The world surely has progressed a lot in the past few decades when cherishing the personality one embodies. The LGBTQ community is getting stronger every other day, and a few of the WWE wrestlers have come out of the closet, paving the path for coming-of-age athletes not just in wrestling but all sports in general.
We want to applaud and show absolute respect to our LGBTQ friends.
This is the 21st century, and you have all the right to live your life just the way you want unless it disrupts the peace of others—more power to our LGBTQ friends and all those in the questioning phase.
Now, let’s talk about the current WWE stars who are proud to be a part of LGBTQ. World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), the biggest wrestling organization, has been open to people of all sexual orientations and gender identities.
LGBTQ wrestlers are indeed utilizing the platform of WWE to leave a positive influence on their audiences. As of 2023, there have been 45 LGBTQ wrestlers in WWE.
Today, we will be talking about 5 current WWE stars who are proud to be LGBTQ.
| Name | Nationality |
| 1. Shayna Baszler | American |
| 2. Mercedes Martinez | American |
| 3. Jake Atlas | American |
| 4. Sonya Deville | American |
| 5. Tegan Nox | Welsh |
Current WWE Stars Who Are Proud To Be LGBTQ
We have first given a brief background of the wrestlers’ careers. We have then discussed all available information regarding how they came out initially and how they live their socio-personal and professional life.
5. Tegan Nox
Steffanie Rhiannon Newell is a Welsh professional wrestler popularly known by her ring name Tegan Nox. She signed a contract with WWE in April 2017.
Nox wrestled for the British independent circuits under the ring name Nixon Newell before WWE. She made her main roster debut on the 9 July episode of SmackDown.
Since her WWE debut, Neweli has suffered from an ACL injury. However, that does not make her any less of a wrestler.
With her step-up knee strike, Tegan Nox never fails to shine inside the ring. Tegan Nox may not always win the match, but her fierce feud styles are a treat to watch.
She posted a picture with her beautiful girlfriend, Sierra St. Pierre. Before this, Nox was in a relationship with New Zealand-based wrestler Travis Banks for a brief period.
Regarding her decision to come out, this is what she has to say: “My life has always been a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ situation, but I feel like it was the right time, especially when you’ve found the right one you’re in love with. It was the right time to do that.”
Along with her confession, Nox also talked about the media response and support she got, “The reaction has been great. There are a few people who obviously don’t agree with that, but 99 percent of the reactions have been positive.”
Tegan further added, “I’ve got texts coming through from so many colleagues and friends. It was nice. It’s great to see that there are so many nice people in the world.”
Moreover, Tegan Nox stated that her fellow LGBTQ wrestler Sonya Deville helped her bring the decision to the public.
Nox will appear for WWE Money in the Bank on July 1, 2023, at the O2 Arena in London.
4. Sonya Deville
Daria Rae Berenato, popularly known by her ring name Sonya Deville, is an American wrestler and a mixed martial artist. She has been associated with the WWE since 2015.
Berenato currently appears on the SmackDown and Raw brands. She is also a former on-screen authority figure alongside Adam Pearce.
Deville first tasted fame with WWE Tough Enough, then transitioned to many other ventures. She was ranked number 52 in the top 100 female wrestlers, published by Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) in 2020.
She is also a part of the WWE video game, debuting in WWE 2K19 and appearing in WWE 2K20 and WWE 2K Battlegrounds.
LGBTQ Wrestlers in WWE
Sonya Deville is a lesbian. In fact, she happens to be the first female WWE wrestler to have opened up as the LGBTQ. She proudly presents herself as one.
She came out in an episode of the WWE’s reality competition series named Tough Enough in 2015. Since then, she has been inspiring, motivating, and also helping fellow LGBTQ wrestlers come out.
In an interview with The New York Post, Deville talked about how she feels about being the undeclared ambassador for the LGBTQ people in WWE:
“It’s a very gratifying and fulfilling thing for me because I was on the other side of the coin 5-6 years ago looking up to people on television, feeling comfort in having allies that represented me on media and TV and film and entertainment.
To be that for the next generation and for the youth who might not be comfortable with who they are, it’s super relatable for me.”
Deville is hopeful that WWE will give more exposure to the LGBTQ community. She expects to see storylines with same-sex relationships in the years to come.
Sonya proposed to her girlfriend, Toni Cassano, in February 2023, in New Jersey. The duo met in April 2022 and instantly hit it off.
