AEW star Thunder Rosa talks pro wrestling journey from social worker to women's champion

Thunder Rosa is 1 of the champion women’s nonrecreational wrestlers successful the world, but the travel to get to the apical of the upland is 1 that is ne'er ending.

Rosa, whose existent sanction is Melissa Cervantes, presently performs for All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) – 2 of the large promotions successful North America. But portion astir nonrecreational wrestlers started their way to the ringing astatine a school, Rosa was a societal idiosyncratic earlier wrestling caught her eye.

"I became a pro wrestler 13 years agone aft making a determination to halt being an activist. I was a societal worker, so, 1 day, I decided that I wanted to beryllium a wrestler aft going to a wrestling amusement and conscionable attending a mates of the shows determination and feeling that was the adjacent measurement to take," she told Fox News Digital successful a caller interview. "I consciousness similar the telephone was similar – it was going to beryllium a bigger platform. I conscionable decided to spell and bash a tryout and aft I did the tryout, I fell successful emotion with nonrecreational wrestling."

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Thunder Rosa battles Deonna Purrazzo during AEW Collision connected June 15, 2024, astatine the Covelli Centre successful Youngstown, Ohio. (Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Rosa said the aura of pro wrestling is what got her hooked connected it successful the archetypal place. Everything from the theatrics to the sport.

She said she was up for the situation adjacent though she ne'er overmuch played sports successful her life.

"It's everything. It's each the details, each the antithetic things that the athletics entails, which is, you know, the theatricals, the level diversion of athleticism," she said. "It's conscionable similar the information that you could question with it and besides due to the fact that it's precise challenging. It was going to beryllium precise challenging for maine physically due to the fact that I ne'er done similar sports and I conscionable felt similar I could bash it astatine the time."

Rosa said she had to commencement from scratch, "learning however to roll, learning however to exercise, learning however to physique my body, learning similar assemblage control, a batch of similar gymnastics, basics connected galore antithetic sports and I deliberation I conscionable had to similar truly propulsion it unneurotic and past truly beryllium realistic with myself." She said she needed to enactment harder than anyone successful her grooming classes due to the fact that astir of the clip she was the lone pistillate successful the people if not the room.

She said determination was ne'er 1 infinitesimal she could constituent to wherever she knew taking a accidental connected pro wrestling was the close move. It wasn’t until she noticed she didn’t person clip to spell to enactment her time occupation is erstwhile she thought she could marque a vocation retired of wrestling.

"There’s not truly a infinitesimal due to the fact that I consciousness similar erstwhile you're getting and you're earning things sometimes you consciousness similar you person an imposter syndrome and nary substance what you person done similar it's conscionable similar not enough, right?" Rosa told Fox News Digital "I consciousness similar that adjacent erstwhile large opportunities came it was like, ‘Oh I'm truthful fortunate that this happened to me.’ No, I wasn't I wasn't lucky. It's conscionable radical saw that I had the skills and I had the endowment and I had the IT origin and they gave maine an opportunity.

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Thunder Rosa battles Deonna Purrazzo during AEW Collision connected June 15, 2024, astatine the Covelli Centre successful Youngstown, Ohio. (Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

"I consciousness similar erstwhile things started rolling with bigger opportunities successful nonrecreational wrestling that's erstwhile I was like, "OK, I deliberation I tin permission my full-time occupation and go a nonrecreational wrestler.’ I deliberation it was my archetypal declaration with Lucha Underground erstwhile I conscionable noticed that I didn't person capable clip to spell to work. That that was the clip wherever it was it was clip for maine to determination my adjacent section of my beingness and my career. So, that's erstwhile I deliberation I was like, ‘OK, I deliberation I tin bash this. I deliberation it's feasible. It's going to beryllium it's going to beryllium hard, but it's feasible.’"

Rosa joined AEW successful 2020 and started to support the National Wrestling Alliance Women’s Championship connected "Dynamite." She mislaid the rubric to Serena Deeb. She would summation AEW World Women’s Championship golden for the archetypal clip erstwhile she defeated Britt Baker successful a cage match.

She was the 5th pistillate to clasp the title. However, she had to relinquish it owed to a backmost injury.

Rosa told Fox News Digital she took pridefulness successful helping women’s wrestling grow.

"It's been truly beauteous to spot the travel that a batch of america person taken successful the past six years present successful AEW oregon adjacent 7 due to the fact that we’ve seen thing tiny turn truthful large to the constituent successful wherever we person had shows that person had 80,000 people," she said. "The mode that we oregon I was capable to assistance the women's part and turn and fixed a bigger level with opportunities that person a batch successful stake. I instrumentality that with a batch of pride. There was a batch of things that happened and successful 2021-2022 that truly broke a batch of barriers for a batch of the women that are present successful the women's part and they each person done a tremendous occupation connected continuing to unfastened much doors for everyone that is coming successful the future.

"It's been besides incredibly absorbing to spot however antithetic companies person worked unneurotic and present they are symbiotic of each other. They beryllium and subsist with each other's collaboration and that, I think, has changed the scenery of nonrecreational wrestling everlastingly due to the fact that we're not surviving successful an island. I consciousness similar this subculture oregon this civilization of nonrecreational wrestling has subsisted wrong this niche but I consciousness it's becoming bigger and bigger and bigger truthful that has been precise absorbing to spot however AEW has been pivotal for that stuff."

Melissa Cervantes, known arsenic "Thunder Rosa", dressed arsenic Catrina successful grant of the San Diego Padres City Connect debut, smiles during their crippled against the Colorado Rockies astatine Petco Park connected Friday, April 10, 2026 successful San Diego, California. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune via Getty Images)

Rosa vowed to proceed to usage her dependable to advocator for women and children, which she stressed was truly important to her. She besides said she has her eyes focused toward the second portion of the twelvemonth with Grand Slam Mexico.

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"I person a batch of things planned. I proceed to enactment highly hard each azygous time to beryllium amended astatine my craft. I proceed to enactment really, really, truly hard extracurricular of nonrecreational wrestling to advocator for women and for young children due to the fact that I deliberation that's thing very, precise important and to advocator for my community. I proceed to absorption connected the opportunities that are successful beforehand of me," she said.

"Right now, we're going to focus, similar laser focus, connected Grand Slam successful Mexico City. Then, there's immoderate large things happening successful September, October during Dia de Los Muertos and similar each that stuff. There's a batch of opportunities to travel during that time. So, I’m taking everything time by time and, of people I privation gold, but that is not connected me. I'll conscionable person to proceed to enactment harder and proceed to sound connected doors. Even erstwhile I lose, I ever win. And the past Forbidden Door, we had a tremendous lucifer with Divine Dominion and with Olympia. We ever permission thing for the fans to remember. Again, I volition proceed to enactment highly hard to hopefully person golden successful the future, but if not, I volition bask the travel conscionable arsenic much."