Posts Tagged ‘Rok-C’

More NXT Stars Receive New Names

Several more NXT stars have received new names in line with Vince McMahon’s latest edict about not using real or indie names for performers in WWE.

According to PWinsider, former American Ninja Warrior star Kacy Catanzaro will be known as Katana Chance going forward.

Former NXT UK Women’s champion Kay Lee Ray has also been renamed. Per the report, she will now be known as Alba Fyre.

These two aren’t the only NXT stars to have received new names in recent weeks. WWE has newly trademarked the names Roxanne Perez, Alba Fyre and Cruz Del Toro.

Out of these, the Cruz Del Toro name has already been given to Raul Mendoza. He made his WWE debut back in 2016 and has been competing on the NXT brand since.

Roxanne Perez is the new name for Rok-C. WWE signed the former ROH women’s world champion just last month in March.

NXT stars aren’t the only ones receiving new names. Several of the main roster stars have had their names altered in recent weeks.

The latest example of it is Austin Theory. His name was cut short to Theory on this past Monday’s episode of Raw. This change was made because WWE didn’t want to use part of his real name Austin White on TV.

Rok-C Makes WWE NXT In-Ring Debut With New Name

At Tuesday’s WWE NXT Level Up tapings before NXT 2.0 went live on the USA Network, Rok-C made her NXT debut with a new name. 

She is now going under the name Roxanne Perez and defeated Sloane Jacobs. This marked her first match since WWE confirmed her signing last month.

She was trained by WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T at his Reality of Wrestling promotion. In 2021, she started to make a name for herself during her time in Ring of Honor. She worked in a tournament to become first-ever ROH Women’s World Champion as she beat Miranda Alize in the finals. 

She defeated Willow Nightingale to retain the championship at Final Battle in December before the promotion went on hiatus. She lost it to Deonna Purrazzo on the episode of Impact Wrestling that aired on January 13. Prior to signing with WWE, she also held the AAA Reina de Reinas Championship.

Damon Kemp vs. Troy Donovan and Tatum Paxley vs. Kiana James were other matches taped at the show that will air this Friday night on Peacock. 

Rok-C Signs With WWE

Rok-C has signed with WWE, as first reported by PWInsider. She will soon join the NXT 2.0 developmental brand.

A well-known student of Booker T, Rok-C is seen as one of the most promising young performers on the independent scene.

Last month, Booker T told Ariel Helwani of The MMA Hour that his former student had signed with WWE.

“One of my girls, Rok-C, WWE just signed her. She was my youngest champion in Reality of Wrestling. Started with me in a fantasy camp. At 13 years old, her dream was to be Reality of Wrestling Champion.”

It turns out Booker T was mistaken and his comments about Rok-C signing with WWE were a bit premature.

Rok-C

Rok-C held the Ring of Honor Women’s World Title for 119 days before dropping it to Deonna Purrazzo on an episode of Impact. The loss led many to speculate that Rok-C was on her way to a major promotion.

Rok-C is just 20 years old and would fit the bill with WWE’s youth movement in terms of snagging new talent. She also has experience facing seasoned veterans and could be ahead of the curve with fellow wrestlers that are her age.

Deonna Purrazzo Wants to Defend ROH Title Everywhere

Ring of Honor World Women’s Champion Deonna Purrazzo wants to be a fighting champion.

Sporting News Daniel Yanofsky interviewed Purrazzo about becoming the ROH World Women’s Champion and her plans. She defeated Rok-C to win the title on the January 13th Impact Wrestling episode. Although ROH is on hiatus, the company has allowed there champions to defend the title for different wrestling promotions.

Yanofsky transcribed the following quotes. He asked Purrazzo if she’d try to represent ROH elsewhere as a champion like ROH World Champion Jonathan Gresham.

“Absolutely, especially with the unprecedented times, they are in. It’s interesting to have Jonathan Gresham wrestling on Impact, fighting Steve Maclin in a Pure Rules championship match. I love that Ring of Honor is represented, whether on Impact Wrestling, an independent show, wherever it is. It is a brand that means a lot to me personally from my time there,” said Purrazzo. She explained, “It helped develop who Deonna Purrazzo, “The Virtuosa,” was going to be as a wrestler. Now that I have the championship, I don’t know if I will be defending it under Pure Rules, but it does mean the world to me to be the ROH Women’s World Champion. I want to defend it and carry on the ROH brand wherever and however I can.”

What’s Next for ROH

ROH announced on January 20th that they would return with Supercard of Honor on April 1st. They revealed a unification title match for the ROH World Championship between Bandido and Gresham. However, the company doesn’t plan to sign talent to exclusive contracts. Instead, they will act like other independent promotions and get wrestlers to work dates. It’s unclear if the Bandido vs. Gresham match winner will defend the championship for different promotions.

Impact Wrestling doesn’t have an event scheduled for April 1st, and Purrazzo could appear for ROH’s return event. Although, ROH would have to figure out whom she would defend the title against now that they don’t have signed talent.

