Diva Dirt: The Five to Watch 2010

Credit: Diva-Dirt



Welcome to The Five to Watch 2010! Diva Dirt is always on the look-out for bright, young talent breaking into the scene in women’s wrestling. Always with a finger on the pulse of up and coming talent, over the next week, we will bring to you the five talents we that we feel could be breakout stars in the future. Meet the Class of 2010…

Athena



Who is she?
22-year old Athena has been making quite a name for herself in the past few years. Working mostly out of the Texas area, Athena has quickly become one of the fastest rising stars on the independent scene. Trained by Skandor Akbar, a veteran in the business, Athena has the ring skills to back up her cocky (and sometimes immature) attitude. Although she only has three years under her belt as a pro, Athena has proven she can mix it up with some of the best in the business. Most notably, Athena took on MsChif in the first round of Anarchy Championship Wrestling’s 2010 American Joshi Queen of Queens tournament in a surprisingly even match.

Her story so far…
Since making her pro wrestling debut three years ago, Athena has had some very impressive matches against the likes of Malia Hosaka, Jessica James and MsChif. She also managed to defeat Rachel Summerlyn earlier this year for the ACW American Joshi Title but lost it back to her two weeks later. Speaking of championships, Athena (under the name Trouble) is also the current Women’s Champion in PWA, which is run by former WWE Superstar, Booker T. Athena made her debut at SHIMMER Women Athletes last week and despite being announced as a pre-show talent, was featured on three of the four volumes taped, impressing many in the process. No doubt, Athena will be part of future SHIMMER shows, bringing her to an even wider audience.

Why we chose her…
We chose Athena for ‘Five to Watch 2010′ because she has an abundance of potential. Not only is she talented in the ring — she has put on matches in her short career that rival most matches we see on television each week — but she also has a great look that would definitely fit WWE’s mould. Not to mention, on a more superficial note, she also falls into Diva Dirt‘s category of ‘ring gear love’! Her unique style of ring attire looks far more professional than girls on TV and sits up there with the likes of Michelle McCool and Maryse. At the rate Athena is progressing, it’s only a matter of time before we see her make her mark in one of the mainstream promotions.




Athena vs. Jessica James


Athena vs. Male Wrestler


Athena vs. Another Male Wrestler

Britani Knight


Who is she?
At the age of 18 years old, Britani Knight is the best female grappler in Europe. Hailing from Norwich and the legendary Knight Wrestling Dynasty (including father “Rowdy” Ricky Knight, mother Sweet Saraya and brothers Zebra Kid & Zak Zodiac), Britani has already chalked up five years of experience around the halls of the UK and more recently mainland Europe. Trained out of the Knight family-run WAW Training Academy, Britani has cut her teeth wrestling for promotions such as WAW, HEW, Premier Promotions, RDW, Pro-Wrestling EVE, All Star Wrestling, NWF (Norway), BCC (Belgium), GSW (Germany), DPW (Denmark) amongst others.

Her story so far…
It’s hard to look at the composed and talented Britani Knight in 2010 and reconcile the fact that she only just turned 18 years old over the summer. Of course, as noted, it’s five years since the fresh-faced Britani made her debut as one half of the popular tag team “The Norfolk Dolls” with friend Melodi. When ‘Dolls’ partner Melodi retired, Britani found herself thrust into the singles ranks, where she has excelled ever since. Early matches with both her mother Saraya and generation rival Jetta helped her gain experience in this transitional period, but it was in 2009 that the pieces started to fall into place that turned the young Miss Knight into a bonafide star in her own right. A vicious turn on her mother allowed Britani to step out of her family’s long shadow and establish herself as the de-facto undisputed British Ladies Champion by capturing consecutive singles titles in HEW, WAW, RDW & RQW.

Not only technically sound, Britani can be eye-wateringly physical when needs be (a trait that has clearly been passed down from mother to daughter). In fact, Britani showed that side to her game when she and her mother brawled to a venue-wide no-contest with the ladies of London Inc. at Premier Promotions in February which resulted in promoter John Freemantle issuing legitimate three month suspensions for all four girls due to the utter carnage. The inevitable rematch three months later saw Britani and her mother add the Premier Women’s Tag Titles to their trophy case in a stellar (and thankfully less violent) bout. Although she’s recently dropped two of her singles titles back to her mother, there is little doubt that Britani remains the standard bearer of European women’s wrestling in 2010 and stole the show at Pro-Wrestling EVE’s debut show in May against one of the only other women who could even dare lay claim to that title, Blue Nikita.

