The wrestling road Crystal had to build

2026-03-21 - 09:11

As wrestlers run the ropes with force and go through their drills, the sound of bodies hitting the mat echoes across the gym. From the corner of the ring, Crystal watches closely, offering advice to a Filipina wrestler practicing against a man twice her size. Ten years ago, Crystal was the only Filipina learning the complicated sport and art of professional wrestling. Today, she is the one helping others navigate it. “I am the lead coach for the women here,” Crystal said. “I try to give them what I didn’t have, which was guidance from another woman. Because I was the only one.” When Crystal first stepped into the ring a decade ago, Philippine wrestling was still in its early stages and all the wrestlers were men. The concept of a female wrestler was nonexistent. Today, the scene looks different. “Back then there were very few of us,” Crystal said. “Now there are around nine women across the promotions. That’s amazing.” Crystal says female wrestlers need to be craftier in intergender matches. Contributed photo As the country’s most experienced Filipina wrestler, Crystal now finds herself helping build a new generation of women in Philippine wrestling. She hopes the path will be easier for those who come after her. “I wanted to make the gravel road that I was stepping on into a brick road that they could easily run on,” Crystal said. But long before she began mentoring other wrestlers, professional wrestling had already entered Crystal’s life. When she was just four years old, she watched wrestling with her grandmother, who remained a passionate fan even while battling illness. “Even though my lola (grandmother) had an IV and was going through cancer, she would still be cheering for her favorite wrestlers,” Crystal said. Seeing the joy wrestling brought her grandmother left a lasting impression. For Crystal, wrestling became more than entertainment. It became a source of strength. Growing up, Crystal often found herself relating to the smaller wrestlers in the ring. “I was always the smallest person,” Crystal said. “I was getting bullied, so I resonated so much with Rey Mysterio. The small Rey Mysterio getting bullied by the big Batista. He’s small, but he fights. I told myself I’m going to be that one day.” Crystal stayed active in sports throughout her childhood, competing in swimming, taekwondo, and cheerleading. Being physically capable and constantly in shape, she jumped at the opportunity to chase her childhood dream when the Philippine Wrestling Revolution opened tryouts. At the time, it was the only local wrestling promotion in the country. Applicants had to submit a short audition tape. “The process back then was to send a 30 to 45 second video audition,” Crystal said. “They wanted to know my name, age, sports background, and why they should accept me.” Crystal’s answer was simple and direct. “I told them I did taekwondo, cheerleading, and swimming,” she said. “Then I said, ‘You should accept me because I’m a girl.’” She remembers emphasizing that point because when she looked at the promotion’s roster, every wrestler she saw was a man. Crystal makes her entrance during her debut match for Philippine Wrestling Revolution, the promotion where she began her career as the lone Filipina wrestler in the local scene. Photo by Hub Pacheco/PWR Crystal would end up being the only woman from her batch who continued wrestling. For the next two years, she remained the only Filipina wrestler in the local scene. Having to maneuver uncharted territory, she soon realized that stepping into the ring was only the beginning of a bumpy road forward. The local wrestling scene was not always welcoming, and Crystal often heard it from the crowd. “There was some mockery in the chants when I started,” she said. “It wasn’t really encouraging back then.” The chants often referenced her being a woman or reminded her of mistakes she made as an announcer. Outside the ring, the challenges continued. Like many independent wrestlers, Crystal had to juggle multiple part-time jobs just to sustain her wrestling career. “Wrestling has taken my money,” she said. “Hair, makeup, accessories, wrestling gear, pads, shoes. It’s a lot.” Crystal in action in Singapore. Contributed photo Even today, wrestling in the Philippines is not profitable enough to be a source of livelihood. Being the only woman also meant Crystal had no one to turn to for advice. “It was hard because there was no one to check in with me,” Crystal said. “There was no one to share womanly stuff with me. Basically, I was my own mentor back then.” There were also challenges her male counterparts never had to think about. “I would be at the corner cramping, but then it was my turn,” Crystal said. “I was still running the ropes, still training, still getting suplexed while having menstrual cramps. It was hard.” Still, Crystal refused to let it be seen as an excuse. “It was a very precarious time being the only girl there,” Crystal said. “I didn’t want that to be the reason people would doubt me.” The early years of her wrestling career tested