Mexican luchadora Sexy Star will soon make her Combate debut as former UFC champion Cain Velasquez prepares for his professional wrestling debut.
Triple threat athlete Dulce Maria García Rivas, known better as the masked luchadora Sexy Star, cannot wait to see what Cain Velasquez can do inside a square circle.
Sexy Star is the first woman to ever win a major pro-wrestling world heavyweight championship as part of the Lucha Underground promotion. She is currently preparing for her debut MMA fight at Combate 34. On the flip side, former UFC heavyweight kingpin Velasquez is training for a pro-wrestling match at Triplemania, the grand annual show of premiere Mexican promotion AAA.
Sexy Star, who also holds a professional 5-0 record in boxing, spoke with Fansided ahead of her MMA debut on Friday, April 12.
Fansided: What compelled you to make this move to MMA?
Sexy Star: I’ve been a sports girl my whole life. I’ve been doing boxing and wrestling and now is the right time to do MMA. I want to prove women can do this sport.
Fansided: We’ve seen a lot of men transition between fighting and pro-wrestling. We have also seen a lot of women — such as Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler — go from MMA to pro-wrestling. We haven’t seen a lot of women go from pro-wrestling to MMA.
Sexy Star: I’m very happy and proud to represent women and be one of the first to move from professional wrestling and boxing to mixed martial arts. It’s going to take a huge commitment to be one of the best women in MMA.
Fansided: How much emphasis will you put on your MMA career?
Sexy Star: I would love to do all three disciplines: boxing, professional wrestling and MMA. Right now, I want to focus on MMA and continue with my training.
Fansided: Rousey, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair made history as the first women to ever headline Wrestlemania this past Sunday. Some people champion WWE for their increased focus on female athletes, whereas others would argue promotions like Lucha Underground were doing this a long time ago. You are the first woman to ever win a major world-heavyweight wrestling championship. Where do you stand?
Sexy Star: WWE did it after seeing how Lucha Underground did it, but at the end of the day is that women have a place in professional wrestling and all sports. Not just with the competition but with equal pay as well.
Fansided: There is currently a class action lawsuit against your former employer Lucha Underground. Some of their talents are accusing them of unethically blocking them from working for other companies. What have your experiences with the company been like?
Sexy Star: My experience with Lucha Underground was the best. The women have a very important role in that company. There was a real sense of equality.
Fansided: Cain Velasquez is making his professional wrestling debut at AAA’s Triplemania event. Any thoughts?
Sexy Star: I was very excited when I heard Cain was going to be at Triplemania. There are many opportunities there for athletes. It’s like a dream come true for Cain to be in professional wrestling.
Fansided: Do you have a prediction for your fight with Mariana Ruiz Avila?
Sexy Star: I trained for a knockout. I want to continue fighting for Combate and I want to become champion.
Fansided: Last question, will you wear your Sexy Star mask to the ring?
Sexy Star: Yes, I am going to wear my mask!
Sexy Star fights fellow newcomer Avila at Combate 34: Combate Estrellas 3 on Friday, April 12.