Salina De La Renta is considered, in MLW, the gateway to the Latin American stars. This young lady who is performing on Fusion every week is recovering from a severe leg injury. But, the red hot Latina is still learning and playing a huge part in the MLW Fusion telecasts on beIN Sports every week. And, we have her for an exclusive interview! Text highlights are below!

 Salina sits down with James Walsh to discuss her venture into wrestling, how she came to love our business, and the wonderful opportunities she’s had both within MLW and beyond. Plus, we also discuss her severe injury and just how it happened. All this plus a little talk about Total Divas, the Bella Twins, Melina, Konnan, & Pentagon! 

Please visit http://wrestlingepicenter.com/ to listen to/view or download this interview!

On falling for wrestling:
“I wasn’t always a model. I only did modeling for 2 years professionally. But, for the longest time, I was involved in the performing arts – Theater was my thing. I moved to Florida to persue a career in film. I wanted to be a screen writer. As I was doing research for a reality TV paper, I found Total Divas. That was the first time I had really seen anything women’s wrestling or anything wrestling related, honestly. I was like, “This is different. Very weird! I feel like I love it!” So, I said to my Mom that I feel like I look like these women and that I felt I could do it better, even. She was like, “Oh? Can you? Well, lets get you at school!” And, that’s how it started!”

On if Mom was really supportive:
“Well, at first she took it like I was being funny. Like, “You always want to do what you see on TV.” But, I kept saying, “No, I really want to do this.” After a while, she stopped with the jokes and said “All right, lets get you in a school!”

On if she’s eager to show people she can wrestle in the ring in MLW:
“Honestly? Yes! The thing that I want to do the most is when I come back (from injury), I want to start over! I want to take the knowledge that I have now and educate it into an empty vessel. I just want to have a fresh start. I feel like I’m going to have to retrain my leg. As I retrain my leg and my brain into wrestling, I feel like I can make modifications to be a way better performer than what I thought I could be.”

On how her injury happened:
“I jumped over a standing person, so that would be like a leap frog, from the top rope. That’s not really something people do because it is dangerous. Now I understand why people don’t do it! (laughs) As soon as I landed, it was like jumping 15 feet down. So, when I went down, it tore my ACL, my maniscus, and displaced my bucket handle.”

On heading a faction in MLW and being the first female Spanish announcer:
“I am enjoying every single moment of it. I cannot imagine a better platform for me to stand at. I feel I’m at the top of my career right now. I’m surrounded by legends and people who really made history. Being a part of something historic really makes me happy. I did something with MLW recently that is historical. I am the first female commentator in the history of pro wrestling in Spanish. MLW has given me the opportunity to start my career with big moves and big opportunities.”

On working with big stars like Pentagon Jr and Konnan:
“Absolutely! Feuding is probably my favorite part because you don’t just get to see the mean part of the character, the meanest side that you can. It is really cool to work with someone who has so much more experience than you do. You get to see how they do it and how your chemistry works. And, as you’re working, you’re finding out how you are as far as an improv actress. It really helps me to know how much I can think on the spot! Like, if he says something mean to me, I have to say something even meaner. I have to keep my brain going at all times! I love it!”

On how working at beIN Sports has been for her and MLW:
“It was basically like going back home. As soon as I entered the building, it was a lot of hispanics and the culture was very similar to what I was raised in. Working with beIn sports has not only made me a better talent but also made me have some flashbacks of my childhood and reminded me of why I’m doing what I’m doing.”

On now being a great time for independent wrestling:
“It definitely is! Everyone is open to new ideas, everyone is trying different things. Women are now being treated equally! I really am loving where everything is going and I’m glad to be a part of it.”

On how women’s wrestling has become so popular:
“Well, I’ve got to give it to the women that started wrestling. The women that were put out there… Maybe they were sexualized, yes. But, at one point, the women started saying,”No, we’re not going to do this anymore. We’re really good athletes!” And now, you’ve got girls like the Bella Twins who are really hot chicks but they’re not, “Yeah, we’re hot. But, we’re going to put on a show for you!” So, I would say everyone helped this. But, I would say men can’t make women succeed. So, I really have to say women in the women’s division made this.”

On her dream opponent:
“That’s easy! Melina would be my dream opponent. Actually, I was supposed to have a match with her. We met at IWR in Texas. We were supposed to wrestle each other in a tag match. It was me and Aria Blake versus Melina and Allie from Impact. But, it ended up being a singles match. Melina got hurt. Her knee blew out, ironically. Aria got hurt too, her shoulder got messed up. So, I ended up having a singles match with Allie. But, Melina was a part of it. But, I always think back that I almost got to wrestle my idol. But, I got to meet her! And, that was an awesome experience.

On her plans for MLW Fury Road:
“Well, I highly suggest that everyone attends this event brings their smart phones because I’m about to put on a fantastic show for them!