Maria Menounos Turned Down WWE Tough Enough Offer

Instead, Menounos offered up a replacement who currently finds themselves on the SmackDown brand.

By Andrew Pollard /

WWE.com

Having wrestled four times for WWE over the years, Maria Menounos has now revealed that she was actually at one point approached to be a contestant on Tough Enough.

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As Menounos explained during an appearance on WWE Backstage this week, the USA Network invited her to compete on the 2015 edition of Tough Enough. Obviously, we know that Maria turned down that opportunity, but there’s an interesting titbit on who Menounos offered up as her replacement for the reality show.

That suggested replacement was none other than Sonya Deville. Of course, Deville’s time on Tough Enough would result in her signing a deal with WWE, and these days the superstar is at the centre of one of the SmackDown brand’s hottest stories.

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Where Maria Menounos’ in-ring career is concerned, she first competed for WWE back in 2009. That wrestling debut came on the October 12 edition of Monday Night Raw and saw Menounos team with Gail Kim and Kelly Kelly in a victorious effort against Beth Phoenix, Alicia Fox, and Rose Mendes.

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Since then, Maria has had three further tag matches – most notably teaming with Kelly Kelly to defeat Beth Phoenix and Eve Torres at WrestleMania XXVIII.