By Rachel Belle

Listen to Feature: Enter the Ring with Maxine, a WWE Wrestler

Her name is Karlee Perez, but her fans know her as Diva Maxine.

“Maxine is a very dominating woman. She’s no nonsense. She definitely is very strong minded and does not care what anyone else thinks about her.”

Maxine is a WWE wrestler, but Karlee studied criminology in college and was working for the state attorney when she decided to make a major career change. She had no wrestling or acting experience, but says it came completely natural to her. Maxine, the other divas and male wrestlers become characters in different plot lines, kind of like watching a movie that takes place in a wrestling ring.

Being a strong woman, who regularly knocks ladies out, she can be quite an intimidating date.

“Their eyes usually open up when I tell them and then they’re like ‘Uhhhhh…what do you mean?’ As soon as they go home it seems that I’m getting messages about how they watched me beat up this girl at this match. It can probably put a damper on a relationship if you don’t have a confident man.”

I imagine that watching women wrestle, while wearing tight, pleather leotards and garter belts would mostly appeal to guys.

“I’ve seen a huge female fan base. I get emails from females, saying I inspire them and it’s a great feeling. Women can watch it, they can stand up, they can be tough, they can relate to our characters. It makes them feel more comfortable with who they are.”

Of course, getting hurt is par for the course in this career.

“There are a lot of injuries in our business, it is dangerous. Bruises, black eyes, fractured noses, dislocated jaws, chipped teeth kind of comes with the job.”

Who is Rachel Belle?