Ashlyn Alexander is a rising star in independent wrestling out of the Midwest. She has been successful while battling some of the best wrestlers, male or female.

Ashlyn, who is also known as The Power Rough Girl, reminds me of former ROH World Champions Samoa Joe and Morishima. She is extremely strong and powerful, but also incredibly athletic and agile. 

If you wonder why Ashlyn is as tough as she is, you only have to look at a couple of her trainers, Gary Jay and Charli Evans, who are two of the most respected and toughest wrestlers. I asked Ashlyn about her training and she said, “Getting to train and travel with one of Saint Louis’s best and favorites has been such an experience. Gary has so much knowledge and is always more than willing to help with anything I need. Having a trainer who has been around for quite some time, knows the ins and outs of the business, and just wants to help me improve and grow as a wrestler is absolutely amazing. Now getting to train with Charli Evans is still surreal to me. While she was in the states and I got to meet her after watching her work and being a fan of hers for quite some time, I immediately started picking her brain, asking for critiques, advice, anything she could give me. Charli is one if not the biggest female influence on me and getting to train with her while she was here was a huge highlight of my career.”

Ashlyn started getting noticed with her matches at ZERO 1 USA and St. Louis Anarchy. It was at St. Louis Anarchy that she got the nickname “The Power Rough Girl.” I asked her where it came from and she said, “When I joined the Saint Louis Anarchy roster, I was put in a group called ‘The Rowdy Rough Boys’ with Adrian Surge, Tommy Davis and Nick King. Being the only girl in the group, we wanted to find something that fit me well. A friend of mine (Kat Carter) had pitched the nickname ‘The Power Rough Girl’. At first, I was not onboard with the nickname, I actually didn’t like it. The more I thought about it and how much it fit me and my character, the more I started to like it and wanted to give it a shot. Now everyone knows me as The Power Rough girl and the people love it.”

I also asked the SLA commentator, Sophie King, about Ashlyn’s time in St. Louis Anarchy and they said, “It’s been fun watching Ashlyn mature in the ring and develop this sense of self. She’s had a couple of real level-up type of opportunities in the past year within Anarchy, and you can chart these leaps in growth from them because she tries to squeeze as much as she can out of each experience. It’s great to have her as a regular and as part of a sort of freshman class of up and comers on the roster that are in some really engaging stories.”

Ashlyn has wrestled the international superstar, Shazza McKenzie, multiple times in SLA and Shazza said, “Ashlyn is a strong powerful up and comer that brings her own style of power to every match.”

Ashlyn’s style is very unique, so I asked her about her style and any of her influences. Ashlyn says, “Charli has been a huge influence on my in-ring work for sure. She is someone that has also inspired me to work more intergender matches. I’ve had a lot of people compare me to Samoa Joe when they see my work which is always amazing. Growing up, I loved watching Edge. To this day, I still love to watch and study his work. Another person my work has been compared to, or I have been told to really study is Bull Nakano.”

Ashlyn has faced a very diverse group of opponents from Billie Starkz to Tommy Davis, Rebecca J Scott, Anakin Murphy, and a triple threat match against Charli Evans and Shazza. She also had some extremely fun matches against Jamesen Shook and Larkan. I asked about these matches, Ashlyn said, “The match I had with Billie Starkz is definitely and easily one of my all-time favorite matches I have had so far. Getting to work with Billie was an honor and a dream come true. I hope to wrestle her many more times any and everywhere I can! Working with Tommy Davis whether we are wrestling each other or tagging with one another, it is always a fun time. We always have great chemistry, and both want to put on a killer match that the fans will remember at the end of the night. Tommy is amazing at what he does. He has proven himself to be the next big thing not only in STL but in the world of professional wrestling and I can’t wait to see how far he goes in this business. My match with Shazza McKenzie and Charli Evans is one of my top 5 favorite matches I’ve had. Both women in my opinion should be signed. They both are full of knowledge, always give it their all, and are creative and hard hitting, which is exactly what I love. Working Jameson Shook at Tax Return in Edgewood was an absolute blast. We both went out there, put on an amazing match for the fans but also just had fun. I’d love to step back in the ring with Shook sometime in the future! I would have to say I am most proud of my matches with Billie, Shazza, Charli, Tommy and Anakin. I also really enjoyed my matches with RJS, Shook and Larkan.”

Ashlyn had a great Anything Goes match against Anakin Murphy. I asked her about the match and if she would want to do more hardcore or possibly even death matches in the future. Ashlyn said, “This match was my first Anything Goes match and I would do it again and again, especially with Anakin. Any match I have had with Anakin has been over the top and he is someone I will always love stepping into the ring with. I would love to do more hardcore matches for sure, and I would love to give deathmatches a go.”

Recently Ashlyn has been one of the top wrestlers at Hooligan Championship Wrestling (HCW), which in only about a year of existence has become one of the top independent wrestling companies for women’s wrestling. They recently had the biggest women’s wrestling show in the history of the state of Indiana. Ashlyn has been one of the top wrestlers at HCW since their inception. She won the inaugural Ascending The Queendom Tournament by defeating Nixi XS and Alice Crowley. She also challenged for the HCW Women’s Championship and most recently defeated former OVW Women’s Champion, J-Rod, in a very hard hitting battle.

“HCW is such an amazing promotion to work for. Being at HCW has helped me meet so many new people. I’ve gotten the chance to wrestle people I have yet to work with, and it is all around just an amazing time each show. HCW has an amazing women’s division and is the perfect place to go out there, be yourself and just have fun! The crowd is always on fire and into each match from start to finish.”

Ashlyn has really seen her profile rise in the past couple of years, working bigger name and bigger promotions. She says, “I feel like there are many different things that have caused me to get more attention recently. One of them being traveling more, hopping into carloads, and going to shows that I want to be on in the future. Doing so has really helped me network with different promotions and other wrestlers. I also have been focusing on my in-ring work, social media presence and so much more. At the end of the day, I want to grow and get better so I can reach my goals and live out my dreams.”

Whenever Ashlyn is not in the ring being one of the strongest and toughest women in independent wrestling, she is a college student and a teacher. Ashlyn said that in her spare time she loves to paint, roller skate, hang out with and enjoy time with her friends and family. Wrestling takes up a lot of her time, but she always finds a way to still enjoy life outside of wrestling.

Make sure that you catch up on Ashlyn’s matches on YouTube, IWTV and elsewhere, as she is going to keep going to more promotions and having bigger matches. She states that she has A LOT of shows coming up with St. Louis Anarchy, Fountain City Pro, Hooligan Championship Wrestling, House of Heat Pro Wrestling, and more.

You can keep up with Ashlyn on her social media at @itsashlynalexander on Instagram, @AshlynA1616 on Twitter/X and @Ashlyn Alexander on Facebook.