Roxanne Perez is making it clear that her ambitions extend far beyond one promotion, one championship, or one major event. The WWE Superstar scored a significant victory at AAA TripleMania 34: Night 1, positioning herself for a shot at the AAA Reina de Reinas Championship, and she is already speaking with the confidence of someone who intends to take over the division.
During an interview with Muscle Memory's Muscle Man Malcolm, Perez reflected on her long connection to AAA, which began well before she was able to fully pursue opportunities in professional wrestling. She also addressed the prospect of sharing a ring with AJ Lee, saying she would welcome the match and even declaring that she wants to retire the former WWE Divas Champion.
The comments come after a major night for Perez at TripleMania 34: Night 1. Perez defeated Faby Apache, La Hiedra, and Nattie Neidhart in a Fatal 4-Way match. The win earned her a future Reina de Reinas title opportunity at Worlds Collide. Her opponent will be determined at TripleMania 34: Night 2, where reigning champion Flammer will face La Catalina.
A Full-Circle AAA Opportunity for Roxanne Perez
For Perez, appearing at TripleMania is not simply another stop in an increasingly decorated career. AAA represented one of the first major opportunities that came her way after she began training at a remarkably young age.
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Perez explained that she started training when she was 13 years old. While that gave her time to sharpen her craft before reaching adulthood, it also created obvious limitations. She knew that significant opportunities would be difficult to accept while she was still a minor, so her approach was to develop as much as possible and be ready when the right opening arrived.
“I know I have a couple years to go, but I’m going to use all of these years to get as great as I can, so when the opportunity comes, I’m so ready,” Perez said.
That opportunity almost came when she was 16. Perez said AAA invited her to train and participate with the promotion at that point in her development. However, she was unable to make that move because of her age and because her parents were not yet fully comfortable with the situation.
Rather than viewing that missed opportunity as a closed door, Perez now sees her return to AAA as a chance to finish something that began years ago. She spoke about arriving on her own terms, with considerably more experience and a far bigger platform than she had as a teenager.
“Now I’m kicking the door down, and I’m here, and I’m not asking anybody for permission,” Perez said. “I’m here, and I’m going to take over AAA. Just watch. And I’m going to become Reina de Reinas Campiona.”
That statement has added weight following her TripleMania victory. Perez had to overcome three accomplished opponents in Apache, La Hiedra, and Neidhart, and the result immediately moved her into the title picture. Whether the champion is Flammer or La Catalina after Night 2, Perez will enter Worlds Collide believing that the championship is there for the taking.
The Reina de Reinas Championship would represent another major accomplishment for Perez, who has built her reputation on being one of the most driven and technically polished performers of her generation. It would also make good on the promise she made to herself when her first prospective AAA run was delayed by circumstances outside of the ring.
Perez Calls Out AJ Lee
While AAA gold is the immediate objective, Perez also named a WWE figure she would like to face: AJ Lee. AJ has remained one of the most discussed names among fans whenever potential returns or dream matches are raised, despite her lengthy absence from WWE competition.
Perez did not hesitate when asked if a match against AJ Lee appealed to her.
“I think yes, 100%. I would love to wrestle AJ Lee and I would love to retire Miss AJ Lee,” Perez said.
The phrasing fits the unapologetically confrontational attitude Perez has displayed. A bout between Perez and AJ would offer an interesting clash between performers from different WWE generations. AJ became one of the defining personalities of the Divas era, while Perez emerged as a standout of a new generation of women who entered the industry with a focus on high-level in-ring competition from an early age.
Perez went further when discussing why AJ has not been part of WWE. In her view, AJ’s absence is all the proof needed that she does not truly want to be back, and Perez said she would be more than willing to give her a lasting reason to stay away.
“Well, where is she? Where is she? Clearly, she doesn’t want to be here,” Perez said. “So she wants to come one more time. Then I can actually give her a reason to not be here.”
There is no announced match between Perez and AJ Lee, and no indication from these remarks that one is officially in the works. Still, Perez has put the challenge into the conversation in unmistakable terms. She is not merely interested in testing herself against AJ; she wants to use the match as a statement-making victory over a former champion with a devoted fan following.
That is consistent with Perez’s larger approach. She is framing every opportunity as a chance to prove that she belongs at the top of the current landscape, whether that means pursuing a historic championship in AAA or calling for a match with one of WWE’s most recognizable former women’s stars.
John Cena Remains Part of Perez’s Bold Narrative
Perez also revisited one of the more memorable moments attached to her recent WWE run: hitting John Cena with the Pop Rox at Survivor Series. She described the experience as especially satisfying because Cena was one of the wrestlers she rooted against as a child.
Growing up, Perez said she was drawn to heels and found herself enthusiastically participating in the familiar split chants that followed Cena at WWE events. She recalled attending her first show with her stepfather when she was around 11 years old and asking him whether she was allowed to join in when fans chanted “Cena sucks.”
“My stepdad took me to my first ever show,” Perez said. “He surprised me, and I was probably like 11 at the time, and I remember them chanting that and me going to my dad and being like, ‘Can I say sucks?’ He’s like, ‘Of course you can.’”
Years later, Perez was able to deliver the Pop Rox to the man she had booed from the crowd. She characterized the moment as a personal full-circle experience, then took the opportunity to make another boast.
“Fast forward 14 years later, I’m in the ring retiring John Cena because everybody likes to think that it was Gunther, but it was actually the prodigy Roxanne Perez,” she said.
Perez’s claim that she retired Cena is clearly presented as her own provocative interpretation of the moment, particularly as she referenced the belief that Gunther was responsible. But it underscores how Perez wants to be perceived: not as a supporting player who happened to share the ring with major stars, but as someone who can seize a career-defining moment and claim it as her own.
Worlds Collide Could Be the Next Defining Step
For now, Perez’s clearest next target is the AAA Reina de Reinas Championship. Her TripleMania 34: Night 1 Fatal 4-Way win has created a direct path to Worlds Collide, where she will meet either Flammer or La Catalina.
Both potential opponents bring a distinct challenge. Flammer enters Night 2 as champion, while La Catalina has the chance to upset her and change the entire direction of the upcoming title match. Perez will be watching closely, but her message is unlikely to change regardless of who emerges with the title.
She has waited years to compete in AAA after being unable to accept that initial invitation at 16. Now, Perez has arrived with a title opportunity already secured, a willingness to call out established names such as AJ Lee, and the same self-assurance that led her to take credit for a defining John Cena moment.
TripleMania 34: Night 1 may have been the first step in Perez’s current AAA run, but she has made her intended destination clear. Perez wants the Reina de Reinas Championship, and she believes AAA is about to see exactly what the self-proclaimed Prodigy can do.
Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.