Rising pro wrestling star Persephone to be part of historic CMLL show at Slam Fest, reacts to Tony Khan praise

Persephone, one of Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre's (CMLL) top competitors in the women's division, will be competing at the company's historic show during Slam Fest next month.

CMLL will host its first standalone U.S. show at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas as fans descend on the city for days of pro wrestling action. For more than 90 years, CMLL only hosted joint shows in the U.S. as the company is based out of Mexico.

But CMLL's Lucha Libre style of wrestling will be on display with Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling (TJPW), House of Glory (HOG), World Wonder Ring Stardom and Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling.

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"I think it's super exciting," Persephone told Fox News Digital of being involved in the historic show. "I think we all know the kind of importance of that week. It's the hub of wrestling in that moment. I think it's all companies, promotions, whether it's indie, small, big, we all kind of come together for just this giant week of wrestling. I think it's something really great that CMLL is now forming part of it, taking their piece of it.

"As an independent wrestler back in the day, I would join every now and then, maybe a smaller indie show. I'd be a part of the week, but it wasn't compared to now. We are a bigger company. We are Mexico's biggest company and I think we're branching out on an international level to the point where now we're a part of Slam Fest - something that's a completely 100% U.S. crowd is gonna be there. I think maybe people who are there just to watch wrestling are gonna get to know us because maybe they don't know us as well as others. So, I think it's something really great for CMLL as a company to branch out, but then also I think for fans to get to know different styles, different companies that maybe they didn't hear of before."

The El Paso, Texas, native has made a name for herself in recent years. She's been with CMLL since 2023 and has made sporadic appearances for All Elite Wrestling and Ring of Honor since 2025.

She won the 2025 Grand Prix de Amazonas and won the CMLL Amazonas Universal Championship in 2024 following the likes of Dalys La Caribeña, La Jarochita, Lluvia and La Catalina.

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Persephone stressed how important the collaborations with other companies are.

"I think there's just something to these collaborations of now we can branch out. We know each other very well," she explained. "Now, we can step into different territories. We can showcase what we can do, but at the same time, I think when you go to a different country, you kind of blend styles. We bring in the Lucha Libre and then we're coming in facing stars from the U.S. with more of an American background. Then, we go to Japan, and we face a different style.

"I think it's really great on a professional level, but even as a fan, I think it's a great time to be a fan. I think, right now, it's not just this is what there is and that's it, this is all you get to see in terms of professional wrestling. I think right now there's just so much out there and with the collaborations from all these different companies, you can just broaden your scope of interest when it comes to wrestling. You get a little bit of everything and big events like Slam Fest or Forbidden Doors or Fantastica Manias, which are actual collaborations of companies, I think are just perfect for fans. I think as a kid watching wrestling, seeing just a bunch of different styles and like seeing a masked wrestler looking at this big American guy and this Japanese guy, you get a little bit of everything and I think it's great to be a fan."

Persephone earned the right to go up against Mercedes Moné for the CMLL World Women's Championship on Friday at La Noche de Las Amazonas. The two met in October for the title, but Moné retained.

Persephone told Fox News Digital that she hasn't interacted with Moné outside of her matches, but she kept a close eye on that generation of women's pro wrestling when she was younger.

"I was still pretty young when she debuted and when she was rising up the way I think I am right now. I watched her rise the way maybe other people are watching mine right now. And there is definitely a lot I could say I took away from her in terms of just being savvy. Even in this case, in this match, she's the smaller one, and I think in a lot of cases she was the smaller one in terms of stature and physique. She was just not going to out-strength people. But what I always noticed about her technique and her style is just being savvy. "

It's the savviness that earned Persephone praise from AEW co-founder Tony Khan in February.

"As far as young female wrestlers, Persephone, who works with AEW and CMLL, has come in. I think Persephone is fantastic," Khan said on radio row during Super Bowl week in San Francisco, via Slam Wrestling. "She also wrestled for me in ROH, and I think Persephone has all the tools. She's a great star for CMLL, and she can be a great star in AEW too."

The 24-year-old said Khan's praise meant a lot.

"I think it's something, it's going to sound very arrogant and I'm not sorry, but I think my whole career, even before pro wrestling, I've always known I'm a good athlete. I had scholarships lined up in other sports before I decided to stop those sports to just focus on medicine and pro wrestling. So, I've always known as a kid that I am a great athlete. In terms of a sport, if I actually put myself to it, I can be great at that sport. And so, I've always known I was good at what I did.

"But anytime I hear it, and especially from someone in a position like Tony, like that's your boss. That's someone that's obviously a lot higher than just, no offense, but like the fan at an indie show. 'You're great.' 'Thanks.' But someone like Tony telling you is, I think it feels just so much more special because it's kind of that validation of everything I've worked for paying off and people in a higher level or, obviously, this much more experience than I have are telling you that they see something in you and that kind of gives you the confidence of I need to keep pushing, I need to keep going."

Slam Fest festivities will take place April 15-18 in Las Vegas.