Tag: the dungeon

AJ Styles visits Florida wrestling school, Nattie’s Dungeon

Posted on by Joseph Currier

AJ Styles spent some time this week passing on his knowledge to the next generation.

The 48-year-old Styles visited Fight the World Wrestling Academy, which is located in Florida and run by NWA wrestlers Bryan Idol, Natalia Markova, and Mike Mondo. He later stopped by Natalya & TJ Wilson’s Dungeon on Wednesday to help out during a training session.

“Most people never even get CLOSE to a ring…our students are learning directly from people who’ve main-evented WrestleMania, traveled the world, and actually lived this business,” FTW Academy posted. “Thank you to The Phenomenal One AJ Styles for a great class! See you again soon.”

Wednesday was Natalya’s 44th birthday, and she said Styles’ visit was the best gift she could have gotten. She and her husband Wilson (Tyson Kidd) hold weekly, invite-only training sessions in their ring at no cost to those who attend.

“I had the most PHENOMENAL birthday today sweating with my Dungeon family alongside [AJ Styles],” Natalya posted. “AJ gave us all the answers to the test… and then some. He got in there, wrestled, pushed us, and shared his knowledge with everyone in the room.

“He’s truly one of the greatest wrestlers of our generation, and honestly, I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday gift. Learning. Growing. Being challenged. Feeling inspired all over again to keep chasing my wildest dreams and to never stop striving for greatness.”

Sessions at The Dungeon are attended by up-and-coming wrestlers as well as TV names who are looking to work on things. WWE’s Ilja Dragunov, who is there regularly, was among those in attendance this week.

AJ Styles’ post-retirement WWE role —

Styles had his final match this January, was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in April, and now works for the company in a behind-the-scenes capacity. His exact role isn’t fully set in stone, but Styles has enjoyed working in recruitment and helping out with the WWE ID development program. Because he has so much experience on the indies, that has been a natural fit for Styles.

Wednesday also saw John Cena, a WWE ambassador in his post-retirement life, spend some time with wrestlers at the WWE Performance Center.

John Cena praises Natalya, Tyson Kidd after Dungeon visit

Posted on by Joseph Currier

John Cena had kind words for WWE couple Natalya and TJ Wilson (Tyson Kidd) after attending a training session at their Dungeon facility.

On Wednesday night, Cena visited the Dungeon — a training ring Natalya and Wilson have in Florida where other wrestlers can come and practice. He posted a brief tweet today commenting on the experience and praising the husband-and-wife duo for their dedication to pro wrestling.

“The brilliance, ability & generosity of @TJWilson & @natbynature is astounding,” Cena wrote. “The Dungeon’s existence shows how dedicated my two friends are to the industry we love. Dungeon’s Rules – INVITE ONLY COST $0.00 fees are paid in passion & ‘hustle’. FLAKE OUT, invite revoked. All they ask is all any audience asks … give everything you have.”

“Thank you, @JohnCena. You understand the Dungeon the way my grandfather Stu Hart intended it to be—real, raw, and rooted in passion, hustle, and love for the game,” Natalya responded. “What you brought to our practice was a storytelling masterclass and a reminder of what greatness looks like. Truly surreal.”

Ilja Dravunov, Maxxine Dupri, B-Fab, and Angelo Dawkins were among a big group of wrestlers who also attended the Wednesday night session. The facility is named after the legendary Dungeon where Stu Hart trained wrestlers at the Hart House in Canada.

In addition to this visit, Cena stopped by the WWE Performance Center twice recently to spend time with the up-and-coming talent.

Cena only has four WWE appearances left on his retirement tour. His last Boston appearance will take place on the November 10 edition of Raw. He’ll then head to New York City for the final time for Raw at Madison Square Garden on November 17.

After that, Cena will compete at Survivor Series on November 29 and then have his final match at Saturday Night’s Main Event on December 13. WWE is running a tournament to decide who will be his last-ever opponent, with Gunther rumored to be the most likely option.

John Cena speaks to The Dungeon trainees

Posted on by Ethan Renner

An all-time great made an appearance at The Dungeon to speak to wrestlers at the training camp run by Nattie Neidhart and TJ Wilson.

John Cena made an in-person appearance at Neidhart and Wilson’s The Dungeon to speak to the wrestlers training there on Wednesday. A photo from the training session shows Apollo Crews, Ilja Dragunov, Neidhart, Wilson, the former Oro Mensah, Maxxine Dupri, the former Ashante Adonis, the former Jin Tala, and Brodie Lee Jr. among those in attendance.

Neidhart posted:

Thank you,@JohnCena. The most valuable gift anyone can give is their time — and you’ve never stopped giving it to others. You continue to set the standard for what it means to lead, inspire, and give back. The time you shared with us in The Dungeon will stay with us forever.

The former Jin Tala, now Leigh Laurel, posted:

The knowledge & encouraging talks today from @JohnCena, was much needed. already making memorable moments on this new journey

I’m ready to navigate the indies, ready to discover who I am at the core of wrestling & happy that I’m taking you all with me on this wild ride.

Cena is winding down his in-ring career and imparting wisdom to the next generation of wrestling talent as he moves toward retirement, including multiple visits to the WWE Performance Center in addition to his stop at The Dungeon.