WWE looking to sign 23-year-old Bellator star Valerie Loureda - Reports
WWE is expected to hire current Women's Bellator star Valerie Loureda.
Loureda has a four-and-one record in MMA, with two wins by KO/TKO and two wins by decision, with her single loss also coming via decision. The 23-year-old recently attended the WrestleMania tryout in Dallas and wasn't quiet about it, posting pictures all over her social media channels in the process.
According to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select, Valerie Loureda is expected to be signed by WWE. It was noted that Loureda has made a "great impression" on WWE management in recent months and is being called a "slam dunk" to end up in the company soon. Once she's signed, WWE hopes to have her report to the Performance Center by mid-July.
Valerie Loureda recently had another tryout at the WWE Performance Center and attended NXT 2.0
Valerie Loureda's WWE presence goes well beyond the WrestleMania tryout in Dallas earlier this year. She also took part in a week-long tryout at the WWE Performance Center in May, in which multiple people told Sapp that she did very well. That same week, she also attended the NXT 2.0 television tapings that can be seen in the embedded tweet below.
Since her initial tryout at WrestleMania, Loureda has been training with Gangrel and Neilo Costa according to SRS, to help prepare her for her future in professional wrestling.
While Loureda is currently under contract with Bellator, her deal will be placed on hold if she signs with WWE and will resume if she ends up being released in the future.
@WWENXT @WWE https://t.co/Qt2fmmCZOm
Based on the current NXT Women's Breakout Tournament, Simone Johnson is seemingly preparing to debut imminently, and with athletes like Valerie Loureda expected to be signed. It seems like WWE is going out of its way to expand its women's roster in preparation for the future.
It will be interesting to see if any of the women that are currently being featured in 2022 in NXT will be the future of the company in the years ahead.