WWE Interested In Signing Rok-C

WWE is looking to restock their roster after a series of releases with those who took part in recent tryouts. Several people participated in the latest tryouts including names like Monster Factory project Notorious Mimi and former ROH Women’s Champion Rok-C. 

Although in the past, WWE has passed on signing talent that they deem too young, it appears there could be an exception. Per Fightful, there was a significant push within the company to have Rok-C signed.

Even before she had the tryout, some people thought the company should make her an offer. 

The latest tryouts were so big that WWE  bussed the tryout competitors in and gave Performance Center trainees several days off.

One source at the Performance Center noted that Rok-C’s main event match with Deonna Purrazzo in Impact Wrestling was evidence of the hiring being a “no-brainer.” However, this same person mentioned that they thought Wheeler Yuta was also a no-brainer last year, and he didn’t get hired.

Rok-C is slated to debut for MLW at Blood & Thunder on January 21st from Dallas, Texas.  As previously reported by Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio, ROH doesn’t expect for her to be back when they resume shows in April after going on hiatus.

Impact Results 1/13: Deonna Purrazzo Wins ROH Title

Impact Wrestling on 1/13 was the first show since the Hard to Kill PPV last weekend. It furthered the ROH invasion storyline and had Deonna Purrazzo vs Rok-C headlining.

Impact Results 1/13

  1. Laredo Kid defeated Chris Bey
  2. “Speedball” Mike Bailey defeated Jake Something
  3. Masha Slamovich defeated Vert Vixen
  4. JONAH defeated Raj Singh
  5. ROH Women’s World Championship
    Deonna Purrazzo defeated Rok-C

W. Morrissey Demands Title Shot….Doesn’t Get One

W. Morrissey cut an in-ring promo to start the show. He talked about having the match won at Hard to Kill but the referee was down and unable to count his pin on Moose. The Impact World Champion then appeared on the big screen and said he would defend his title tonight, just not against Morrissey.

ROH Invades, Attacks D’lo Brown

The ROH invaders led by the OKC, Vincent, PCO and Maria Kanellis invaded the ring area. They focussed their attack on D’lo Brown, setting him up on a table for PCO to come off the top rope and drive him through it. New Impact announcer, Tom Hanifan, reacted as if he was shell-shocked and scared for his own well-being during this.

Later in the show, Scott D’Amore revealed that he’d spoken with ROH management and confirmed that the invaders are not acting on behalf of Ring of Honor.

Laredo Kid Defeats Chris Bey

With D’lo Brown out, X-Division Champion Trey Miguel joined Haniflan for commentary here. Chris Bey came out by his lonesome as his Bullet Club stablemates all missed these tapings. That won’t be the case later this month when Jay White, Tama Tonga, and Tanga Loa are all scheduled for the shows in Florida.

Laredo Kid picked up the victory with a top rope Spanish Fly and then later motioned to Miguel as if he wants a shot at the X-Division title.

“Speedball” Mike Bailey Improves To 2-0 In Impact Wrestling

After debuting on the Hard to Kill pre-show, Mike Bailey picked up a win in his first Impact television match. He defeated Jake Something with a flipping double-knee to the back from the top-rope called “Ultima Weapon”. Ace Austin was on commentary during this, having been in the multi-person match won by Bailey at Hard to Kill.

Masha Slamovich Also Improves To 2-0 In Impact Wrestling

Another wrestler improved to 2-0 on Impact Wrestling this week. Russia’s Masha Slamovich stormed through Vert Vixen quickly, finishing her off with a driver for the win. Commentary played up that Slamovich could be a big deal in the Knockouts division moving forward.

As Slamovich was heading to the back, Josh Alexander’s music hit. As Alexander passed Slamovich on the entrance ramp, he gave her a little nod of respect.

Charlie Haas Confronts Josh Alexander

Josh Alexander cut a promo about his victory over JONAH at Hard to Kill and how it was just another obstacle on his path to regaining the World Championship from Moose. Another obstacle then hit his path, however. Charlie Haas’ music and intro package played and he came to the ring to confront Alexander. Haas talked about how him and Alexander share the same passion for wrestling and then challenged him to a match. Alexander more or less said he’d wrestle Haas, but first he wants to go after his world title. Haas then struck Alexander, leading to a pull-apart brawl between the two.

Moose Defeats Zicky Dice In Seconds

Moose agreed to defend his title against Bryan Myers’ student, Zicky Dice. The champion didn’t even bother changing into wrestling gear for the match, evidently not seeing Dice as much of a threat. He then hit a uranage and pinned Dice within seconds of the match starting.

After the match, W. Morrissey came out to confront Moose but the champion high-tailed it out of there. Morrissey took out his frustrations on the Learning Tree’s VSK and Dice.

JONAH Makes Short Work Of Raj Singh

JONAH got back in the win column this week with a quick squash of Raj Singh. Singh got on the microphone and said he wanted competition but Scott D’Amore came out and gave him a little bit more than he bargained for. JONAH won with his big splash off the top.

