Indie Watch is our regular series that looks at all of the amazing talents working the independent circuits around the world. Some are veterans revitalizing their careers, some are indie prospects hitting their peaks, while others are names to be on the watch for! In this edition, we will be taking a look at another emerging star from the Texas indie scene and rising stars in women’s independent wrestling, AQA.
Texas has been a hotbed for indie wrestlers the past few years, especially with women’s wrestlers – in the past couple years, we’ve already seen names like Jordynne Grace, Thunder Rosa, Kylie Rae, and Allie Kat emerge from the scene, with young stars like Hyan, Rookie Jen, Alex Garcia, and Miranda Alize breaking out. Another name to watch is 22-year old AQA. And no, her name doesn’t rhyme with the 90’s pop band who sang “Barbie Girl”. It’s actually an acronym for Angela “Queen” Arnold.
AQA got her start when she was discovered at a fantasy wrestling camp run by WWE Hall of Famer Booker T. “I started training June 5, 2017, after a fantasy camp that Booker had on June 3rd,” she told Patches Chances in an interview earlier this year. “So, my idea was, I’m gonna go to the camp and see if I like it. If I like it, then I’m staying. If I don’t like it, then I’ll go back to college. And, well, I loved it. And here we are.” So the Alabama native headed to Booker T’s Houston based promotion Reality of Wrestling (ROW), where she began her training to become a professional wrestler.
Only two years into her pro wrestling career, she’s already gained the respect and trust of her mentor – she’s a 2x ROW Diamonds Champion, with her last reign lasting 154 days (she recently dropped it to Alex Garcia).
Following a joint show between ROW and RISE Wrestling this past January, RISE 12: ROW On The RISE, AQA was offered spots on both the RISE and SHIMMER rosters. She made her official RISE debut at Early to RISE (the preshow for RISE 13: Legendary), where she faced off against Allysin Kay, before entering the #1 Contenders battle royale at Legendary. She followed up with her SHIMMER debut at SHIMMER 109, in a scramble match with Shotzi Blackheart, Hyan, Keira Hogan, Miranda Alize, and Penelope Ford. This past July, she appeared for IMPACT Wrestling in the IMPACT and ROW joint event Deep IMPACT, where she was in a Fatal Four Way against Tessa Blanchard, Su Yung, and her ROW rival Hyan.
A star in the making with unlimited athleticism and charisma, AQA is on the threshold of exploding, as more and more eyes fall on the work of the Queen. Look for her to be one of the break out stars of 2020 on the national level.
Check out our full list of previous Indie Watches, showcasing emerging talent from around the world!
Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world.
