According to a new report from Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the massive financial success of performers like Mandy Rose and Elayna Black (formerly Cora Jade) on the platform OnlyFans is creating a new, calculated career path for female wrestlers. The report says that some women are now viewing their time on television with major promotions as a launchpad to build a brand, with the ultimate goal of transitioning to a more lucrative career on the subscription-based platform.
The report comes on the heels of Elayna Black’s recent announcement that she is taking an extended break from wrestling to focus on her mental health. Meltzer’s report suggests that her incredible success on OnlyFans is a significant factor that makes stepping away from the grueling independent wrestling circuit a financially logical decision.
“There Are Women Already Planning Their Exits”
The most significant part of the report is the claim that this is not an accidental trend, but is becoming a deliberate strategy for some performers. Meltzer cites an inside source who has observed this new approach to a wrestling career.
“One person in wrestling familiar with this noted to us that this will be the new path for many women who are attractive and will get more common, learn to wrestle, make it onto TV, build a fan base & start the OnlyFans,” Meltzer wrote. “There are women already planning their exits and others who know it’s there.”
This suggests a fundamental shift in how some talent may view a contract with a major promotion like WWE or AEW: not as the end goal, but as a crucial step in a larger business plan. The strategy also reportedly includes a sophisticated marketing approach to maximize earnings. “Another key of the marketing is the interaction,” Meltzer added. “The business strategy is have a team of people who write to the guys privately since the highest tier people get personal interaction.”
Mandy Rose “Changed The Game Completely”
Meltzer credits former NXT Women’s Champion Mandy Rose with pioneering this new model and proving its viability. Rose’s departure from WWE and subsequent massive success on OnlyFans has created a blueprint for others to follow.
“Basically Mandy Rose changed the game completely for attractive women coming off WWE television,” Meltzer stated. “She’s even scheduled to work with [Elayna Black] on private dual videos and Rose is incredibly rich, far beyond what she ever could have made in WWE.”
The financial disparity between the independent wrestling scene and the potential earnings on OnlyFans is a major driving factor. Meltzer starkly contrasted the two career paths. “Why do indies dates for say $1,000, and travel and take bumps when you make so much more doing bikini shots,” he wrote. “One woman even noted why leave your house and do that.”
Elayna Black’s Staggering Success
The report uses Elayna Black as the latest and perhaps most stunning example of this trend. Meltzer says that her earnings in a single month have likely eclipsed those of any active female wrestler in the world.
“Jade was telling people in wrestling what she cleared and it was more money than any woman wrestler made in the last month,” Meltzer wrote. “Even if exaggerated a little, and while that won’t stay at that level, when you make money like that for a year or two you can retire off it and unless you are super dedicated to wrestling.”
While Black cited her mental health as the reason for her hiatus, Meltzer’s report indicates that the financial freedom afforded by her OnlyFans success makes the decision to step away from the physical toll of wrestling an understandable one. The emergence of this new, highly profitable career path could have significant long-term implications for how female talent navigates the professional wrestling industry.
