Former WWE superstar and Survivor alum Ashley Massaro has died at the age of 39, TMZ Sports reported Thursday.
Officials told the outlet that Massaro was transported from her home in Suffolk County, New York to a nearby hospital where she passed away Thursday morning. No cause of death has been released, but TMZ reported it’s being classified as “non-criminal.” She is survived by one daughter.
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Massaro first entered the WWE world during the 2005 RAW Diva Search, winning a 1-year, $250,000 contract before continuing on as a valet for WWE tag team champions Paul London and Brian Kendrick.
Some of her career highlights include a WWE Women’s Championship against Melina at Wrestlemania 23 in 2007 as well as a Playboy BunnyMania LumberJill match at Wrestlemania 24 the next year.
Massaro also appeared on Survivor: China in 2007, but was voted off in the second episode.
Massaro retired from the WWE in 2008, but in 2017 began to make her way back into professional wrestling.
On April 14, she shared a photo from her early wrestling days with a hopeful caption about getting back into training with a new team.
“Super excited however I won’t be wearing this to train in today lol!” she said of the photo featuring her in a skimpy skirt and crop top. “I’m gonna have suchhhh ring rust and learning how to do things properly from the bottom up this time round! BIGGER, STRONGER, FASTER, BETTER BABY!!!! Like you never seen me before-I want to be UNSTOPPABLE!!! Nothing can or will hold me back!”
Upon news of her death, the wrestler’s fans took to her social media to mourn and leave tribute messages.
“Rest In Peace damn can’t believe this,” one commenter wrote on her most recent photo from a #ThisIsVegas campaign, while another echoed, “RIP [heart] You’ll be missed.”
“Rest In Heaven beautiful,” another added.
Photo credit: Bobby Bank/Getty Images
