Maxxine Dupri Reveals Who Pitched Using Her Late Brother in WWE Storyline

Sadly, Dupri’s brother Wyatt Zmrzel passed away in 2017 in a car accident at just 22 years old. The tragedy was used by Candice LeRae to get under Dupri’s skin. It was during the March 11, 2024, episode of WWE Raw, LeRae stopped mid-match to bring up Dupri's brother. While speaking on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Dupri revealed it was her idea, so she would have a reason for her wanting to run away in her tag team match with Ivy Nile versus LeRae and Indi Hartwell. Though she accidentally forgot to warn her mother about the moment. She said:

“We had the layout of the match where she’s going to yell at me and I’m going to walk out of the ring. And I just felt like if you want me to walk out of the ring, give me a reason to walk out of the ring. To me, I didn’t look at it as a negative towards my brother or towards my situation. To me, it felt like a positive, I get to bring light to the fact that I have a brother. To me, it was we’re gonna acknowledge someone that’s my whole world that passed away, whether she’s saying it in a negative way or positive way. To me, it was a positive. And I love Candice, she’s an angel, such a wonderful human, a wonderful mom. I don’t have anything bad to say about her. My mom was definitely emotional about it. But again, she wasn’t emotional that Candice said something. She just didn’t know that that was going to come up. But if I would have told her, she would feel the same way that I feel. But Mondays are crazy, you know, the day gets going, you’re busy. I forgot to give her a warning.” (h/t: WrestlePurists)

For those who don't remember, here's the line that LeRae said:

You think the internet hates you? You should hear what the girls in the locker room have to say about you. Oh, you're gonna cry? It's a good thing your dead brother isn't here to see what an embarrassment you've become.

LeRae used not only a real tragic incident with Dupri's brother, but she also brought up when Dupri was actually booed by fans during a WWE Live event in February 2024. Dupri has since then been the fan favorite in her feud with WWE Intercontinental Women’s Champion Becky Lynch. 2025 is looking like her breakout year as a wrestler, even though her first match was the July 3, 2023, episode of RAW, where she, Otis, and Chad Gable defeated The Viking Raiders and Valhalla.

Maxxine Dupri Feels She Has Grown In The Last Year

Speaking of her growth since she first started in WWE, Dupri also agrees that she’s grown a lot in the last year. She told Vliet in the interview that she hasn’t just grown physically, but mentally too. She said:

“I feel like I’ve grown a lot in the last year, but not just physically and not just in the ring, but like mentally. I feel the clarity, the confidence. I’ve really fallen in love with getting better and with being in the ring and just like, not necessarily even on TV, but just like in training, and just like having fun… I’m just having a good time.”

Dupri was last in the ring on the October 20 episode of Raw, where she faced Lynch for the Women’s Intercontinental Championship. The match would end in a DQ due to Lynch hitting Dupri in the back of the head with the title. Ironically, Lynch would blame both Dupri and the referee for the incident. It’ll be interesting to see where their feud goes next…