The Problem With Tessa Blanchard That No One Wants To Talk About

History tells us that professional wrestling will forgive even the worst transgressions: WWE even brought that vile, repugnant homophobe, the Ultimate Warrior, back into the fold. In all likelihood, Blanchard will find a home in one of the game's biggest promotions over the next few years. This will hopefully come as a result of her approaching these controversies as objectively as possible, learning from them, and demonstrating clear, tangible growth in a public forum.

Said controversies will always be part of her legacy, but they don't have to define her forever. At 25, time is on Tessa's side. She can atone.

For now, however, Blanchard may be better off looking abroad. Her husband-to-be, Daga, is a tenured Mexican wrestler with history in AAA and on the indie scene, so it's conceivable that Tessa could tread a similar path to the one he has taken between Impact appearances over the past few years. Lucha libre remains undercovered by English-language media: away from that spotlight, Blanchard may find the perfect platform on which to rebuild. Overturning an unsavoury backstage reputation won't be easy, though it looks an increasingly critical step in this process.

Tessa Blanchard is a once-in-a-generation talent with genuine best-in-the-world potential. Of this, your writer has no doubt. The road to hitting this level begins with making good for the behaviour that has seemingly made her a pariah - and preventing future blow-ups.