3. Jake Atlas
Kenny Sanchez Marquez, best known as Jake Atlas, is an American professional wrestler who once was a gymnast.
Jake was officially signed with the WWE on October 23, 2019. He performed on NXT brands 205 Live and AEW Dark.
Atlas was released from AEW after his domestic violence arrest on May 23, 2022. However, the charges were dropped on June 28.
Before WWE, he was very popular in independent circuits like Gold Rush Pro Wrestling, Empire Wrestling Federation, All Pro Wrestling (APW), Baja Star’s USA, etc.
He is a one-time APW Junior Heavyweight Champion, APW Universal Heavyweight Championship, PCW ULTRA Light Heavyweight Championship, and a one-time SBW Championship.
He first appeared close to WWE unsigned on an episode of Celebrity Undercover Boss with Stephanie McMahon, WWE’s former chief brand manager.
Jake Atlas is openly gay and proud. He discussed it with McMahon on the same episode of Celebrity Undercover Boss.
In fact, he is the first gay man to have opened up about his sexuality in the sport. He also spoke about how he had planned to say that for almost ten years.
He remembers contemplating if becoming gay and a wrestler was compatible.
Coming Out
Kenny Marquez came out at 15, first in front of his mom. He knew that he was gay and not bisexual.
Hence, he directly uttered the word gay. He remembers crying then and saying, ‘I know this is wrong, but I’m gay.’
Most communities do not regard homosexuals as something regular. Instead, they tend to impose heterosexuality, and Marquez coming from the same upbringing, regarded being gay as something of a sin.
Marquez first came out through Twitter and received a mixed response. His mother has started accepting, but she admits that in her heart, it hurts her.
He has a good relationship with his fellow LGBTQ wrestler Sonya Deville. As a result, they have been able to understand each other and strengthen their bond.
Marquez describes their bond as saying, ‘I have your back, and you have my back.’
2. Mercedes Martinez
Jazmin Benitez, aka Mercedes Martinez, is a professional wrestler from the United States. She is currently affiliated with All Elite Wrestling (AEW). She is known for her time in WWE, fighting for the NXT brand.
Mercedes competed in several independent promotions, including Full Impact Pro (FIP), World Xtreme Wrestling (WXW), Women Superstars Uncensored (WSU), and Rise Wrestling.
Benitez became the WSU Champion three times, Shimmer Champion twice, and Shimmer Tag Team Champion once.
She began her wrestling career at WWE in July 2017 with the Mae Young Classic tournament.
Benitez then took a break from WWE and returned in January 2020. This time she signed a contract with WWE and got reported to the Performance Center.
Mercedes appeared in December 2021 episode of AEW Dynamite and then the Ring of Honor in April 2022.
A Proud Lesbian
Mercedes Martinez opened up about being a lesbian in an interview with ‘NowThis’ in July 2019.
She is proudly a lesbian; however, she was married to American film director Chris Weitz and had a son.
This might sound a little overwhelming to some of us, but it is completely common. People can discover their authentic selves much later in life; the same thing happened to Benitez.
More power to Mercedes for being able to move on from the questioning phase and discovering herself.
1.Shayna Baszler
The American professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist Shayna Andrea Baszler is currently signed to WWE. Shayna performs for the SmackDown brand.
Baszler began her professional wrestling career fighting for various independent circuits. She then associated with the WWE in July 2017 with the Mae Young Classic tournament.
She, in fact, defeated one of her fellow LGBTQ WWE wrestlers, Mercedes Martinez, on the route to the final of her very first WWE feud.
Baszler made her NXT debut in August 2017 at a house show. She then had her televised debut in December of the same year.
She became the record-tying two-time WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion along with Nia Jax in January 2021. However, the duo later lost the titles to Natalya and Tamina Snuka.
MMA Girl
Baszler is a former MMA fighter who trained under the guidance of former UFC fighter Josh Barnett. However, she got released from the UFC as she sighted more toward wrestling.
Moreover, Shayna Baszler is bisexual. She revealed that she was in relationships with males and females in a podcast in 2013.
However, not much is known about Baszler’s love life as of now.
Conclusion
In every sport, individuals should be allowed to express themselves and not be judged by their sexual orientation.
Every sport must have an accepting mentality toward all the members of the LGBTQ community. Hence, it will help encourage people who are wanting to come out.
What’s your thought on these WWE stars? Whose name did we miss? Make sure to comment!
