Zoey Serrano, formerly known to WWE fans as Zoey Stark, has spoken candidly about the emotional toll of being released by the company while still recovering from a serious knee injury.

Speaking with Denise Salcedo, Serrano discussed the moment she learned she was being let go in May, explaining that although she sensed something was off behind the scenes, the call still came as a devastating blow. The injury, suffered during a Money in the Bank qualifying match on Raw last May, had already forced her through a lengthy rehabilitation process and two surgeries.

“It was just one of those things I wasn’t expecting. After a year of rehab and working my a** off, to come back and then go through surgery twice and that whole rehab process, and to get that phone call, I just broke down and had to build myself back up,” she revealed.

Serrano admitted that her instincts had been warning her for some time that changes were coming, even though she tried to convince herself otherwise.

“My gut was telling me something was happening,” she admitted. “I just remember my husband and I were driving to the store and I just look at him and I go ‘I think I’m getting released.’ Like, I just had this weird, deep sunken feeling of it….but I was sending in ideas and everything like that and I was getting weird responses where I was like ‘something isn’t sitting right.’ So yeah, I kinda saw it coming, but didn’t want to believe it was happening.”

She also noted that it feels like more talent are being released while sidelined with injuries, though she made it clear she holds no bitterness toward WWE. Instead, Serrano expressed gratitude for the opportunities and memories she gained during her time with the company.

“I still love them. I absolutely love them,” she said.

Since departing WWE, Serrano has already returned to the ring. Wrestling under her new name, she made her in ring comeback for RevPro on July 25 before reuniting with Shayna Baszler the following night, where the duo defeated Kanji and Myla Grace.