Purrazzo joins All Elite Wrestling

Deonna Purrazzo, a Jefferson Township High School alumna, has traveled the world wrestling for various companies.

Now part of All Elite Wrestling (AEW), which she signed with in January, she appeared in AEW’s fifth anniversary show “Double or Nothing” in May in Las Vegas, pinning former AEW champ Thunder Rosa.

”It’s been wild so far; it’s been a crazy six months,” said Purrazzo, who is known as ”the Virtuosa.”

“I think I’m still adjusting to a new lifestyle, a new company, while trying to figure out who Deonna Purrazzo the wrestler is at AEW, but overall it’s been really fun and a dream come true, and I’m really excited to be All Elite.”

In September 2018, Purrazzo almost wrestled on the historic “All In” indie pay-per-view event in Chicago. That successful event set the stage for the formation of AEW.

The second-largest pro-wrestling company in the Americas, AEW formed five years ago. It is owned by the Khan family and run by Tony Khan, who grew up a huge pro-wrestling fan.

The Khan family also owns the NFL Jacksonville Jaguars and Fulham FC in London.

Contacted by those in control, Purrazzo nearly participated in “All In,” which became the first professional wrestling event in the United States since 1993 to sell more than 10,000 tickets that was not promoted by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) or World Championship Wrestling (WCW).

But WWE, the biggest and most lucrative pro-wrestling company in the world, also wanted to sign Purrazzo, who excelled in the East Coast Wrestling Association, Ohio Valley Wrestling, Queens of Combat, Ring of Honor, Shimmer, Stardom, and TNA Impact Wrestling.

She opted for the already established WWE.

”Coming to AEW and becoming All Elite, that’s really what I wanted,” she said, “and when I got to talk to Tony Khan about it, I said to him, ‘Six years ago, I was supposed to be a part of the very first ‘All In.’ I was announced to be ’All In,’ and I gave up that opportunity to go to (WWE)”

Purrazzo spent three years in WWE, honing her skills, learning the WWE way of pro wrestling and sports entertainment at the state-of-the-art WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Fla.

It was quite the change from the warehouse-type D2W ProWrestling Academy and Team Adams training facility in New Jersey and OVW in Louisville, Ky.

Purrazzo worked hard, but it just did not work out.

She competed for WWE’s developmental brand NXT, wrestling on shows in Florida. She lobbied to institute a unique character, but the relationship with WWE ended in 2020 because of creative differences.

Willing to prove herself and her idea of “the Virtuosa” persona, Purrazzo inked a deal with TNA Impact Wrestling, which allowed her to develop that character: an elaborately dressed wrestler possessing immense technical skill, very meticulous and very methodical.

It worked. She quickly became the Knockouts Division champion, a title she held three times during her second tenure with TNA Impact Wrestling (2020-23).

”That 100-percent rejuvenated myself, reinvigorated my love for professional wrestling,” said Purrazzo, who also won the Knockouts tag team titles with her best friend, Chelsea Green (aka Laurel Van Ness). Green is currently a WWE superstar.

”I’ve said this time and time again. I would not be the Virtuosa, the professional wrestler that I am, if I never stepped foot in, at the time, Impact Wrestling.

“TNA changed the entire trajectory of my career, and I am so eternally grateful for the time and the space that they gave me to just become whoever I wanted to be.

”The Virtuosa was my baby. I created her and that nickname and that moniker, and it was a really long process to get someone to believe in it and to believe in me. To have built the legacy and really cement my career as Knockouts world champion, as a global competitor, I was able to work with Ring of Honor, with AEW, with Triple A during that time. It really cemented me as a force to be reckoned with.”

She became one of the top wrestlers in the world.

That was Purrazzo’s second tenure with TNA Impact Wrestling. She wrestled sporadically there from 2014 to 2017.Madison Rayne, who wrestled Purrazzo during that first stint with TNA Impact Wrestling, contacted her in 2020 about joining TNA full-time.

Rayne, now is a coach in the women’s division of AEW, wrestled Purrazzo in February on AEW’s weekly show “AEW Dynamite.”

Purrazzo is considered one of the best technical wrestlers. She succeeded nationally (also winning the Ring of Honor title) and internationally, becoming a Reina de Reinas champion for AAA in Mexico and a championship contender for Stardom in Japan.

She was ranked No.7 of the top 250 women’s wrestlers in the “PWI Women’s 250” in 2023 and No. 3 of the top 250 women’s wrestlers in the “PWI Women’s 250” in 2021.

Purrazzo, 30, not only displays precision in her movements but also her ring gear, which is an elaborate and elegant display of custom-made costuming - with new creations for major events.

“I’m a big gear fanatic anyway,” she said. “I really like to take time and put thought into the presentation of what I’m going to be wearing for big moments.”

Born in Livingston, she grew up in Jefferson. She has a twin brother, Dominic, who also graduated from Jefferson Township High School. He does not wrestle.

Her pro wrestling journey began at age 19.

Purrazzo has her sights set on the AEW women’s title, currently held by Timeless Toni Storm.

She told Tony Khan before signing with AEW: “To come full circle now and get the opportunity to become All Elite, to see what your company has become, I want to be part of that. I don’t want anything else. This is what I want, if we can make this happen ... I feel like I’m correcting some wrongs I made in my career, and everything’s coming full circle. It’s been an experience, and it’s something I’m so proud of.”

Things are good for Purrazzo in the pro-wrestling ring and away from it.

She met her future husband, wrestler Steve Maclin, at the WWE PC.

Maclin, another New Jersey native, and Purrazzo later reunited professionally in the TNA Impact Wrestling locker.

He captured the men’s TNA title and Purrazzo won the women’s top title during the “Rebellion” PPV on April 16. 2023, from the Rebel Entertainment Complexin Toronto.

Maclin, 37, is from Rutherford and served in the U.S. Marine Corps with two stints in Afghanistan before becoming a pro wrestler.

While acknowleding that pro-wrestling results are pre-determined, Purrazzo said, “You have to know what you’re doing in the ring. It is physical, and if you’re not trained properly, you will hurt someone or get hurt yourself. Even if you are trained, accidents happen, and injuries occur.”

Among her injuries: a broken nose twice, a concussion, bruised ribs and seven stitches under her left eye.

“You want to make it look as believable as possible without actually hurting your opponent, but you can’t deny gravity nor the physicality. It’s a combination of stunt work, athleticism, acting, comedy, emotion, soap opera, storytelling.

“Connecting with the crowd is vital. A catchy catchphrase can go a long way, and how much you are cheered or even booed determines the level of success.”

Purrazzo is also a self-proclaimed history nerd, recently earning a bachelor’s degree in history from Southern New Hampshire University. Her thesis was on the Cold War.