Why we chose her…
Britani Knight is, quite simply, a prodigy – and an ever-improving one at that. Not since Rebecca Knox several years back has Europe seen a female wrestler who quite simply ‘got’ all aspects of the wrestling game as well as Britani does at her age. The heel persona that she has cultivated since her turn on her mother continues to add new wrinkles all the time, and her charisma fills any hall in which she works. At EVE in May, the main event of the first half of the taping between Britani Knight & Blue Nikita was the consensus match of the night, and should introduce Britani to a new international audience. Already internationally travelled across Europe, a jump across the pond may be in sight for Britani in 2011 now that she’s turned 18. Already singled out by SHIMMER ring announcer Joey Eastman as an “awesome talent” as he pimped the debut EVE DVD from the ring at SHIMMER earlier this month, this writer is also aware of at least a couple of potential offers for a transatlantic debut in the coming year. As for TNA & WWE…? Well, let’s just say that they’re not unaware of her. Big things await Britani Knight, sooner or later. Of that we can be certain.

Britani Knight vs. Wesna Busic



Britani Knight vs. Blue Nikita (fan footage)


Brittney Savage

Who is she?
In just two years, 23-year old Brittney Savage has had one of the fastest ascensions in independent women’s wrestling. Trained by the NYWC head trainer Pat Buck, the current WSU Spirit Champion has quickly risen to the top of Women Superstars Uncensored, accruing multiple championship reigns and becoming one of WSU’s highest profile stars, second only to the internationally known Mercedes Martinez. Determined to raise her profile to even greater heights, Brittney has ensured that the power remains on her side, as her heel faction “The Cosmo Club” continues to dominate WSU into the tail end of 2010. With her ever improving ring skills, natural promo skills and undeniable charisma, Savage has even caught the eye of WWE, competing under the name of Brittany Carter during the Beth Phoenix Squash Tour of late 2009.


Her story so far…
Since making her pro wrestling debut two years ago, Brittney has worked for NWA, ACE, WXW and several other independent promotions in the mid-atlantic area. However, Savage’s greatest success has been in the aforementioned WSU. Mere months after her debut for the promotion, Brittney captured the WSU Tag Team Championships with then partner April Lee (WWE NXT’s AJ). Following Lee’s signing with WWE, Brittney turned heel and feuded with main eventer Alicia, winning the WSU Spirit Championship from her on two occasions. With her strong allies The Cosmo Club (Rick Cataldo and WSU Tag Team Champions Cyndi Rogers and Jana), Brittney has mastered the Eddie Guerrero art of lying, cheating and stealing her way to a win. It is only a matter of time before Brittney utilizes these talents in a quest towards becoming WSU Champion.

Why we chose her…
While Brittney is an ever improving talent in the ring, she finds herself on our Five to Watch because of her charisma and ability to be the mic person and figurehead of a faction that has dominated an entire promotion, something that very few wrestlers of either gender can make claim to. With Brittney’s ability to align herself with the right people in order to get ahead, we have to wonder, will we see her alongside a certain former tag team partner in the WWE?



Brittney Savage vs. Beth Phoenix


Brittney Savage vs. Mercedes Martinez



Jamilia Craft

Who is she?
Jamilia Craft just turned 19 last month, has been wrestling for 8 months, and is already on everyone’s radar as a rookie who is well on her way to doing great things. She began her training at the SHIMMER Wrestling Academy with seasoned veteran, Daizee Haze. In her short career she’s already wrestled in SHIMMER, Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Respect and World Xtreme Wrestling. Not only does Jamilia’s potential stand out to the fans, but her look does as well. She is one of, if not, the only female wrestlers in America, wrestling with a mask — not to mention the several tassels hanging off of her ring gear. Her unique look is a tribute to Joshi legend, Kyoko Inoue.

Her story so far…
Once you watch Jamilia Craft, it is hard to fathom the fact that she’s only been wrestling for 8 months. One of her best matches to date was against Mercedes Martinez on SHIMMER Volume 29, which was her debut for the company. During that match she was able to surprise Mercedes and hold her own against her in a physical match. She has also been in the ring with Kellie Skater, Cat Power, Daizee Haze, Tomoka Nakagawa, Malia Hosaka, Misaki Ohata, MsChif, and Sumie Sakai. Jamilia hasn’t won any titles yet, but it certainly isn’t doubtful that she will sometime during her career. Not only is she part of the SHIMMER roster, but she is also a regular for Pro Wrestling Respect, a wrestling company designed specifically for Ring of Honor and SHIMMER Graduates where they have the opportunity to wrestle other students as well as the veterans.

Why we chose her…
Despite having a lot more to learn, it is clear as day that Jamilia has a very good chance of being on the level of some of today’s top wrestlers such as Cheerleader Melissa, Sara Del Rey, Daizee Haze, Mercedes Martinez etc., sometime in the future. Being able to wrestle along with these women will provide her with a great learning experience and valuable knowledge she will be able to add to her repertoire . Also, with a new booker taking over ROH there could be a possibility that Jamilia Craft may have a bigger role in that company. Until then, we will watch Jamilia grow into the wrestler that we are all anticipating her to become.

