Deonna Purrazzo was officially declared to be an All Elite on the very first episode of AEW Dynamite of 2024. As seen on that January 3 edition of the AEW flagship show, Mariah May defeated Queen Aminata in her first-ever match in the promotion. After the match, she cut a promo on winning the bout despite her ally and the AEW Women’s Champion Toni Storm being absent from the scene.
Soon after that promo was interrupted by Deonna Purrazzo who was quick to come after the women’s title held by Storm. It admittedly has been a dream debut for the former Impact Wrestling star power as she got to walk into a bigger league in front of her hometown of New Jersey. Additionally, she is now being treated as a superstar in the company.
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Deonna Purrazzo not only made her AEW debut in her home state of New Jersey, but she also quickly signed a contract with the company. On Talk Is Jericho’s podcast, she recalled that night from the Prudential Center and she trained at the arena when nobody was around just to keep the appearance secret. She made multiple appearances as a WWE extra in that venue but finally, she got to make a grand debut.
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AEW tried hard to keep Deonna Purrazzo’s debut a secret
“I said that to Tony when we talked, ‘I’ve never wrestled there, never done anything there, but I’ve been there a million times, so it just would be cool on that flipside.'” Deonna Purrazzo disclosed how the production kept her appearance a secret. “They put me in that wheelchair with the tarp over my head and through me in a room by myself. I’m being treated like a superstar, and it’s just me! I don’t feel like I deserve this kind of treatment!”
“The Virtuosa” further admitted that she’s an emotional person, especially when it comes to professional wrestling, and that she had to control all of those to herself as she walked out on stage. But just before her debut, she broke into tears, “I just broke down right up there. And it’s a secret, I’ve not seen it on the internet, nobody knows.”
Deonna Purrazzo also revealed that she had no idea that her family would be in attendance to witness the debut. Upon realizing that her father was in attendance, she again had to control her tears while being in the ring, “I got in the ring and was like ‘There’s my dad’s big head! Okay, don’t cry in the ring!’ It was very emotional.” (quotes courtesy Wrestling INC)
