This is a story in two parts. Originally intended to be released prior to the debuts of Grindhouse’s newest students, it was delayed for a number of reasons. Now, you’re not only getting the “preview,” you’re seeing the work that continues after a young wrestler debuts. Exciting times are ahead for Alex Bonza, Mercy Keller, Tiffany Baxter, and their classmates at Grindhouse.Â
Tuesday, August 4, 2026
“Stop! Back that up!”
The Reverend Ronnie Roberts is not happy.
“Why did you just let her go around? I know that’s what we said she’s going to do, but why are you just letting her do it? This is supposed to be a fight, right?”
Ronnie steps in because he cares. These students will have his name on him anywhere they go.
They’re going to get it right… if they want to make their debut this fall.
It’s been a while since Grindhouse had a strong women’s division. In less than a year, the 2024 class of Vanessa Holiday, Dixie Douglas, Allie Allbright, and The Lovely Miss Larkan dwindled to one. Dixie graduated high school and stepped away from the business. Vanessa had a baby, though she’s now starting to make her come back, most notably with Larry D’s Generation Next promotion in Kentucky.
And Larkan? She’s across the river crushing it, already a one time OVW Women’s Champion.
Allie’s had some good competition. She also had a run with the women’s championship – until Amazing Maria showed up and took it from her. But with Maria absent the last six months, the company decided it was time to start over.
2 Tuff Tony broke the news to Allie at July’s Summer Sweat Fest show. She seemed a little disappointed he didn’t just hand her the title. Disappointment turned to surprise when Tuff told her she would have to win it back in a tournament. Surprise turned to shock when Tuff introduced the first challenger for Allie’s title.
Mercy Keller.
Grindhouse’s former ring announcer.
The OVW-trained Keller always wanted to wrestle. She gave wrestling training a go twice before. After stepping away from ring announcing at Grindhouse a year ago, she made cameo appearances in online promos as an interviewer.
She also started working out, coming to classes. “It’s now or never,” she told me at a recent class. “Time to shit or get off the pot.”
Mercy already had her in-ring debut on July 31, six days after shocking the Grindhouse fans. “It was okay,” she said. Everyone’s first match is just ok. She’s working hard to get better.
Mercy’s a former theater kid, so playing big, being entertaining comes naturally for her. The same can be said for her classmate Alex Bonza, who started training in January. Alex has an extensive theater background and worked behind the scenes with Bullpen Pro Wrestling – a Louisville promotion run by a number of former Clarksville High School theater kids. She’s also a hair and makeup artist who will soon be opening her own salon.
“I have been a fan since Wrestlemania 27,” said Alex. “The divas era truly raised me.”
It was a love of performing that drew her to pro wrestling, and it was Ethan Heyre who suggested she try Grindhouse on New Year’s Eve. “I went in the following Sunday and immediately clicked with Ronnie and felt at home. I’ve been on the road and at training ever since.”
Bonza plans to keep her real name as her ring name, in large part because Ronnie loves how it sounds. “I’ve also been using the moniker ‘That Girl’ because Alex Bonza has been that girl, is still that girl, and will forever be that girl.”
Mercy and Alex are joined by two taller ladies with big personalities of their own. Tiffany Baxter just made her in-ring debut as Mercy Keller’s first opponent. She was also used in a recent spot on a Grindhouse show while working security. She didn’t get to hit anyone, but her physical presence was undeniable.
Baxter was born and raised in Louisville. She’s an amateur boxer who recently crossed over into the world of Lingerie Fighting Championships. “I’ve been on PayPerView events like 12 times. I love a crowd!! Once I got the LFC gig last fall, I knew it was time to learn to wrestle.”
An avid conspiracy theorist from an early age, Baxter chose the name Conspiracy Smokeshow for pro wrestling. Tall, beautiful, and tattooed all over, she relishes running her mouth in the ring, especially when she’s locked up with Ronnie Roberts.
“Quit rubbing your gross, disgusting beard in my face!”
Then again, Ronnie brings out the best in everyone.
