Upon joining WWE at the start of the year 2021, Taya Valkyrie had already established herself as one of the world’s most successful female wrestlers. As a former champion of IMPACT, AAA, and other competitions, Valkyrie came into the game with a lot of name recognition and was immediately treated like a movie star. The unfortunate thing for Valkyrie (also known as Franky Monet in NXT) is that her run with the WWE was cut short when she was dismissed less than a year after joining the company. She was released on November 4th, only a few days after NXT made the switch to NXT 2.0, which focused more on fresh and younger talent. This week, Taya Valkyrie appeared on “Insight With Chris Van Vliet” to talk about her experience in the WWE, NXT 2.0, and what she’s learned. “It was just like the most confusing experience of like, my entire life,” Valkyrie said. “And having worked, like I said, everywhere, I just left like ‘what is going on?’ 100% (it felt like walking on eggshells). I think everybody was. I can only speak for myself, but I can say the energy definitely shifted. We were hearing rumors all the time about ‘they are going to be firing people this week’ and the whole week, everyone is scared. We’re all busting our asses. I ended up training with Corino and the boys in the tag class. I loved training with MSK and Imperium because they are pushing me and making me do different stuff. It’s really cool learning from different people from different walks of life and paths. Everything was good and everyone was working really hard. The shift of how they wanted 2.0 to be literally changed from one day to the next. It just made everyone almost like hold your breath.” After Triple H’s dictatorship ended in September, NXT officially became NXT 2.0. Valkyrie responded to a question about whether or not Triple H’s departure from WWE had anything to do with her release by saying, “No one ever said that to me or confirmed anything like that. I don’t know. It was really confusing and I tired to make sense of it for a really long time and I was really angry, but you can’t make sense of something that doesn’t make sense. All I can say is that I worked very hard, I gave everything I could like everywhere I worked before and it was very confusing and I felt like I did something wrong. I’m a sensitive person. When everything went down, it was very confusing and heartbreaking for me because I felt like I let everyone down.” Valkyrie went on to say that her husband, John Morrison, was on the WWE UK Tour at the time, which caused her to get tearful. “John was on tour in the UK. Thank God, my friend Heather Monroe picked me up to go shopping when I got the call. I felt like I was representing the over 30 women who are still badasses and look good and do their job, are passionate, and can work, and I feel like I let everyone down. I know I’m putting that on myself, but it’s been really rough. I now know that I did nothing wrong. It just sucks. It sucks when you meet your heroes and you work at a place you dreamed of working forever and it’s something so out of your control,” she said. “Had I not gone there, I would have regretted it forever. I don’t regret going there. I just wish it had been handled differently and I would have been given a chance. I still made really cool friends and got to work with people I probably never would have worked with. Shoutout to all the coaches I got to learn from and the creative team and writers; Road Dogg, William Regal, all these people that really did help me.” As Valkyrie pointed out in a tweet, “Stop supporting a corporation that has ZERO regard for its artists,” Morrison’s release came two weeks later. In her tweets, Valkyrie said that she had received threats and “kill yourself” comments, which is not acceptable, and that it made her nervous to be among fans again. However, she stated that the fans had been quite welcoming upon her return to the ring. Valkyrie has now rejoined AAA and is still performing at different independent shows. #TayaValkyrie #WWE

Tasha Steelz is a force not to be played with. She may be small but that bite is real. She demands respect in a way that is felt wherever she is. She has faced the best of the best including Mercedes Martinez, Big Swole, Jordynne Grace, and Diamante. She has no problem taking on any opponent and pushes everyone she faces to their limits. She is noted for her work in one of the most dominating tag teams in women’s wrestling history with Kiera Hogan, Fire ‘N Flava. Last month, Steelz became the first-ever Knockouts Ultimate X winner at Hard to Kill. She is a two-time Knockouts World Tag Team Champion, a two-time Chaotic Wrestling Women’s Championship, and a former Independent Wrestling Federation Women’s Champion. She has worked in other promotions such as Ring of Honor and the National Wrestling Alliance, landing herself in the IMPACT Zone in 2019. Since her debut in IMPACT Wrestling, she continues to keep the people watching. As some hate, the momentum remains. Last year, she made her debut at number 51 on the Pro Wrestling Illustrated Women’s top 150 female singles wrestlers of 2021. Her match at No Surrender with current IMPACT Knockouts World Champion, Mickie James, proves the passion and drive Steelz has. I believe that this is just the beginning and the singles run from Steelz is going in the right direction. One thing is for sure, Steelz continues to master her skills in the ring and on the mic, letting everyone know she is not messing around! If you think for one minute the Boricua Bad Ass is here to play around, well she is not! #ImpactWrestling #TashaSteelz

