Sometimes you never truly know what life has in store for you. You could travel the same path, go by the same routine, and remain in that comfort. Or, you could stray from that path to a fearful unknown that chokes you and leaves your skin goosebumps with uncertainty as you leave that comfort zone.
Mariah May has strayed from a path that she could have easily left alone and in doing so she found herself and so, so much more. This is her road to Stardom.
The English blonde had gotten her start in local areas, such as Progress Wrestling, smaller promotions, and even NXT UK, during which time she’d have a series of Nina Samuels that would span across various promotions. In this time, she’d refer to herself as “The Glamour”.
It wasn’t until the early 2020s that she saw success at Revolution Pro Wrestling where she would war with Gisele Shaw with unsuccessful title challenges for the Undisputed Women’s Championship and 2021’s Queen of the Ring Tournament.
In 2022, May would wind up in the United States and achieve some accolades here, such as facing Lady Frost at Battleground Wrestling’s When Worlds Collide event in the famous ECW venue, Philadelphia’s 2300 Arena, as well as Combat Zone Wrestling’s All Night Long. Whilst in the States, she would forge a long-standing friendship with Australian talent Harley Cameron, who now is part of QT Marshall’s stable in All Elite Wrestling.
During a cold winter in 2022, The Glamour would make a move that would change her life drastically, and that was a move to Japan. With a massive opportunity, she threw caution to the wind and started work in a foreign land that speaks and writes in a different language. This would frighten everyone, but she would test her mettle as she was set to make a debut which drew the eyes of wrestling fans toward her.
At World Wonder Ring Stardom, Mina Shirakawa would team with Unagi Sayaka, but Shirakawa came not alone; former NXT UK talent Xia Brookside and Mariah May herself walked Mina to the ring. After Unagi and Mina’s bout with Mai Sakurai and Thekla of Donna Del Mondo, Shirakawa would announce these English women would be her teammates in a new stable titled Club Venus.
From that point forward, Mariah May slowly found herself during the Triangle Derby I, New Blood Premium (where she debuted her masked persona “Sexy Dynamite Princess”, and the 2023 Cinderella Tournament where she fell short in the second match after a triumphant first win.
While the fandom began taking notice through clips on social media and buzz in general, Mariah May would add another wrinkle to her game – commentary, as she joined Christ Charlton and Sonny Guiterrez at the table, last-minute.
Admittedly, following the aforementioned New Blood Premium match, I had fallen off of following Stardom for a while, so I didn’t see this growth firsthand, but once I tuned in for the 5 Star Grand Prix, she would capture my attention.
In her performances, she came off as explosive and fast-paced, and she had a charisma to her that made her fun to watch. It was as though Barbie was a kick-ass wrestler (knowing Barbie and her Infinity Gauntlet of mad skills in every profession, that is possible). Her in-ring work is hard to look away from, and in listening to interviews with her, she exuded the impression that this experience in her life is important to her, that she’s found a home and love in working in Japan.
Though she’s had so many great matches in this tournament, if I had to recommend just one, I highly suggest her match with Giulia, a bout Mariah had been wanting for some time. It’s a stiff affair, meeting the megastar blow for blow, and showing she could absolutely hang with one of the promotion’s top talents. To stand toe to toe with the former Red Belt Champion and current NJPW Strong Champion proved that she could truly make it.
The Fighting Princess would reunite with Mina Shirakawa again at Sunshine 2023 under the moniker Rose Gold, defeating The New Eras for the Goddess of Stardom Championship. Two months later, the pair would lose these titles at Stardom x Stardom: Osaka Summer Team against Natsupoi and Saori Anou of REStart, a team within the Cosmic Angels stable.
As of late, there’s uncertainty as to what Mariah May is going to do, but her community of the House May anticipates this next step in her career – if she stays with Stardom or moves stateside for the highly interested WWE and AEW. She wouldn’t even have to stick to wrestling, if you ask me – on her YouTube channel, she covers a plethora of interests and hobbies she enjoys, be it fashion, gaming, or fitness.
I genuinely hope that whatever the future star chooses, it makes her happy because she has the potential to be a huge presence on larger western stages. Were she given time, rosters could absolutely be bolstered.
Mariah May possesses a unique thing to her arsenal – how she presents herself. Where once the image of a blonde woman all prettied up with pink and femininity was once chastised as a “diva”, she owns and puts out in-ring performances that make her a complete package, and at a young age too. On a roster that features stunning and adorable talent that beat the ever-loving piss out of one another as though they held up the line at the local DMV, she stands out as a workhorse and a foreign talent that the company values.
It is safe to assume that Mariah May’s existence as a wrestler is beyond earthly, and whether it’s this world or Venus, she will burn bright like the star she truly is.
