‘Dresslemania’: Wrestling Stars Mickie James, Lisa Marie Varon & Valerie Wyndham Talk Mental Health
By: Scott Fishman
March 27, 2022, 11:00 AM

Some of the most popular and respected women in pro wrestling have mobilized for “Dresslemania II,” a fundraiser forged by “Grown-Ass Women (GAW) TV” hosts Mickie James, Lisa Marie Varon (Victoria) and Valerie Wyndham (SoCal Val). The fierce ring trio has an important cause in mind, collaborating with Tag Me In United initiative for mental health.

“Last year’s all-virtual Dresslemania raised almost $10,000 for Girl Up,” said Wyndham, referring to the United Nations-founded young woman’s leadership development program. “We thought to do a different charity every year. This year we wanted to honor our friend Daffney and do something related to mental health and awareness.” Daffney (Shannon Spruill), the onetime WCW champion, took her own life last September.

Now through April 3 fans can bid on donated gowns and dresses via online auction from the likes of WWE Hall of Famer Molly Holly, Chelsea Green, Jordnynne Grace, Impact Wrestling Hall of Famer Gail Kim, and more. The entire purchase price of items will go to benefit the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). The stars will also be meeting fans during a cocktail reception on April 2 at WrestleCon, an event that will raise additional funds.

Here Mickie, Lisa, and Valerie open up about how the “Dresslemania” cause hits so close to home.

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The 50 coolest maneuvers of all time
By: WWE.com Staff
February 21, 2014

Pro wrestlers have been dishing out cool moves since the early 1900s. Today, every Superstar has awesome moves, but which are the coolest? We ranked the 50 holds, strikes and dives that would’ve made Mr. McMahon shout, “What a maneuver!” if he was still sitting at the commentary booth.

#49 Victoria’s Widow’s Peak

*Victoria-Web.org Note* – Excited and thrilled to say, on this list, Victoria is the ONLY Diva’s finisher that is listed!

To view the full list, you can go to WWE.com.

Pro wrestlers get into confrontation at Lincoln Park restaurant
By: Luis Gomez / About Last Night
Written: October 16, 2013

The customer is not always right, according to pro wrestler and The Squared Circle owner Lisa Marie Varon.

After wrestler and former Playboy cover girl and “Celebrity Apprentice” contestant Maria Kanellis harassed a waitress Monday at the Squared Circle for bringing her a Diet Coke rather than a regular Coke, which she considered a jab at her weight, Varon stepped in to see what the problem was.

Kanellis, an Ottawa, Ill. native, cut her scheduled appearance at the Lincoln Park restaurant short and stormed off, which prompted Varon to yell “See you at Glory By Honor, Maria. Yeah, Steen will be kicking your fiance’s (butt).”

Glory By Honor, you see, is a wrestling event being held by the Ring of Honor promotion Oct. 26 at Frontier Fieldhouse in Chicago Ridge. Kanellis’s real-life fiance, Mike Bennett, will square off against Kevin Steen. Varon, who wrestled under the name Victoria in WWE and Tara in TNA, is also scheduled to make an appearance.

“We were flattered that Maria decided to come by, but I think she was really looking to make a scene ahead of an upcoming Ring Of Honor show because she knows that we will both be there,” Varon said by email. “She can only hope that I forgive and forget, or I will slap her silly like I have done many, many times before.”

The lesson here is to order a milk shake rather than a soda at The Squared Circle. Everyone knows that.

TNA’s Tara: I want to be a Page 3 girl
By Phil Allely
Published: January 18, 2012

She’s won championship belts in both WWE and TNA and is generally recognized as one of the best female wrestlers in history.
But there’s only one thing Tara really wants — to appear in The Sun.

In an exclusive interview to promote TNA’s upcoming UK Tour, Tara told SunSport: “I’d love to be a Page 3 Girl!

“I’ll pack my swimsuit for the tour and wait for you guys to call me.”

The brunette, who was known as Victoria in WWE, added: “I love the fact that the TNA Knockouts Division are making such a mark on wrestling fans and I appreciate the fact that many people tune in to see us sexy girls.

“I love that we get a lot more ring and interview time than other companies offer their ladies.

“I mean we get to main event TV tapings and house shows. I see the ratings and our segments are often the most watched parts of impact shows.”

Having started her career as a member of the Godfathers Ho Train, Tara can relate to the cynics who belittle the females who get high paid jobs in wrestling for their looks alone.

She said: “I was signed (to the WWE) with no wrestling experience, I was in the right place at the right time and my look and my fitness training background helped me get that job.

“I paid my dues though. I spent three years going to wrestling school, working my way around the indy and developmental leagues.

“You know I’d never bad mouth girls who have got an opportunity in this business without any in-ring ability.

“The big thing though is that they need to realize just how hard you have to work and bust your butt to get the recognition you deserve.”