Before going to North Carolina to train with George South, Aerial Hull nicknamed Big Swole served in the US Air Force as a fire truck technician. Mother and wife Cedric Johnson alias Cedric Alexander. The fact that Big Swole also has Crohn’s disease, an immune-related condition, always amazed me since I have chronic pain and autoimmune concerns. On Monday Night Raw in 2015, Swole made her debut as a guest star. Nia Jax was the target of her arrival. My first impression of her was when she played in the 2018 Mae Young Classic competition. Battle Club Pro, SHINE, and Queens of Combat were among the promotions Big Swole participated in as well. Swole was most notable for his time on AEW. In 2019, she participated in the All Out Pre Show’s 21-woman Casino Battle Royale. A short time later, she was added to the team’s roster. Emi Sakura and Britt Baker were among the opponents she faced during her time there. In the interest of full disclosure, I believe Britt’s fan following grew in part because of the work she performed with her. Dynamite should have put her bout with Diamante on rather than Dark. That will irritate me for the rest of my life, but I digress. After defeating Zoe Lucas in 2019, Big Swole was crowned 2019’s Phoenix of Rose Champion. She’ll be the longest-reigning champion in RISE history with an 870-day reign. In addition, she and Tasha Steelz battled it out in Battle Club Pro (IMPACT Wrestling). It’s a shame that Big Swole isn’t getting the recognition she deserves, particularly at this time of year when the significance of Black History and achievement is highlighted. #BigSwole

Before all the chaos at No Surrender, Masha Slamovich continued her reign of terror and defeated Kiah Dream. Slamovich began the match with her arms behind her back and that advantage helped Dream in no way. With another victory, Slamovich might be on her way to a championship opportunity soon. Later that night, The Quintessential Diva, Gisele Shaw defeated Lady Frost as she made her debut in the IMPACT Zone. Their interaction in the ring gave us one of the best matches of the night and left us wanting more. Photo Credit: IMPACT Wrestling Staff Countdown to No Surrender featured a match between tag team specialist, Tenille Dashwood, and Havok. It was Havok that snatched the victory as The Influence member, Kaleb with a K received a surprising call from The IInspiration. With this win for her team, Havok and Rosemary will be the first to have their eyes on those IMPACT Knockoust World Tag Team Championships. Give us a triple threat match between Decay, The Influence, and The IInspiration, and settle this once and for all! The feud between Jordynne Grace and Matt Cardona has reached a point beyond a championship. Each competitor pulled out all the stops last night and it seems that the goal is to take one another out in the process. As Cardona retained, Grace was disqualified after giving the champion a sudden low blow. It was quite evident their feud includes no light at the tunnel. All bets are off and nothing is standing in their way of destruction. ROH Women’s World Champion and AAA Reina de Reinas Champion, Deonna Purrazzo, issued yet another open challenge to either title. The challenge was answered by the Lucha Baddie, Miranda Alize. The Virtuosa proved once again she is ready for any challenger at any time in any ring. Shortly after, it was revealed that, after her successful victory at AAA Rey de Reyes, Taya Valkyrie is the new number one contender for Purrazzo’s AAA Reina de Reina Championship. Photo Credit: Twitter @IMPACTWRESTLING After pinning the champion on IMPACT, the first-ever Knockouts Ulitmate X winner Tasha Steelz had just what she needed going into her match at No Surrender, However, that advantage over the champion was not enough to become Knockouts Champion. Mickie James retained her IMPACT Knockouts World Championship. I personally have my own thoughts on the outcome of this match, we’ll leave that for an article. Photo Credit: Twitter @IMPACTWRESTLING Be sure to check out #IMPACTRecap every single week exclusively here on Women’s Wrestling Talk! #LadyFrost #giseleshaw #JordynneGrace #ChelseaGreen #SavannahEvans #kiahdream #deonnapurrazzo #JessicaMcKay #MadisonRayne #TashaSteelz #MickieJames #Rosemary #TenilleDashwood #MirandaAlize #mashaslamovich #havok #CassieLee #decay