whether she truly belonged in the ring. Doubts, limited support, and the financial strain made her question whether the journey was worth it. If there was a road forward, it felt closer to gravel than pavement. Through it all, she chose to persevere. Crystal often returned to the reason she started in the first place. “I want to make my four-year-old self’s dream come true,” Crystal said. “I want to be that distraction for people, the way Bret Hart, The Undertaker, and the other wrestlers were for my grandma.” Japanese wrestling veteran Emi Sakura puts pressure on Crystal during their 2019 match. Photo by Hub Pacheco Years later, her perseverance led to a defining moment in her career. In 2019, Crystal faced Japanese wrestling legend Emi Sakura in a match she still considers the best of her career. She lost the match. But what happened afterward stayed with her. “After getting pinned, Sakura-san told me to stand up,” Crystal recalled. “We held each other’s hands and I looked at the audience. Everyone was standing, clapping, cheering.” Sakura left the ring, leaving Crystal alone in the middle of it. The crowd started chanting, “Thank you Crystal!” “That was the moment I knew I had to stay,” Crystal said. Since then, Crystal has built a career that extends beyond the Philippines. She has competed in major wrestling promotions across Southeast Asia, won championships, and even participated in a WWE tryout in 2019. But beyond the accomplishments, wrestling gave her something deeper. “I feel like wrestling has given me myself,” Crystal said. “Back then I was a college student trying to find my purpose in the world.” Today, Crystal is one of the most dependable and experienced wrestlers in the country. More importantly, she has become a mentor. Crystal gives instructions to a Filipina wrestler during a training session at Brawlpit Bulusan. Photo by Nathan Ramos The current generation of Filipina wrestlers once watched her from the stands. Now they share the ring with her. One of them is Super P, who once posted about seeing Crystal wrestle years ago as a fan. “She posted a photo of herself in the audience and me as a wrestler,” Crystal said. “Now we’re side by side in the ring. It gave me goosebumps.” Those moments remind Crystal why the struggle was worth it. Now, she makes sure the next generation does not have to face the same challenges she did. Whenever possible, she offers guidance to younger wrestlers, especially women navigating intergender matches. “I often give advice on how to approach matches as a female,” Crystal said. “Intergender matches will never be exactly equal. Women have to be more technical, smarter, and craftier.” (Left) Super P poses for a photo with Crystal as a fan during an earlier wrestling event. (Above) Years later, the two share the ring as competitors. Photos courtesy of Super P. Crystal shares ring psychology, match strategies, and the lessons she learned through experience. “Everything that I didn’t have, I give to them,” she said. “I don’t want any other female coming into wrestling to go through the same hardships I did.” In her decade of wrestling, often against opponents much larger than her, the physical toll is real. Crystal has dealt with multiple injuries and admits she has not wrestled fully healthy in quite some time. Still, she remains committed to the future of the sport. One dream she continues to hold is the creation of a women’s championship in Philippine wrestling. “I want to have a women’s championship in the Philippines,” she said. “I think it would be great for companies to collaborate and give the women the championship they deserve.” What began as a personal dream has become something much bigger. For Crystal, the goal now is not just to wrestle. It is to make sure others can follow and live out their dream of being professional wrestlers as well. “I know there are women out there who wanted to be wrestlers as a kid,” Crystal said. “I want them to step out of their comfort zone and take that step into wrestling.” Filipina wrestlers gather during a PUSO Wrestling event in 2024. Photo courtesy of PUSO Wrestling Crystal wants aspiring Filipina wrestlers to know there is now a place for them. “I want them to know it’s safe,” Crystal said. “I want aspiring Pinay wrestlers to know that I am making a home for us here in the Philippines.” After 10 years in the ring, Crystal hopes her legacy will be simple. “I hope when people talk about me in the future, they talk about me with a smile,” Crystal said. “I want my impact to be positive. I want my impact on Philippine wrestling to be someone who helped it grow.” In the ring, the next generation of women continue to hold their own. They run the ropes with purpose, learning to tell stories in the ring the way wrestlers have done for decades. Some stumble and struggle through the movements, but they do so with Crystal watching their backs. A decade ago, Crystal had to figure most of it out on her own. Today, the road to the ring looks very different. It no longer feels like gravel. It looks steadier for the next generation to run on. – Rappler.com