FMW owner Onita competes in an exploding barbed wire deathmatch
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‘Deathmatch’ Dani Leigh to Face Raven Havok in No DQ Match
Most teenagers are worried about homework, maybe they have a part-time job, or maybe hanging out with their friends. Not Dani. Dani Leigh is going out of her way to look for people to beat up. For fun. No, really, that’s what she does. Other than that, Dani is your average normal high school kid. Her opponent, Raven Havok, is very much not your typical average pro wrestler.
Most people think of WWE and Wrestlemania and maybe Hulk Hogan or Macho Man or John Cena. They might even think of big TV productions and fancy cameras. That’s not the kind of place where a match like this takes place. Raven Havok has made a name and a career for himself as a deathmatch wrestler on the indies, working this extreme style of wrestling match in front of smaller crowds off camera. A deathmatch typically involves various weapons like chairs, guard rails, pizza cutters, forks, lightbulb tubes, barbed wire, and anything else the participants can come up with. There have even been exploding barbed wire deathmatches. I even saw a flaming ring deathmatch once in Japan.
Dani and Raven will be facing off in a no- DQ or no disqualification match. This means things like weapons, low blows, and interference will all be legal during the match. While not quite as dangerous as a deathmatch, a no-DQ match is maybe only one step down from it. In terms of the rules, a no-DQ and a deathmatch are essentially the same. However, the key difference is that in a deathmatch, the wrestlers work a far more violent and graphic style. I sat down with Dani and got the chance to ask her a few questions about her career in the ring and her thoughts on the match.
Q: Raven Havok is a deathmatch icon, you know what you’re signing up for here right?
A: Yes, I know what I’m signing myself up for when it comes to wrestling Raven Havoc. He is a deathmatch icon, and he also has a lot of connections. Yet I am prepared to get bruised and bloodied by him, because even if I lose in the end, I will have learned so much from Raven.
Q: You said this is something you had been asking for this, and I just have to ask why?
A: I have been asking for this match for a few reasons. One of those is because I grew up seeing Raven in the ring, being inspired and intrigued. He has inane bravery to be doing death matches, and honestly he made me want to experience it myself. I grew up going to deathmatches with my dad and that made me have so many amazing memories surrounding it. So it just feels right to chase after it, or at least have one, otherwise I’d be missing out on a whole other side of wrestling.
Q: Why Raven Havok?
A: The reason I wanted it to be Raven Havoc was of course because I grew up watching him wrestle. Yet that’s not entirely why, even then my father has been watching Raven since the beginning of his wrestling career. On top of all that, I know that Raven can teach me so many important lessons, and things, about wrestling and more. In the end, I wouldn’t want my first death match to be with anyone else.
Q: Do you feel like you have something to prove?
A: Yes, I feel like that there’s multiple things that I need to prove. As being one of the only women in BWA, and being 16, people tend to assume I’m not that strong. So I want to prove that I am strong both mentally and physically. I also want to prove that I am ready for this, that I can handle whatever is thrown at me.
Q: Everyone has a story about how they got into wrestling, but few ever go as far as to get in the ring. Was there anyone in your life that drew you to pro wrestling?
A: Of course I grew up like most who get into wrestling, watching it on Monday’s and Fridays with your dad and bother. Which usually always leads to the trampoline, ending in you and your older brother having a match with your dad being the ref. Then of course my dad started to bring us to indie shows with him once we were old enough to stay up the whole time. Leading to being there until midnight while they were taking down the ring, and eavesdropping on the conversations your dad would have. Thinking it was so cool how dad got to joke with everyone. Then it turns out that my dad had been super close friends with the owner. Then we got old enough to finally go to deathmatches, and that was a game changer. I was invested in those matches. And of course life caught up to you, and COVID came around. So I had slipped away from wrestling, and forgot how it was such a big and awesome part of my life. Until one day an indie show came around and we decided to go to it, and of course my cousin had gotten into wrestling as well and was at this company. Well they did free training and my boyfriend at the time wanted to go to them, so I tagged along. And that night I wanted to get in really badly, and he urged me to. Ever since then I haven’t stepped away from it.
Q: Every wrestler has a few in-ring inspirations, who are some of yours?
A: When it comes to in-ring inspirations I have, there’s like superstar ones like John cena, Rhea Ripley, and Alexa bliss. Who all have the confidence, courage, and showmanship that I hope to one day come close to achieving. Then there’s also the people that I work with first hand, who have the passion and drive for wrestling. And they inspire me by how well they can show their love for wrestling.
Q: When you lace up your boots, you hear the bell, and you hit go, who are you wrestling for?
A: When I get in that ring, I wrestle for the fans, of course. But I also wrestle for my younger self, the little girl who would sit in front of the Tv on Monday’s and Fridays with her dad and her brother. The girl who would give her undivided attention to the matches going on in the screen, and of course asking her dad a million questions. She was so curious, driven, and confident. So when wrestling I try to be just like that, to make both of us happy and to bring the people the most entertaining, and believable shows and stories I got to experience as a kid that bring back that spark of magic.
Q: Who is your dream opponent?
A: Honestly I always try to be realistic, so whenever I used to think about a “dream opponent” I always thought about someone I kind of knew. Or at least someone I had seen wrestle in person. So my dream opponent had actually been Raven for a long time and then I was actually given the opportunity to wrestle him, and once again I get that chance, yet now under different conditions. But if you’re talking superstar dream opponent, then my answer would have to be either Rhea Ripley or Alexa Bliss. My two favorite female wrestlers.
Q: Got any particular venues you want to work in?
A: I have not really looked into certain venues that I would want to go to. Or certain shows to be honest. I’m just grateful to be invited anywhere, and gain the knowledge and experience to be able to soon have a venue I could go for.
Q: What does it mean to you to know that you’ve got the support of your family when it comes to pursuing pro wrestling?
A: It means the world to me that I have my family by my side in all of this. My family means the most to me, and to have them be in the crowd during my matches is honestly one of the most meaningful and relieving things ever. A story about this is back to my third official match of my career. I was insanely nervous because it had been my first main card match, and I thought only my parents could make it. Well as a surprise my brother and a few of his friends showed up right in time for my match and I spotted them during my entrance, and you could just see the difference it made in seconds. I relaxed and a lot of my intense nerves went away and I was more ready for the match than I had been. Showing up for people matters so much, and I am so very grateful that I have my family and friends that show up and support me in this.
The no-DQ match will take place at BWA Rebirth on August 29th. Doors open at 4pm, bell time is at 5pm. General admission is $10 for front row and $15 at the door. The address is 1722 Mill Avenue in Eden, North Carolina.
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