Celebrities and professional athletes from outside the ring have been a part of the pro wrestling world for quite some time.
The first WrestleMania featured Mr. T, Cyndi Lauper, Muhammad Ali, Billy Martin and Liberace and the tradition of using actors, actresses, musical artists and traditional professional athletes has continued for the last four decades. WWE, for instance, has used Jelly Roll, Lil Yachty and others recently for roles even outside the WrestleMania spectacle.
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Mr. T and Hulk Hogan attend a press event during WrestleMania 1 on March 31, 1985, at Madison Square Garden in New York. (WWE via Getty Images)
Major League Wrestling (MLW) openweight champion Austin Aries admitted he’s more of a “traditionalist” when it comes to professional wrestling. He told OutKick in a recent interview he understands the entertainment aspect of his sport, but shudders at the possibility of those outside the ring taking away opportunities from those putting in the work.
“I think balance is key, right? I’m probably more of a traditionalist in a lot of sense, but I also understand at the end of the day this is entertainment,” Aries said. “And so, even going back to, the first WrestleMania, I mean, it was about bringing in celebrities. I grew up more of a rasslin’ fan as opposed to a sports entertainment fan. So, I’ll always kind of skew towards being more traditional.
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Lil Yachty speaks during SummerSlam at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn., on Aug. 2, 2026. (WWE via Getty Images)
“And also, I think the important part is, for a lot of us who have, like, this has been our career, we’ve had to work very hard for a very long time to perfect what we do. And to take someone because they’re a celebrity and roll out a red carpet and let them take shortcuts and let them do things in a way that kind of skirts all that hard work that a lot of us men and women have put in, frankly, it can be insulting. It can be disrespectful at points. I understand about wanting to sell more tickets and get more eyes on the product, but you can’t do that at the expense of the people that are in there week in and week out putting the work in.”
Aries spoke to OutKick before his three-way match against Místico and Averno aired on MLW’s “Fusion” last weekend.
He put the MLW Openweight Championship on the line against both men and walked out the winner. He also took Místico’s mask as a souvenir.
Austin Aries enters a Major League Wrestling ring. (MLW)
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MLW “Fusion” airs Saturday nights on YouTube, beIN Sports and Veeps.