Mandy Reams, who plans to wrestle under the name Xina Vixen, is also from Louisville. She’s been in the beauty industry since the age of 13 but recently felt drawn to give pro wrestling a try. “I’ve been a wrestling fan for years, but eventually I realized I didn’t just want to watch it, I wanted to become part of it. I wanted to challenge myself physically and creatively while expressing a part of me people could connect with.
“I chose Grindhouse because of its reputation for producing talented wrestlers and providing a supportive environment where I could learn from experienced trainers and continue improving every week.”
The reputation is well earned, especially with women’s wrestling. Not only is this the school that trained Miss Larkan and Billie Starkz, Ronnie Roberts continues to train with Hollyhood Haley J, who dropped by a recent class with fellow JCW wrestlers Alice Crowley and Paige Collett. Working with veteran talent like that doesn’t happen at every school, but it’s a fairly regular opportunity for Grindhouse students.
As with all beginners, the ladies have a lot of mechanics to work through until they become instinct. The one thing this class does not lack is attitude. With all due respect to the boys I watched train in 2024, there’s more personality, more character in this class of ladies than most classes I attended that year. Mercy, Alex, Tiffany, and Mandy all have some serious fire and love to talk smack.
But as Ronnie Roberts reminds them, it can always be bigger.
“What’s going to get you over is showing off your personalities WHILE wrestling,” he said after a round of practice matches. “That’s what will set you apart. There’s all kinds of ladies who know how to do the spots, but they’re not entertaining. I don’t give a f— if you do all the spots or not if you entertain me!”
Fans can expect to see the ladies in action very soon. There are a number of open spots in the women’s tournament. Some will likely be filled with big name surprises, brought in to walk the ladies through those opening match jitters.
Then the real challenge begins.
Training. Learning. Networking. Working and training hurt. Persevering.
October 26, 2026
Ronnie Roberts sits on the edge of 2 Tuff Tony’s desk, holding court. The Arena has just has a stem-to-stern cleaning after yesterday’s show, thanks to Dakota Baxley and smell’s of Pine Sol. Tony’s office? Smells of… other organic substances.
“How do you feel about your match?”
Ronnie’s question is addressed to two of the ladies in the office, Alex Bonza and indie veteran Teagan Thorne. The ladies look at one another.
“Did you hear positives?” Ronnie asks.
“We did,” said Alex. “And Mitch didn’t say the match was shit.”
Mitch is Mitchell Huff, the advanced class instructor and OVW veteran who never, ever minces words if he doesn’t like something. Mitch not saying a match is bad is always good news.
The plan was to rewatch footage from the day before, but Ronnie’s laptop won’t cooperate. Instead, the class heads downstairs to gear up and stretch. Alex, Tiffany Baxter, and Mercy Keller are no longer aspiring wrestlers. They’ve all had real matches with real crowds, and not just at Grindhouse. All three are out on the road, doing the drives and making towns.
Very early into their careers, and very aware how much they still have to learn.
“Do you know what my goal for you is today?” Ronnie asks Tiffany Baxter.
“For me not to f— up?” she quips.
Ronnie gives her a side eye and crooked grin. “Do you really think I care if you f— up here?”
This is training. This is the place to screw up, to make mistakes – and learn from them. It’s why wrestlers who want to excel continue to come to training long after their debut.
It’s why Teagan Thorne is in the room, seeking some polish from the trainer who helped to mold Billie Starkz and Haley J.
Ronnie puts the ladies to work, planning matches. “One heel, one babyface. I want to see the shine and the heat.”
Alex is a little self-conscious as she and Teagan begin planning the first match of the night, feeling the eyes of everyone else in the room. Her boyfriend, Ethan Heyre tells her, “You’re always going to have someone lurking, watching, listening.”
Alex shuts the others out and focuses on Teagan. They’ll take the ring first, followed Mercy Keller and Tiffany Baxter.
Mandy Reams is not in class tonight. She’s taken some time off from training for personal reasons, but she’s far from done chasing her dream.
Ronnie, meanwhile is focused on the new kid. Dressed in a T-shirt and sweat pants, the red-haired Montana has the crash pad on the mat and is practicing her flip bumps.
