WWE has confirmed 4 new competitors for the 2018 Mae Young Classic – Isla Dawn, Zeuxis, Lacey Lane and Karen Q.
WWE has also confirmed that there will be 32 women in this year’s tournament, just like last year. The following talents have been confirmed for the tournament, which tapes in early August to air later this summer on the WWE Network with the finals taking place at WWE Evolution on October 28th – Dawn, Zeuxis, Lane, Q, Mia Yim, Killer Kelly, Mercedes Martinez, Kavita Devi, Kaitlyn, Io Shirai, Rhea Ripley, Kacy Catanzaro, Nicole Matthews, Jinny, Tegan Nox, Deonna Purrazzo, Jessie Elaban and Reina Gonzalez. Vernice Gabriel has been reported but not confirmed by WWE and Crystal was previously announced but removed from WWE’s listing.
Below is WWE’s announcement on the latest 4 competitors:
International competitors, new NXT recruit and indie star added to Mae Young Classic
As the WWE Universe looks ahead to the second installment of the annual Mae Young Classic, four more names have been revealed for the 32-woman tournament, which takes place later this summer on WWE Network.
The latest confirmed competitors are masked luchadora Zeuxis, NXT UK’s Isla Dawn, new NXT signee and former NCAA basketball champion Lacey Lane, and one of the hottest prospects from the American independent wrestling scene, Karen Q.
Zeuxis
A proponent of “Lucha Strong Style,” Zeuxis enters this year’s field with a decade of ring experience and more than 800 matches under her belt. Calling herself “Puerto Rican Power,” Zeuxis boasts a combination of strength and speed, and has frequently ended matches with a top-rope Spanish Fly. She is a multi-time champion in Mexico and Japan, and last September she collected perhaps her most important accolade yet, defeating Princesa Sugehit (a competitor from last year’s Mae Young Classic) in a Mask vs. Mask Match. Will she soon add the Mae Young Classic trophy to her long list of accomplishments?Isla Dawn
Scotland’s Isla Dawn turned heads with her recent outing at the WWE U.K. Championship Tournament special on WWE Network. This self-described “modern-day witch” employs a hard-hitting style that draws from her background in kickboxing and dance that has carried her throughout promotions across Europe. Molded by influences as varying as Goldust (her first WWE action figure) and Killian Dain (who saw her act in a play and encouraged her to begin wrestling training), Dawn hopes to put a spell on her competition in this year’s Classic.Lacey Lane
Lacey Lane stands to be one of the most well-rounded athletes in the entire Mae Young Classic. The newly signed WWE Performance Center recruit was a member the 2012 NCAA Division II championship basketball team at Shaw University, where she graduated magna cum laude. Deciding to give wrestling a try, Lane studied the mat game under WWE Hall of Famers The Dudley Boyz. Before joining the WWE PC, Lane made waves on the independent scene in both the U.S. and Mexico.Karen Q
If you want a competitor who’s tough, cunning, energetic, acrobatic and just flat-out entertaining, look no further than Karen Q. The cerebral Chinese American, who graduated with a master’s degree shortly after making her ring debut, blitzes the competition with a dizzying combination of technical wizardry and breathtaking aerial assaults. All the while, she also softens opponents up for the Spring Roll – her take on the Boston Crab – to rearrange spines and claim victories.Stick with WWE.com in the coming weeks for more updates on this summer’s Mae Young Classic, including more competitor announcements.
