Boot Camp Produces Top Female Talent

IndyDivas Yahoo Group just released their Top 100 North America Independent Female Wrestlers List and APW is proud to see that the number 2 and 3 spot are APW Boot Camp Graduates. Congratulations to Cheerleader Melissa and Sara Del Ray for being ranked as the best of the best.

#2 Cheerleader Melissa
You could certainly make a strong case for Melissa as #1. She continues to be one of the more sought after and well traveled wrestlers on the Indy Circuit. She wrestled all over the world including Japan & Mexico. Back in 2004 she became the first female to win the prestigious CAC Future Legend Award (past winners include Chris Beniot & Kurt Angle), and she is starting to live up to that billing. She had a number of WWE tryouts over the years including a recent one back in May where she wrestled Victoria in a match that appeared on the May 26th edition of Heat (which can be viewed at WWE.com). She has been currently engaged in a memorable feud with MsChif. The two ladies have had wrestled each other for SHIMMER on three different occasions, and each match displayed an intensity not only rare for women’s wrestling, but rare for wrestling period. She also capped off the rating period by defeating Jazz in a fall counts anywhere match, to win ChickFight 5.

Top 5 Moments of Rating Period
1) Won three matches, including a fall counts anywhere against ECW’s Jazz in the finals, to win her very first ChickFight tournament (ChickFight 5, which happened at end of June, so just made the cut off)
2) Defeated MsChif in a bloody falls count any where match during Shimmer Volume 4.
3) Wrestled Victoria on the May 26th edition of WWE’s Heat. Even though match was on the short side, Melissa was impressive.
4) During ChickFight 4, she defeated MsChif & Mercedes Martinez in a brutal Three-Way-Falls-Count-Anywhere match (this was a non tournament match).
5) During the APW sponsored ChickFight 3, she wrestled Sara Del Ray to a 30 minute double DQ match.

Where Is She Headed?
Melissa definitely has the talent to wrestle in the WWE, but does she fit the WWE’s Diva mold? Just like Mercedes, if the WWE ever gets serious about pushing women’s wrestling then it would be a no brainer to sign Melissa. Otherwise expect Melissa to continue to travel the World, and dominate where ever she goes.

 

#3 Sara Del Ray (aka: American Angel)
After spending most of 2005 wrestling in Japan, this Brian Danielson (American Dragon) trainee returned to North America with a vengeance. She was a big draw in Mexico, where she wrestled under the persona of American Angel. Over in the States she continued her feud with Cheerleader Melissa on the West Coast, where they had some all out brawls (including one APW match where they brawled in into a car that drove away and when the car got back to arena they continued the brawl in the arena). She has played an integral role in the success of SHIMMER, wrestling two classics matches with Mercedes Martinez which both resulted in standing ovations. She also appeared in the main event of three of the six volumes that were shot.

Top 5 Moments of the Rating Period:
1) She wrestled Mercedes Martinez to a 20 minute time limit draw for the taping of SHIMMER Volume 1. This match was considered an East Coast (Martinez) versus West Coast (Del Ray) dream match. Many wrestling fans and critics have cited this to be one of the best women matches in recent memory.
2) For the taping of SHIMMER Volume 5, Mercedes wrestled Del Ray in a no time limit rematch. This time Del Ray eked out a pin around the 25 minute mark. The ladies achieved a standing O, and many are proclaiming the sequel to be better than the original.
3) During the APW sponsored Chick Fight 3, she wrestled Cheerleader Melissa to a 30 minute double DQ match.
4) Defeated Daizee Haze, Mercedes Martinez & Lacey in a Four Way SHIMMER Volume 2 Main Event.
5) Defeated Daizee Haze in the Main Event of Shimmer Volume 3.

Where Is She Headed?
Another lady Vince would sign if he was serious about promoting a creditable women division. Expect her to make another tour of Japan, and she will continue to travel regularly to Mexico. In the States she will continue her hotly contested feud with Mercedes Martinez for SHIMMER, and will figure prominently in the main event picture. She will add creditability to any show that she is apart of.

Pre-Camp Orientation Next Month

The first Boot Camp of 2007 is starting soon and pre-camp orientation will take place on January 4th at the APW Garage. Keep an eye on this space for photos and a complete list of the new campers.