I'm a schoologirl wrestler from Blackpool and I've dreamed of WWE, I won't stop until I reach Smackdown

Maddy Ashford, 16, grew up watching the women's WWE and dreamt of becoming a professional wrestler from the age of six.

A self-confessed tomboy, Maddy has always been naturally strong and played football and cricket at school.

Determined to achieve her dream, Maddy joined a wrestling club at the age of 12 after the first covid lockdown in 2020.

She spent the next three years training WWE moves and routines including an infamous moonsault - a backflip off the top rope.

The day after her 16th birthday, Maddy competed in her first show in Chorley in December 2023 in a six-man tag match with her two coaches, which she won.

She has since gone on to compete in another 40 competitions all over the UK - and as far afield as Denmark - winning around 30 of them.

Her mum's friend makes her custom costumes - including a glittery pink number - and Maddy now gets paid per show which she says is enough to stop her having to ask her parents for extra cash.

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Maddy - who is 5ft5 - now hopes to encourage more women and girls to take up wrestling.

Maddy, from Blackpool, Lancashire, said: "I've always liked it [wrestling] and before lockdown I was trying really hard to find any place that would take me on.

"I always loved watching the women and how strong they were.

"The ultimate goal is to get into the WWE - it's always been my dream to be on Smackdown.

"It took me three years of training until I was able to first compete at 16.

"I was 13, crying that I couldn't be on any shows and now I'm where I am now.

"I was training all the time and when I wasn't at training I'd be at home trying to wrestle on an air mat - not a good idea.

"The first show I did was the day after my birthday and now I've done around 40 shows.

"Some with two matches in each show - it's been two every weekend and some during the week, all over the country."

Maddy has always wanted to pursue a career in wrestling - but hid her hobby from schoolmates out of fear of being bullied.

She said: "When I was younger I made PowerPoint presentations on where to wrestle and stuff like that and I'd make my mum watch them over and over again.

"My whole high school experience I only had around five people who knew I did it and four of them were teachers.

"I'd be doing shows on the weekend and coming into school with bruises and I was embarrassed about telling people about it.

"More the fact that when I went to school I was in a class with only boys.

"It was the fear of being made fun of for it."

After three years of training, Maddy began to compete in competitions - though her mum initially needed convincing.

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She said: "I originally wasn't supposed to do any until after my GCSEs as I would have been too busy but I managed to convince her and the competitions began to really flow in around June - near the end of my GCSEs.

"I've been to Denmark to do one too, I've been to Skegness to do some - they're everywhere.

"I've got the Isle of Man in November.

"The biggest ones I've been in front of was in Skegness and that was over 1,000 people and one in Preston was 2,000.

"I'm being paid already and it's good enough income to not have to ask mum about extra money.

"I'm doing sports and musical theatre at college too - so I've tried to tie it in with wrestling as much as possible."

Maddy's most memorable win so far was her first in Chorley in December 2023.

She said: "All the fans there had seen me grow up from being the young girl doing merch and camera work when I was younger.

"People had been asking me for years when I was going to compete and finally I was.

"It was the most surreal experience and everyone was crying - I felt so in touch with my younger self."

But Maddy has faced challenges within the wrestling scene due to her age and gender.

She said: "Being the youngest there is always hard.

"Everyone is lovely but you can't always relate to everyone there.

"From growing up around wrestlers they've all matured me very quickly.

"I felt people would maybe judge. It has helped me in a lot of ways.

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"The majority of matches are against men and because of the fact that there aren't as many women.

"When little girls come up to me and say they want to be like me when they're older - it breaks my heart in a good way - it's so sweet.

"We have a male-dominant wrestling community but I keep seeing the women slowly starting to creep in.

"I do some one-on-one sessions with two little 13 year olds and it feels amazing to see them happy."