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

Thunder Rosa is 1 of nan champion women’s master wrestlers successful nan world, but nan travel to get to nan apical of nan 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 nan awesome promotions successful North America. But while astir master wrestlers started their way to nan ringing astatine a school, Rosa was a societal worker earlier wrestling caught her eye.

"I became a pro wrestler 13 years agone aft making a determination to extremity 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 show and conscionable attending a mates of nan shows location and emotion that was nan adjacent measurement to take," she told Fox News Digital successful a caller interview. "I consciousness for illustration nan telephone was for illustration – it was going to beryllium a bigger platform. I conscionable decided to spell and do a tryout and aft I did nan tryout, I fell successful emotion pinch master wrestling."

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

Rosa said nan aura of pro wrestling is what sewage her hooked connected it successful nan first place. Everything from nan theatrics to nan sport.

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

"It's everything. It's each nan details, each nan different things that nan athletics entails, which is, you know, nan theatricals, nan level diversion of athleticism," she said. "It's conscionable for illustration nan truth that you could recreation pinch it and besides because it's very challenging. It was going to beryllium very challenging for maine physically because I ne'er done for illustration sports and I conscionable felt for illustration I could do it astatine nan time."

Rosa said she had to commencement from scratch, "learning really to roll, learning really to exercise, learning really to build my body, learning for illustration assemblage control, a batch of for illustration gymnastics, basics connected galore different sports and I deliberation I conscionable had to for illustration really propulsion it together and past really beryllium realistic pinch myself." She said she needed to activity harder than anyone successful her training classes because astir of nan clip she was nan only female successful nan people if not nan room.

She said location was ne'er 1 infinitesimal she could constituent to wherever she knew taking a chance connected pro wrestling was nan correct move. It wasn’t until she noticed she didn’t person clip to spell to activity her time occupation is erstwhile she thought she could make a profession retired of wrestling.

"There’s not really a infinitesimal because I consciousness for illustration erstwhile you're getting and you're earning things sometimes you consciousness for illustration you person an imposter syndrome and nary matter what you person done for illustration it's conscionable for illustration not enough, right?" Rosa told Fox News Digital "I consciousness for illustration that moreover 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 group saw that I had nan skills and I had nan talent and I had nan IT facet and they gave maine an opportunity.

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

"I consciousness for illustration erstwhile things started rolling pinch bigger opportunities successful master wrestling that's erstwhile I was like, "OK, I deliberation I tin time off my full-time occupation and go a master wrestler.’ I deliberation it was my first statement pinch Lucha Underground erstwhile I conscionable noticed that I didn't person capable clip to spell to work. That that was nan clip wherever it was it was clip for maine to move my adjacent section of my life and my career. So, that's erstwhile I deliberation I was like, ‘OK, I deliberation I tin do 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 take sides nan National Wrestling Alliance Women’s Championship connected "Dynamite." She mislaid nan title to Serena Deeb. She would summation AEW World Women’s Championship golden for nan first clip erstwhile she defeated Britt Baker successful a cage match.

She was nan 5th female to clasp nan 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 really beautiful to spot nan travel that a batch of america person taken successful nan past six years present successful AEW aliases moreover 7 because we’ve seen thing mini turn truthful large to nan constituent successful wherever we person had shows that person had 80,000 people," she said. "The measurement that we aliases I was capable to thief nan women's section and turn and fixed a bigger level pinch opportunities that person a batch successful stake. I return that pinch a batch of pride. There was a batch of things that happened and successful 2021-2022 that really collapsed a batch of barriers for a batch of nan women that are now successful nan women's section and they each person done a tremendous occupation connected continuing to unfastened much doors for everyone that is coming successful nan future.

"It's been besides incredibly absorbing to spot really different companies person worked together and now they are symbiotic of each other. They beryllium and subsist pinch each other's collaboration and that, I think, has changed nan scenery of master wrestling everlastingly because we're not surviving successful an island. I consciousness for illustration this subculture aliases this civilization of master wrestling has subsisted wrong this niche but I consciousness it's becoming bigger and bigger and bigger truthful that has been very absorbing to spot really AEW has been pivotal for that stuff."

Melissa Cervantes, known arsenic "Thunder Rosa", dressed arsenic Catrina successful grant of nan San Diego Padres City Connect debut, smiles during their crippled against nan 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 sound to advocate for women and children, which she stressed was really important to her. She besides said she has her eyes focused toward nan second portion of nan twelvemonth pinch Grand Slam Mexico.

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"I person a batch of things planned. I proceed to activity highly difficult each azygous time to beryllium amended astatine my craft. I proceed to activity really, really, really difficult extracurricular of master wrestling to advocator for women and for young children because I deliberation that's thing very, very important and to advocator for my community. I proceed to attraction connected nan opportunities that are successful beforehand of me," she said.

"Right now, we're going to focus, for illustration laser focus, connected Grand Slam successful Mexico City. Then, there's immoderate large things happening successful September, October during Dia de Los Muertos and for illustration 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 want gold, but that is not connected me. I'll conscionable person to proceed to activity harder and proceed to sound connected doors. Even erstwhile I lose, I ever win. And nan past Forbidden Door, we had a tremendous lucifer pinch Divine Dominion and pinch Olympia. We ever time off thing for nan fans to remember. Again, I will proceed to activity highly difficult to hopefully person golden successful nan future, but if not, I will bask nan travel conscionable arsenic much."