Deonna Purrazzo has opened up about being body-shamed online and various wrestling personalities and fans coming to her support.
The Virtuosa has been carving a unique spot for herself in the women’s wrestling space over the last few years. After being rejected by WWE early in her career, Purrazzo showed that she can lead a division with her TNA run. She is now finding her place in the AEW locker room after officially joining the company in January this year.
Getting the spotlight on stages like these, however, comes with some consequences as well. Deonna has had to deal with negativity and body shaming online in recent times.
The 3-time Impact Knockouts Champion opened up about defending herself from such troll comments during an interview with Chris Van Vliet. She explained that she needed to speak up because she is much more than just her looks or a number on a scale:
“Oh my gosh, yes they did. That’s the unfortunate beauty of the internet is when people come for you for such silly things like your body or whatever it is. I wanted to defend myself.
I felt like I needed to say something, and what I said, I mean, I feel in my heart and soul like I’m so much more than what my body looks like. I’m so much more than a number on the scale.”
That’s All That Matters: Deonna Purrazzo
Deonna Purrazzo sent out a tweet earlier this year after some trolls targeted her following her AEW debut. She mentioned how her worth is not determined by her body or other’s perception. A number of wrestling veterans including the likes of Mickie James and Brian Myers came to her support after this.
The former TNA star seems to be taking things more positively since then. She mentioned how her husband Steve Maclin supports her no matter what and it’s all that matters:
“First of all, I’ve never been a size small, but my husband loves me whether I would be a small or I’d be an extra extra large, like he thinks I’m beautiful no matter what. And honestly, that’s all that matters. I have a college degree. I’m working on getting a master’s degree.
I have worked in every company in the world. There’s a reason people want to work with me, because of my body of work, not my body, and for people to agree with that and then say such nice things, I cried because the internet hurt my feelings, but then I cried because the love I felt for my friends and my family.”
Purrazzo has competed against names such as Toni Storm, Thunder Rosa and Mariah May since joining AEW full-time. She is still in the hunt for her first championship in the company.
Check out our exclusive interview with Deonna Purrazzo from earlier this year: