Willow Nightingale is having a moment.
The All Elite Wrestling star has planted her flag as one of the most promising talents in professional wrestling. After a long career as an underappreciated workhorse on the independent scene, she’s taken full advantage of the spotlight afforded by a national promotion. After a run as New Japan Pro Wrestling’s first ever Strong Women’s Champion, she harnessed a swell of fan support and recently defeated Julia Hart to claim AEW’s TBS title.
That admiration extends to members of The Wrestling Club, a group of students at KIPP AMP Middle School in Brooklyn. Students in the club, guided by English teacher Victor Perry, spent Monday’s lunch and recess watching Nightingale challenge Athena for the Ring of Honor championship at last year’s Death Before Dishonor. That’s when a special guest arrived.
The Wrestling Club had a special guest stop by today to surprise them during their lunch and recess.
Thank you @willowwrestles for coming by and hanging with TWC. ✨
Your impact knows no bounds.
We love and appreciate you so much. 💜 pic.twitter.com/EYlHSfX1am— Victor Taylor Perry (@wallflowerperry) May 13, 2024
In the midst of dueling “Let’s go Willow/Let’s go Athena” chants, Nightingale snuck into the classroom with her TBS title draped over her shoulder. After a moment of recognition, the classroom exploded in cheers for the subject of that day’s Wrestling Club. Students shouted in disbelief as the women they’d been watching high-fived any and every student who came up to say hello.
It’s the kind of uplifting moment that transcends the weird tribalism that too often dominates wrestling discourse.
Beautiful
— Bayley (@itsBayleyWWE) May 13, 2024
Nightingale, Perry and The Wrestling Club helped remind us why we watch the spectacle inside the squared circle. It can be terrible, and it can be empty calorie television at times. But at its best, pro wrestling is its own mythology, creating larger than life heroes — the kind who can make a middle school classroom explode simply by walking in.
On Monday, Nightingale got to pull off an ultimate babyface move. In the process, she proved she’s more than just a champion; to members of The Wrestling Club, she’s a straight up legend.