In her hometown of Dallas, Texas, the ROH Women’s World Champion Athena made history by winning the first-ever women’s Casino Gauntlet match at AEW All In. The victory guarantees her a future shot at the AEW Women’s World Championship. After the show, a tired but triumphant Athena addressed the media, discussing her historic win, her journey to authenticity, and her passion for helping the next generation of women’s wrestlers. Scroll down to watch Athena’s portion of the press conference.
A Grueling Weekend and a Huge Victory
Athena admitted that the long weekend, which included a title defense at ROH Supercard of Honor on Friday, had taken a physical toll. “I don’t think I’ve wrestled this much back to back since I was in Japan, so it was quite taxing on the body, taxing on my throat,” she said. Despite the exhaustion, she was proud of her performance and her victory in the high-stakes match.
The win now puts her on a direct collision course with the reigning AEW Women’s World Champion, “Timeless” Toni Storm. Athena made it clear she is ready for the challenge. “I am forever. I have done this time and time again, being the Forever ROH champion, and now that I’m in AEW, that is not going to change,” she declared. “I am here not only to make a legacy for myself, I am here to show the world that I have been the best wrestler in the entire world for years… I am here to bring AEW to new heights.”
Finding Herself Through Failure
When asked about the key to her success, Athena spoke about the importance of being authentic, a lesson she learned early in her career. “I felt like for so long, even when I was on the independent scene, when I first started, I had this vision of what I thought I was going to be… and in reality, I think I was a superspy,” she recalled. “And it just was so unorganic. I got booed out of every arena by all 12 people.”
It was through that failure that she found her true self. “Being organically me… It’s just putting myself out there on a platter, being vulnerable, not being afraid to be myself. And I think that’s kind of really honed in on my success,” she explained.
Building a Platform for Women
Athena also discussed her passion project outside of the ring: her own all-women’s wrestling promotion based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which she purchased a year and a half ago. “We have been trying to plan an all-women’s wrestling show down to production, referees, announcers,” she said.
Her goal is to provide a platform for the next generation to learn and grow, something she didn’t have when she was starting out. “When I started wrestling in Texas, there were only three girls in the state… and I didn’t really have a lot of guidance,” she shared. “I wanted to provide a platform where these women can learn how to work TV style, learn how to wrestle with some of the best in the world and learn from them.” The promotion’s first show is scheduled for August 9.
With her victory in the Casino Gauntlet, “The Fallen Goddess” now holds a guaranteed future title match. All eyes will be on the dominant ROH Women’s World Champion as she looks to add AEW’s top prize to her already historic list of accomplishments.
