Upon enjoying a long hiatus from the pro-wrestling scene, Tessa Blanchard returned to the circuit on her home turf of the TNA Wrestling promotion in late 2024. Targeting the top Knockouts Division star, Jordynne Grace, she essentially declared her intention to take back the charge, and she did show the latter the exit door following a win at the TNA Genesis pay-per-view in January 2025.
Despite being a pivotal figure in the TNA Knockouts Division, this creative move, planned to bring back Tessa Blanchard into the fold, was discussed a lot given how the second-generation talent was once banished from the scene, especially surrounding allegations of racism as well as bullying. Fans have clearly been vocal at her for the same reason at recent TNA shows.
However, Tessa Blanchard isn’t backing down from her critics, and she further made her mindset clear with a pointed Instagram story posted, recently. Addressing the fans of TNA Wrestling, she shared a glamorous shot of herself sipping a cocktail, adding a caption reflecting her clear-cut attitude, “Cheers to me for putting up with all of you 💎 … honestly it should be tax deductible.”
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Tessa Blanchard believes putting up with fans should be tax deductible pic.twitter.com/qRqFO90s3U
— Ringside News: WWE & AEW Wrestling News (@ringsidenews_) May 17, 2025
Tessa Blanchard’s TNA merchandise was blasted by wrestling fans
The post from Tessa Blanchard comes in the wake of backlash over TNA Wrestling releasing “I Hate Tessa” merchandise, a move that fans didn’t take, lightly, either, as it was further an attempt on the company’s part to make to profit from the concerned talent’s controversial past. Many fans accused TNA of “commercializing racism” and the overall reaction to the merch has been overwhelmingly negative.
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This has indeed been a controversial merchandise produced by TNA, given Tessa Blanchard’s previous allegations of using a racial slur against La Rosa Negra, something that has been denied by the alleged star. The two reportedly also buried the hatchet in the past, but that didn’t put an end to the entire topic.
In addition to this incident, Tessa Blanchard was also released from TNA, then known as Impact Wrestling, back in 2020 for showing unprofessionalism. After not appearing on TV tapings, she was stripped of the Impact World Championship. Many thought those instances could ban her from resurfacing in the big leagues, which wasn’t the case.