Jamilia Craft vs. Daizee Haze


Jamilia Craft vs. Sara Del Ray


Leva Bates

Who is she?
Ever since her debut in 2007, Leva Bates has cultivated quite a fan following. The 26-year-old was trained by Bubba and D-Von Dudley at Team 3D Academy in Florida. Her background included dancing as well as acting, and she wound up at Universal Studios in Orlando as a stuntwoman. She had been into wrestling ever since she was a child, so while working at Universal, she came across TNA. From there, she found out about wrestling schools and enrolled in Team 3D’s school. Leva has worked for several independent companies, such as SHIMMER, Full Impact Pro, World Xtreme Wrestling, Coastal Championship Wrestling. While I was researching her story, I found out that she’s a fellow Kentuckian – you go Leva!

Her story so far…
Being trained by Team 3D probably led to her having a spot in Awesome Kong’s $25,000 Challenge. She was one of the participants who tried, but ultimately failed to pin Kong to win the cash and a TNA contract. Leva has had several notable feuds, mixing it up with the likes of Betsy Ruth (former TNA Knockout Rosie Lottalove), Amy Love, Lexie Fyfe (actually winning the Southeastern Championship Wrestling women’s title in April 2007 by pinning Ruth, then Fyfe in a gauntlet match), Malia Hosaka (whom she pinned to win the United States Championship Wrestling women’s title in July 2009). At the SHIMMER tapings in April 2010, she made her SPARKLE debut by defeating She Nay Nay on April 10th. She worked another SPARKLE match on the 11th, teaming with PJ Tyler to defeat the team of She Nay Nay and Anna Minoushka. However, she was fortunate enough to gain a match against old foe Malia Hosaka on SHIMMER Volume 30.

At the SHIMMER tapings in September 2010, she made it onto the main roster and had a standout match against Allison Danger. Even though Danger won the match, Leva gave her a run for her money. After the match, Danger got on the mic and really put Leva over as a breakout talent. The match itself was phenomenal, definitely one to watch when the DVD comes out. That weekend, she also faced off against Melanie Cruise and Cat Power, both fun and entertaining matches as well.

But what really makes Leva Bates stand out is her obvious passion and love for wrestling. This is demonstrated in one significant way: her outfits. Not satisfied with standard gear, she mixes her love of cosplay (costume play, for those not in the know) with her love of wrestling to come up with fantastic outfits. To quote a friend, Leva “gets it” in a way that other women don’t. She’s not content to go into a bargain basement store and buy a cheap shirt and black pants. No, she wants to make a statement, to stand out, and her past outfits have created quite a buzz. If you haven’t yet, check out her MySpace for photos of her past work. She has dressed as Captain America (complete with shield!), Harley Quinn, Indiana Jones, a Ghostbuster, the Joker, Chun Li and scores of other characters. To quote her directly on this topic:

“A lot of people in the wrestling world ask me what exactly is ‘cosplay.’ Its simple: Cosplay literally means ‘Costume Play.’ Dressing up as a fictional character (usually from a sci-fi, comic book, movie or anime character). It’s pretty big in the convention scene and Japan. Why do it? To have fun! Its the challenge of making a specific costume; Its appreciation to a character or particular media; Plus its different than the norm.”

As a fellow sci-fi/comic book/anime geek, her distinctive dress has endeared her to me, as it has to many others. This past September, one outfit in particular wowed the crowd. She came out in full Iron Man costume, complete with mask and gloves that had repulsor rays in the palms! This led to several chants of Black Sabbath’s song “Iron Man” as well as “Iron Maiden.” Most definitely a stand out moment for Leva, I’m sure. She embraces her inner geek and celebrates it through her love of cosplaying in wrestling. If she was ever signed by one of the big companies, they would do well to keep her doing cosplay as it will go over wildly with fans.

Why we chose her…
At this past SHIMMER tapings, Leva Bates was one woman that really stood out. She was insanely over with the crowd everytime she came out and wrestled, and showed how dedicated she was to the craft by taking the time to have a different outfit for each match. We chose her for our ‘Five to Watch’ list due to these facts, and also the fact that she keeps learning. Leva still puts in training at the Academy and has also learned from the women in SHIMMER. She is constantly re-inventing herself to stay fresh to the fans. Her hard work, devotion, passion and still-evolving talent has endeared her to us. Plus, to quote another friend, Leva represents the geek in us all. For her fearless embrace of all things geeky, we salute you Leva Bates!

Leva Bates & Isis the Amazon vs. Betsy Ruth & Jessica Haze


Leva Bates vs. Betsy Ruth