After leaving WWE, many felt that Tara would head to TNA — but she said it wasn’t an obvious decision to her and that she considered retirement.

Looking back at that time, Tara revealed: “When I left the WWE I really did think that was it, I was through with wrestling.

“It seemed like I was not good enough to hold a title or get a good storyline anymore, but yet I was used as a tool to help new girls improve and gain confidence, I’d lost my interest.

“I knew about TNA and I first started watching it when Awesome Kong and Gail Kim started tearing the house down with their classic matches.

“It wasn’t until I spoke to them that I realized that the schedule would be so much easier on my body. TNA offered me a deal of no house shows and only TV tapings initially.

“I couldn’t resist that. I’m so glad now as I see the division being as hot today as the WWE glory days of myself, Trish, Lita and Mickie.”

The upcoming TNA UK tour is poised to be the biggest yet for the company, with Sting and Hulk Hogan confirmed for the shows. Tara is excited about rubbing shoulders with the legends.

She said: “The fans are so amazing in the UK, we get engulfed in their enthusiasm and it makes us work harder too.

“We’ll be having fun out there and with Mickie James, Gail Kim, Madison Rayne and Velvet Sky there we are sure to have some great matches.

“It’s unbelievable to think of how successful we are as a brand in the UK, you know we were always compared to the WWE, but we are not the same and never have been.

“I think we are really standing out as ourselves now.”

Source: http://www.thesun.co.uk/

TNA wrestling prepares for Impact in Plymouth
By David Wolcott
Wicked Local Plymouth
Posted December 31, 2011 @ 10:00 AM

PLYMOUTH — For someone who has played a person teetering on the edge of insanity for large parts of her career as a professional wrestler, it’d be hard to imagine a person more grounded than Lisa Marie Varon.

No arrests or stints in a rehabilitation facility for her, Varon, better known as TNA Knockout Tara, will bring her brand of controlled insanity to Memorial Hall when Total Nonstop Action Wrestling presents the TNA Impact Wrestling World Tour in Plymouth Saturday, Jan. 21.

“I guess I’m just a lucky girl who eats, breathes and sleeps professional wrestling,” Tara joked during a recent phone interview. “But really, the reason I’m so grounded is I truly love what I do with all of my heart. I’ve had a passion for this business forever, and that’s what still drives me today. I absolutely love what I do, and I want to be able to enjoy every single second of it.”

Tara, 40, is one of the few female wrestlers who’s made a rather lengthy career for herself in the business. While not in the veteran realm of Mae Young or the Fabulous Moolah quite yet, 12 years in the business does make her a true veteran of the sport.

“The average female wrestler is in the business for maybe five or six years, but like I said before, I really love what I do,” she explained. “When my music hits, I cannot believe or explain the rush I still get from the crowd every time I walk through the curtain. It absolutely still sends a jolt right through me.”

“The good thing is I’ve been able to save my money and start to look at what life’s going to be after my wrestling days are over,” added Tara, who recently opened a restaurant in Chicago with her husband. “I love this life, and it’s still so much fun for me, but I’ll know when the time is right to step away.”

And, fortunately, that time has not yet arrived.

“I love working with TNA,” Tara said. “The events are so much more than just a wrestling match. I love the fact that we really get the chance to get out there and meet with the fans. The TNA events are very family-friendly, and we try the best we can to make every card a special event for the fans that pay their money to see us.”

Born and raised in California, Tara was an All-American cheerleader in high school before moving on to study biology at UCLA. She entered some fitness competitions, and that’s where she caught the eye of former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) divas Chyna and Torrie Wilson, who thought Tara had the athletic ability and the attitude to make it as a professional wrestler.

A fan of the sport, she decided to follow their advice and give pro wrestling a try. She started her training in California in 2000, eventually picking up a developmental contract with WWE and moving her training base to Memphis and then Louisville. She got the call to join the WWE full-time in June of 2002 and made the most of her opportunity, famously feuding with Trish Stratus, Molly Holly and Gail Kim among others on the way to winning two WWE titles.

She eventually parted ways with WWE and made her debut in TNA, where she has been ladies champion several times, most recently holding world tag-team titles with Brooke Tessmacher.

“I’m still having a great time in the business, and, knock on wood, besides a torn elbow and a torn ACL, I’ve been pretty healthy over the years,” Tara said. “I’ve been lucky to remain fairly healthy for most of my career.”

At this point, Tara is not only keeping her own career going, she’s also trying to impart what she’s learned to the next generation of women wrestlers.

“Brooke is getting better in the ring every day,” Tara said about her tag-team partner, who she will team up with in Plymouth to take on the tag team of Rosita and Sarita. “Someone I really like is Rosita. She’s so young, but you watch her in the ring and you can see how far she’s come in such a short period of time. Check back in three or four years, and with that much more experience, she’s going to be something special to watch.”

Source: WickedLocal.com