Women’s Wrestling Talk podcast hosts, Evan T Mac, Gerard Bonner, Duke & BlueMagic talk about the state of black wrestlers in 2022. https://youtu.be/xq53Wi4ncDU

Wrestling fans have long adored the fiery youngster Kiera Hogan. When she made her debut in April of 2015, this petite trailblazer quickly became a household name in the wrestling world. With teams like Booty Call and Fire N Flava, Kiera Hogan has been a trailblazer for female wrestlers of color and all women in the wrestling industry. Kiera made her professional wrestling debut at Atlanta Wrestling Entertainment, in her home state of Georgia. Despite a slew of defeats in her first two seasons, she was determined to make a name for herself and demonstrate her commitment to the sport. Hogan’s fortunes took a turn for the better at the beginning of the third year when she was finally able to secure some victories. Her involvement with IMPACT Wrestling began around this time. Her tenure in Shimmer, SHINE, and Queens of Combat should be noted before discussing her involvement with IMPACT. Wrestling against the likes of Shotzi Blackheart, Aja Perera, Savannah Evans, Renee Michelle, and Big Swole helped her solidify her place in the sport. The contract with IMPACT Wrestling was signed in August of 2017 once Kiera had put in enough work. She won two Knockouts Championships and was ranked in the PWI Top 100 Females for 2018 and 2019 during her tenure there. She also held the Women of Wrestling Tag Team Championship, the Women Superstars Uncensored Spirit Championship, and the WWA 4 Intergender Championship. Aside from the Indy scene, Kiera is also currently active in AEW. She also recently competed against the current IMPACT Digital Media Champion for a shot at the IMPACT Digital Media Championship at the inaugural Terminus show. Kiera is a role model for young black women, who is still making her mark in the world of professional wrestling. Time will only tell what else she will do. #AEW #Impact #KieraHogan

Hosts Driune Santana & Stephanie Hardy discuss WWE’s Smackdown & AEW Rampage for the week of February 18th 2022

#Lita #MariaKanellis #AlexaBliss #ChelseaGreen #SavannahEvans #Doudrop #RheaRipley #CharlotteFlair #deonnapurrazzo #NikkiASH #Naomi #TashaSteelz #MickieJames #BeckyLynch #BiancaBelair #sonyadeville #TenilleDashwood #MirandaAlize #LivMorgan #RondaRousey #havok

