34-25-33, and her bra size is 34A.
Leah is a certified professional fitness instructor and personal trainer. She goes to the gym four to five days weekly, and focuses on a strict, healthy diet.
She also has many clients, with whom she shares exercise and diet plans.
Leave a Comment