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Bhat do you do when the industry you love with all your heart doesn’t seem to have room for women like you? Well, if you’re like me, you fight your way in and you make Room.
I remember when I was about 10 years old, flipping through the channels when nothing else was on and seeing my very first wrestling show. My mom came in, sat transfixed in front of the TV and told me to turn it off – she said that kind of TV was bad for me. Of course, I sneaked into my brother’s room and watched the whole thing. I couldn’t help myself – I was hooked from the first minute.
Every day I dreamed of stepping into the ring like one of my heroes – Eddie Guerrero, Rey Mysterio, Manami Toyota, Aja Kong – and making a name for myself as one of the best to ever lace up their boots. When I turned 18, I went to a wrestling school in New England (Chaotic Wrestling) and worked hard for the next two years to become the best I could be.
It all paid off when I got the call from wrestling legend William Regal. “I think they want you,” he told me, “be prepared.” “They” of course was the WWE – the biggest name in wrestling at the time and really the only way to make it big. I remember calling my mom, crying and telling her I had finally made it – I think I sneaked off to watch those episodes of Raw And Smash was really worth it!
But really, it was just beginning for me. The hours I spent on WWE’s developmental brand NXT were grueling – constantly in and out of the gym, training in the ring to make sure you were at your peak. Over time, I began to make a name for myself alongside a group of other women – Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair and Bayley, known collectively as the Four Horsewomen.
Even though there have always been women in wrestling – some of them I idolized as a kid and they were incredible talents in their own right – they always played second fiddle to the men. Myself and the Horsewomen made it our mission to change all that. We wanted to change wrestling and do things that people had never seen women do in a ring before.
I knew we were on the right track when the four of us competed against each other in 2015. NXT TakeOver: Rival. My flight was delayed and I was so scared I wasn’t going to make it. I remember calling my trainer in tears and telling him I might miss the show. Luckily, I got there just in time and won my first NXT Women’s Championship. Although it was a great feeling to win the belt, it was the reaction to our match that made the night truly magical. The fans were tearing the roof off with chants of “This is awesome” and the internet was exploding with positive reviews. That’s when I knew we were doing something truly special.
A few months later at NXT TakeOver: BrooklynI had a match against my friend Bayley that people still talk about to both of us. Fathers came up to me and said that was the match that convinced their young daughters to get into wrestling. To know that you’re a role model like that – that you can change their perception of an entire industry and show them that there’s a place for them in it – is really special.
The moment I really knew we had made it was the run-up to the WrestleMania 32. I was scheduled to face Becky and Charlotte in a match to crown the first WWE Women’s Champion. While the match itself was great, what I remember most is seeing the posters beforehand. There we were, the three of us, alongside legends like Triple H and the Undertaker. I had never seen women take center stage like that. And we were right. We stole the show that night.
In 2022, I left WWE. My heart told me I had to do this and it was ultimately the right decision – this year I signed with WWE’s biggest competitor All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and am now ready to completely shake up the business again.
The women’s division here is special and I love watching it grow and develop. I remember watching current Women’s Champion Toni Storm back when she was in WWE. She was so shy and introverted back then – now I sit on my set every week, glued to what Timeless Toni will do next. Or Mariah May, who came into this business as a superfan like me and is leading the charge (a little like me). Or Willow Nightingale, who I beat for my TBS Championship – she’s just getting started but she’s going to be huge.
The difference between the two companies is like night and day. With WWE, you don’t know what you’re going to do from week to week, but here I have the opportunity to be heard. Along with Tony Khan and my friend and personal writer Jennifer Pepperman, I have time to sit down and really plan what kind of stories we want to tell. I’m treated with real respect and really feel seen in a way that I sometimes didn’t before. I love it so much here.
So what’s next? I’m going to take every other industry by storm like I did with professional wrestling. Music, acting, clothing, makeup, podcasting – you name it, I’m going to take it.
In addition, I will ensure that women’s wrestling continues to grow. I am here to tell the world that we cannot be ignored – we cannot be denied. I have made room not only for myself, but for every great woman who steps into the ring – and this Sunday at Everything includedwe will show them that we are staying here.
Mercedes Moné will face Britt Baker for the AEW TBS Championship at AEW All In on Sunday, August 25th at a packed Wembley Stadium. To see what’s next for Mercedes, sign up for Mone Magazinewhere she talks about everything in her life, both wrestling and beyond.