Japanese wrestlers have always been treated with a magical reverence by the rest of the world. Asuka, Kairi Sane, and Shinsuke Nakamura were all brought into the WWE with a massive fanfare that eventually translated to a mainstream US audience. These examples are not one-offs ever. WCW, ECW, and WWE have always looked to Japan to bolster their roster. However, it seems like Japanese talent is no longer the hot commodity it once was. Travel restrictions have seen the likes of Rhio and Yuka Sakazaki sidelined in AEW. The vast amount of homegrown talent has made for fierce competition and lessened the allure of Japanese talent. Traveling back and forth no longer cuts it. To make a name for yourself, you have to live in the States. It’s a journey often romanticized as dreaming chasing where happiness and fame are guaranteed. I mean, you’re doing your dream job in front of thousands of people. Why wouldn’t you be happy? Right? Rarely do we see the other side of the coin. The struggle to adjust to a new culture. The lack of a support system. Finding a place to live. It is a situation rarely broached. It wasn’t until Hikaru Shida’s recent comments that the difficulties of moving to the States in today’s climate fully came to light. Writing in the Japanese publication Weekly Pro Wrestling, Shida wrote about her challenges. Shida mentioned her concern for one Emi Sakura. The 45-year-old from Chiba, Japan, has recently made the bold move to leave Japan to live permanently in the United States. A move that she deserves to be praised for. For those who are unfamiliar with her, Emi Sakura is a veteran wrestler, trainer, and all-around Joshi star. In her 27 years in the business, Sakura has traveled across the globe, working for various promotions, including Pro Wrestling EVE, DDT Pro-Wrestling, and countless others. She has trained an array of Joshi talent, including two former AEW Women’s champions in Rhio and Shida. She has established two wrestling promotions, Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling and Ice Ribbon. She made her first AEW appearance at their inaugural Double or Nothing PPV. It was here I got my first glimpse of Emi and instantly fell in love gimmick of a Freddie Mercury tribute wrestler. She was the perfect mix of flamboyance and in-ring talent. Clearly, AEW thought the same and eventually offered her a spot in AEW, where she now wrestles and helps train their women’s division. On the surface, Sakura’s journey doesn’t seem like anything special. Traveling the world is part and parcel of wrestling, as part of the job as taking bumps. The industry is littered with stories of Americans traveling to Japan, horror stories of the schedule, the travel, and the hard-hitting style. Japanese tours were a right of passage for everyone from Bruiser Brody to Colt Cabana. Yet the reverse is a far less familiar story. Sakura is a rare example, and while both perspectives are similar, certain distinctions make Sakura’s journey more daunting. As native English speakers, there is a privilege to travel. There is an invisible safety net of knowing wherever you go, there will be at least one person with a tentative grasp of the English language. As a Japanese speaker, Sakura has no such luxury. Reverting to her native language if a tire bursts or she’s taken a wrong turn on the highway is not an option. Then there is the culture shock of a new country. Things move at a different pace, social norms are different. What was once acceptable is now frowned upon. It’s all a lot to absorb, especially at 45 years of age. Possibly most daunting of all is the permanence of the move. For most wrestlers traveling in Japan, no matter how hard the tour, there was always an end in sight. An end date that you could work towards. Again not the same for Emi. She has admitted that this was a one-way trip. This permanence can be terrifying and induce fear that will have your stomach in knots. But it can also be a pressure cooker that forces you to succeed. When there’s no chance to turn back, all you can do is move forward. Despite the hardships of this transition, Sakura is taking everything in her stride. Much in the vein of KanaChan TV, Sakura’s Twitter feed is a stream of mini-adventures, everything from English lessons with Audrey Edwards to complaining about US mushroom prices. After #InsideAEW, Second phase of #EmiTakesAEW, Emi Learns English. Taking over #AEW is my Destiny. Bow down to Her Highness. 【gallop🐎🐎🐎】@RefAubrey Please comment & send me examples of using this word.#EmiLearnsEnglish 2 (ft. Aubrey Edwards) pic.twitter.com/8Nl2UzZlJT — Emi Sakura (@EmiSakura_gtmv) December 27, 2021 This sweetness is punctuated with bittersweet moments. Most recently, Sakura was in tears after watching one of Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling’s matches. It is a moment filled with joy, happiness, and a longing to be with the ones she loves. While social media is a skewed snapshot of a person’s life, it appears Sakura is doing well and has a handbuilt support system in place, with her protege Lulu Pencil intermittently by her side. ⚠️【Title match spoilers】 I like the moment when someone has a dream in pro wrestling. And thanks to the losing player. And an interesting moment. We are #chocopro https://t.co/mvqRb6A8Tz Thank you support us.please subscribe our channel 🍫 pic.twitter.com/fWXHVD9LFK — Emi Sakura (@EmiSakura_gtmv) January 29, 2022 Emi needs to be given flowers. At 45 years of age, she has taken a brave step into an endeavor that few others have had the opportunity to take. No massive payday or main event push is waiting for Sakura at the end of this run. No, her fulfillment is the adoration and gratitude from the next generation of wrestlers she is responsible for training. A longer-lasting, in not slightly less glamorous form of recognition. While the transition may be tough, we wish Emi the best of luck. May the Queen of AEW continue to reign. #prowrestling #EmiSakura #womenswrestling #wrestling #womenswrestlingtalk #AEW