“She’s coming along quick,” Ronnie tells me. “And she hasn’t been here long.”
Montana’s story is a fun one. Her first time in the ring was the open tryouts held at the Gathering of the Juggalos by Juggalo Championship Wrestling. “My friends encouraged me to try it, so I did. Afterwards, Amy came up to me.”
That’s Amy Brown, 2 Tuff Tony’s longtime partner who manages the building. You’ve probably seen the video of her shutting down a show when the wrestlers refused to heed her warnings not to destroy her chairs.
“Amy saw I was from Louisville,” said Montana. “And she told me I should give Grindhouse a try. This is just my fourth week.”
Montana’s having fun, learning from the other ladies, and coming along quickly. Ronnie’s pleased enough with her flips he gets in the ring and begins teaching her how to take an arm drag, breaking the move down step by step.
Nobody gets taught a “lesson” at Grindhouse. Not the way they used to do it. They all pay their dues by working security, doing clean up duties, but you’ll never see a teacher take liberties with a student, male or female.
“Billie and Haley tell me I’ve gotten soft,” said Ronnie. “I’m too easy on the new girls. I don’t know about that.”
When the rest of the class is ready, Montana grabs some water and takes a seat near Ethan Heyre and the other member of tonight’s “Peanut Gallery,” Louis Boudreaux of Black Diamond Entertainment.
Alex and Teagan are up first. Dakota joins them in the ring to play referee. In this environment, with no crowd and no gear, you can see the added polish on Teagan. She’s sharper, crisper, more believable. Everything Alex is working to gain. Taking training bumps with Teagan will only accelerate her learning, even as Teagan continues her own education.
In the second bout, Mercy Keller struggles to shake off the day’s work and focus on Tiffany Baxter. More than any other member of this class, Mercy likes to call it on the fly and in the ring. But both ladies show hesitation that makes a few of their moves look awkward.
Ronnie sasses them like an angry fan: “This shit’s fake!”
Louis and Ethan gleefully turn his every comment into a fan chant. “This shit’s fake! This shit’s fake!”
Post-match, the girls in the ring are first to acknowledge where they struggled, and they’re all ears as Ronnie opens the floor for comment. He always lets everyone else speak before adding his own comments, and Ethan and Louis are generous with their critique.
“If the crowd’s engaging with you, there’s no reason to jump right into it,” says Louis. “When Devlin [Deville] and I get a crowd yelling and cursing at us, we’ll go with it. It fills up your time. You’re entertaining the crowd without having to get physical. And when we do get physical, the crowd is really excited to see us get our asses kicked.”
Mercy and Tiffany listen intently. All the ladies do, even if it’s not their critique. There’s a lot of teasing, ribbing, and joking, but not in these post-match moments. That’s the strength of this school. It’s the teachers, but it’s also the students.
This is serious business, for all of them. Sure it’s costumes and characters and theatrics. But they’re not here to play wrestler. They want to be professionals, to make part of all of their living following in the footsteps of their heroes.
“Mercy’s going to be a phenomenal wrestler, once she decides to believe in herself,” said Ronnie. “They all need some more seasoning, but I think all of them are going to make it. I get a little frustrated with them at times, but I’m very happy with this class.”
Ronnie also sees tremendous potential in the new girl. “I’m very optimistic about Montana. She’s got a lot of charisma, a lot of spunk. She’s learning fast. I’ve been very impressed with her.”
And there’s more to come.
“I’ve got four guys in the beginner’s class on Sundays who started about the same time as Montana,” Ronnie said, extending an invitation to drop by. “They’re all learning just as fast as she is. Matter of fact, the five of them are all moving faster than any class I’ve ever had.”
He’s got that glimmer in his eye when he talks about the new kids. He lives for this, shaping the future of the wrestling business.
And the future looks brilliant at Grindhouse Pro Wrestling.
“When you look around, a few years from now, I want all the great talent you see to be people who have come from Grindhouse,” said Ronnie Roberts. “That’s the mission. That’s the plan.”