Jon Gresham and Steve Maclin Backstage Altercation

ROH World Champion Jon Gresham was being interviewed backstage when Steve Maclin confronted him. Maclin accused him of being part of the ROH invasion. A challenge was then made from Gresham for an ROH World Title match next week.

Deonna Purrazzo Wins ROH Title, Attacked By ROH Invaders

Deonna Purrazzo won the ROH Women’s Title and defended her AAA Reina de Reinas Championship by making Rok-C submit in this week’s main event. Rok-C had Purrazzo in the Rok-lock but the Virtuosa transitioned to a Fujiwara Armbar and eventually the Venus de Milo to get the submission.

After the win, the ROH invaders (who are not representing ROH) hit the ring. Matt Rehwoldt attempted to help Purrazzo but he got taken out. Rich Swann and Willie Mack came out to help but they were taken out as well and the ROH invaders stood tall to end the show.

Coming Up In Impact Wrestling

Scheduled for next week:

  • ROH World Championship
    Jonathan Gresham (c) vs Steve Maclin
  • Tasha Steelz vs Chelsea Green
  • Doc Gallows & Joe Doering vs Heath & Rhino
  • Josh Alexander vs Charlie Haas

Details On What’s Next for ROH Women’s Champion Rok-C

Rok-C is one of the top prospects in all of women’s wrestling. At 20 years old, she has already won championships and drawn attention from the industry’s top promotions.

Rok-C is the Ring of Honor Women’s Champion. She was just named the ROH Women’s Wrestler of the Year. However, is not expected to be affiliated with the company for much longer. Warning: Spoilers ahead.

Following an appearance at Saturday’s Impact Hard to Kill pay-per-view, she dropped the ROH women’s title to Deonna Purrazzo the following night at Impact’s latest round of TV tapings. This got people questioning what’s next for the Laredo, Texas native.

On the latest Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez commented on Rok-C’s future. “I was told that, not 100% she’s going anywhere, but they [ROH] are expecting that she’s probably going to end up going somewhere. Therefore, she’s no longer champion,” said Alvarez.

Last weekend, she competed for New Texas Pro Wrestling and received a big sendoff from the fans of her hometown promotion. This typically indicates a wrestler is moving on to the next chapter of their career.

What’s next for Rok-C?

Rok-C recently had a WWE tryout at the Performance Center in Orlando.

She’ll debut for MLW later this month at Blood & Thunder on January 21st from Dallas, Texas. After that, she could go anywhere.

This is completely speculative, but what better way to make a splash in WWE than to appear in the Women’s Royal Rumble match just one week later? Rok-C is talented beyond her years and would fit in perfectly at NXT 2.0.

ROH Women’s Champion Rok-C Takes Part In WWE Tryouts

The current ROH women’s champion Carla Gonzalez better known by her ring name Rok-C took part in the latest WWE tryouts from the Performance Center.

The company held its latest tryout from the PC in Orlando, Florida from December 15 to 17. They later shared some photographs from the tryouts on their official website.

One of the more interesting names to have been spotted in the photos was Rok-C, who has become a free agent after the mass layoff from ROH.

ROH released all of its contracted talents in October and made the announcement of going dark for the first quarter of 2022 to reimagine the company.

Rok-C Has Been Trained By Booker T

Rok-C, who was trained by WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T made her ROH debut in April this year. Prior to it, she had been working for T’s Reality Of Wrestling promotion.

The female star quickly rose to the top of the ladder within the company. She competed in a tournament and defeated Miranda Alize in the finals at September’s Death Before Dishonor PPV to win the ROH women’s championship.

There is no word yet on how WWE officials feel about the current ROH champion. It will be interesting to see if she is offered a contract by the promotion.

ROH Women’s Champion Rok-C To Debut For MLW

ROH Women’s World Champion Rok-C is set to make her MLW debut on January 21st, 2022 at Blood and Thunder. The event is an MLW Fusion television taping from Gilley’s in Dallas, Texas. The 20-year-old has been training with Booker T since she was 16.

“Known as “The Prodigy,” the 5’1? featherweight looks to make a statement in her home state of Texas when she steps foot in an MLW ring for the fist-time ever on January 21st,” reads an MLW press release.

Rok-C won a tournament this year in ROH to win the ROH Women’s World Championship. She defeated Miranda Arize in the finals at Death Before Dishonor in September. Footage of her victory is below:

MLW’s Open Door Policy For Free Agents

MLW is touting that Rok-C will be the first to take part in the promotion’s new open-door policy as it concerns free agents. Last month, MLW revealed that a percentage of future events will feature wrestlers currently on the free agent market in addition to wrestlers signed to MLW contracts.

“While the majority of MLW’s roster features contracted competitors, a percentage of each card will now feature free agents, ensuring exciting and unpredictable matchups,” reads an MLW press release. 

More on MLW’s open door policy for free agents is available in the link below: