EXCLUSIVE: Confidence is Key to the Success of Roxanne Perez in NXT

Roxanne Perez defends her NXT Women's Championship against Jaida Parker this Sunday at NXT No Mercy.

Roxanne Perez moments after capturing the NXT Women's Championship / WWE

There will be no shortage of confidence among the competitors in Sunday's Women's Championship Match at NXT No Mercy.

Reigning Champion Roxanne Perez is in the midst of a hot streak on the Black and Gold Brand. Racking up victories against talented young stars like Lola Vice and Thea Hail, as well as more seasoned competitors. Including the current TNA Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace.

Each of her latest title defenses have received rave reviews from fans and critics alike and has the Prodigy solidifying herself as a locker room leader and one the best female wrestlers to ever hold the gold in NXT.

"I definitely feel like it's the place that I completely belong in, because I've been doing this for almost 10 years. I feel like I've put in that work. I've put in the time to be one of the best at 22-years-old."

It's that level of confidence that has helped carry her to new heights during her second reign as NXT Women's Champion, that Perez admits was lacking the first time the belt was put around her waist.

The Takedown on SI had a chance to catch up with Roxanne Perez ahead of NXT No Mercy and while she's feeling undeniable at this stage in her career, she caught herself staring into the headlights during her first few months in WWE.

“The first time that I held the championship I was a few months into getting signed with the WWE. I still couldn't believe that I was here. I was still nervous, still a little star-struck. I'm surrounded by all of my heroes growing up.”

Perez was already an accomplished professional wrestler upon signing with WWE in March of 2022, having won the inaugural ROH Women's Championship at just 19-years-old. The top brass in NXT showed trust in her immediately as she made her television debut roughly two months after signing on the dotted line.

By December of that year, she had earned her first opportunity at the NXT Women's Championship by prevailing in the Iron Survivor Challenge at NXT Deadline. Just three days later she would hit Pop Rox on Mandy Rose and shockingly end her 413-day reign as Champion.

Over the next few months, even though she was earning the type of push she had worked toward since she was a young teenager, Perez said she began to experience many of the traits that are associated with imposter syndrome.

“Am I a prodigy?” Roxanne remembered pondering. “There were just a lot of doubts and I feel like that definitely hindered me a little bit.” 

Perez would drop the title at NXT Stand & Deliver 2023 in a Six-Woman Ladder Match after Dexter Lumis emerged to help his now ex-wife (?) Indi Hartwell climb the ladder and capture the gold.

It was a strange booking decision in retrospect as Hartwell was drafted to Monday Night Raw just weeks later and was forced to vacate the Championship. But it was a beneficial decision for Perez, who spent the next year honing her craft and shedding the innocence of her persona with a career enhancing heel turn.

By the time Stand & Deliver 2024 rolled around, Perez was more than ready to become the youngest ever two-time NXT Women's Champion.

"When I faced Lyra Valkyria at Stand & Deliver and they gave me that Championship. I was holding it up like, yeah! Damn right. Damn right I'm a two-time NXT Women's Champion,” Roxanne said with some spirit in her voice. "I am a prodigy. I've been doing this for almost 10 years and I definitely am one of the best women's wrestlers in the world right now, and I'll stand on that.”

There's a fine line between arrogance and confidence and allow me to assure you, speaking to her behind the scenes, there is not even a hint of aggrandizing as she still carries herself with a certain level of humility.

When it comes to her on-screen character, yeah, she's going to get smacked across the face every now and again.

.@Jaida_Parkerwwe understands how big #NXTNoMercy is for her career, but @roxanne_wwe isn't trying to hear any of it... 👀#WWENXT pic.twitter.com/nAjBGdN1mf

— WWE (@WWE) August 28, 2024

It would be incredibly hard for Perez to not be a little bit cocky when legends like Gail Kim are publicly praising her name. Or when someone like five-time WWE Women's Champion Bayley goes out her way to compare Roxanne's in-ring ability to two Hall of Famers.

"She’s incredible in the ring. She’s like a little Rey Mysterio but also like Eddie Guerrero, like very technical, she can do it all," Bayley told the Angle Podcast during SummerSlam weekend.

Perez practically lit up when the comment was brought up during our conversation.

“Oh my God. That was probably one of the best compliments I've ever gotten in my wrestling career. To be talked about alongside Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero, I do not take that lightly at all,” Perez said with a grin too wide to hide. “I'm always watching tape. I'm always thinking about wrestling. I'm always training. I'm watching Rey Mysterio. I'm watching Eddie Guerrero. So yeah, that compliment was pretty cool. It was pretty cool.”

Bayley and Kim haven't been the only ones talking about Roxanne Perez as of late. The Prodigy has noticed her name pop up online quite a few times in recent weeks. Something she takes as a sign that she's doing something right, regardless of whether or not the comments are positive or negative.

When an NXT Superstar reaches this level of success it's only natural for national analysts, like WWE Hall of Famers Bully Ray and Booker T, to debate a talent's potential to reach similar heights on the main roster.

Graduating to Raw or SmackDown is the ultimate goal for any athlete that walks into the WWE Performance Center and Perez is not afraid to admit that she has had her eye on the prize for a long time now.

“I've thought about [a main roster call-up] my entire life. I've thought about that ever since I got to NXT. I've thought about that after the past two Royal Rumbles that I've been in. But I have been in two Royal Rumbles, which means that it's only a matter of time. I'm just enjoying my time with my baby. I'm enjoying my time running NXT. And I know sooner than later I'm gonna be running the main roster.”

Roxanne Perez vs. Jaida Parker is set for NXT No Mercy / WWE

Perez could get a forceful shove toward 'sooner' if she were to drop the NXT Championship this weekend at NXT No Mercy.

She'll put her title on the line against Jaida Parker. A former standout youth and High School soccer player who competed on the U.S. Under-17 Women’s National Team that won the World Cup in North Carolina.

Parker, real name Tiana Caffey, would go on to play collegiately at Louisiana State University where she earned a varsity letter playing for the Lady Tigers. The talented midfielder helped LSU win an SEC Championship and set one of the lowest goals-against average in school history before she graduated in 2021 with a degree in sports administration and business.

An ACL injury at the very beginning of her senior season at LSU delivered a major set back to her soccer career. When she was not selected in the NWSL Draft, she accepted an open invitation to tryout for WWE and was signed the week of WrestleMania 38 in Dallas.

One of the first women she worked with in Orlando was her opponent this weekend and Roxanne Perez saw something special in Parker during those early training sessions.

“We have a lot of these athletes come in, but when I was first working with her, I remember seeing the spark in her eyes. Like, I love this. I wanna get better at this. And, I don't know, she always seemed a little different to me.”

Roughly six months after her successful tryout, Parker made her in-ring debut in a Halloween Costume Battle Royal at an NXT Melbourne Show. A year later she would appear on television for the first time, competing against Karmen Petrovic in the NXT Women’s Breakout Tournament.

Barely 40 matches into her professional careerm Parker now has an opportunity to become the NXT Women's Champion.

“It really goes to show that the Performance Center works," Perez said. "We have the best coaches in the world. To see her growth in the past year, like, she oozes confidence. She oozes aura. She's definitely gonna be something. Definitely a future champion. But, sorry… not quite yet.”

You can see Roxanne Perez defend her NXT Women's Championship against Jaida Parker when NXT No Mercy streams live this Sunday, Sept. 1 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT on Peacock.

You can follow Rick Ucchino on X and on Instagram: @RickUcchino

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