Sonya Deville was a WWE Superstar, then an on-screen authority figure. Now she’s back to solely concentrating on in-ring competition again.
And that’s just fine with her.
Deville was this week’s guest on the Under the Ring podcast with Phil Strum, and made it clear she’s psyched about returning to her roots.
“It feels like I’m home,” Deville said. “I embraced my role, and I really enjoyed my role as a WWE official. I think I’m a natural leader, and I think Superstars naturally wanted to kind of follow my guide and be represented by me. But I’m a fighter, and I’m a competitor at heart and I’ve been since day one, since I entered WWE. So I feel like I’m home and I’m ready to take over, like this is my time.”
As one of the most visible openly gay wrestlers performing today, Deville also talked about the importance of “strength in unity and strength in representation” and the importance of having allies who aren’t a part of the LGBTQ+ community.
“There’s a lot of your favorite WWE Superstars that are strong allies that are represented in that photo shoot,” Deville said of a WWE photo shoot to celebrate Pride Month in June. “So it’s going to be really cool and really powerful, I think.”
You can listen to Deville’s complete conversation above.
Under the Ring shines the spotlight on a different personality from the world of pro wrestling each week, from WWE and AEW to the numerous other promotions across the U.S. Other recent guests have included AEW women’s division stars Serena Deeb and current champion Thunder Rosa, as well as our own managing editor, Nick Tylwalk.
To make sure you don’t miss an episode, subscribe to Under the Ring on Apple Music or your favorite podcast provider, or check out Strum’s interviews in video form on the show’s YouTube channel.