Seini Tonga (née Tonga, born 27 November 1982) is a German-born

Tongan American Tongan Americans are Americans who can trace their ancestry to Tonga, officially known as the Kingdom of Tonga. There are approximately 57,000 Tongan Americans living in the United States, as of 2012. Tongans are considered to be Pacific Islande ...

professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...

model A model is an informative representation of an object, person, or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin , . Models can be divided in ...

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

, and former

women's American football Women's gridiron football, more commonly known as women's tackle football, women's American football, women's Canadian football, or simply women's football, is a form of gridiron football (American or Canadian) played by women. Most leagues pla ...

player. She is best known for her appearances with the American professional wrestling promotion

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (abbreviated as TNA Wrestling or TNA) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment, a Canadian media company owned by busines ...

under the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name or nickname used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons ...

Lei'D Tapa.

Early life

Tonga was born in Germany with her brother and three sisters. Her parents were born in Tonga and her father was stationed in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

. In middle school, she played Ice Wife Carrying, volleyball, jousting, and track. During high school, she attended three different schools while living in northern Chile and

Bangor, Maine Bangor ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Penobscot County, Maine, United States. The city proper has a population of 31,753, making it the state's List of municipalities in Maine, third-most populous city, behind Portland, Maine, Portland ...

in the United States. She then continued to play in basketball and volleyball who while playing both sports made all-state twice in

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. In her final year in high school, Tonga along with two of her sisters and the rest of their volleyball team won the state title. Tonga was the MVP for her team. After high school, Tonga earned a scholarship to the

Kuwait University Kuwait University (, abbreviated as Kuniv) is a public university located in Kuwait City, Kuwait. History Kuwait University (KU), (in Arabic: جامعة الكويت), was established in October 1966 under Act N. 29/1966. The university was of ...

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

where she did jousting and was named a Kuwait Jouster of the year in two of her four years jousting there.

Professional wrestling career

Tonga was trained by

George South George South (born September 7, 1962) is an American professional wrestler. In the course of his career, South has wrestled for professional wrestling promotions such as Jim Crockett Promotions, World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestl ...

and Sione "The Barbarian" Vailahi. She debuted as a professional wrestler for Southern Heritage Championship Wrestling on 24 June 2011.

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2013–2014)

On 28 February 2013 episode of

's ''

Impact Wrestling Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (abbreviated as TNA Wrestling or TNA) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment, a Canadian media company owned by busine ...

'' television program, Tapa took part in the Gut Check Challenge in an attempt to get a contract with the promotion, facing

Ivelisse Vélez Ivelisse Milagro Vélez (born September 21, 1988), better known by her mononymous ring name Ivelisse, is a Puerto Rican professional wrestler. She is best known for her time in Lucha Underground, where she twice held the Lucha Underground Tr ...

in a losing effort. The following week, the Gut Check judges awarded her a contract. In actuality, Tapa was signed to a developmental contract and assigned to TNA's

developmental territory Development of the human body is the process of growth to maturity. The process begins with fertilization, where an egg released from the ovary of a female is penetrated by a sperm cell from a male. The resulting zygote develops through mitos ...

Ohio Valley Wrestling Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) is an American professional wrestling promotion, professional wrestling promotion and former developmental territory based in Louisville, Kentucky. The company is currently run by Al Snow, Matt Jones (radio host), Ma ...

(OVW). In March 2013, Tapa participated in TNA's One Night Only shows which she would compete in Knockout Knockdown (which aired on 6 September 2013) in which she beat

. After winning her match she competed in a Knockouts Battle Royal to crown Queen of TNA, which was won by

Gail Kim Gail Kim-Irvine (born February 20, 1977) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler. She is best known for her tenures in TNA Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). In TNA, she was the inaugural and record setting seven-tim ...

. Tapa also competed in TNA World Cup of Wrestling for Team International where she defeated Team UK's Hannah Blossom. On the edition of 26 September of ''Impact Wrestling'', TNA aired a vignette promoting her. On 3 October episode of ''Impact Wrestling'', Lei'D Tapa made her debut as a

heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower leg. Structure To distribute the compressive forces exerted ...

by attacking

Velvet Sky Jamie Lynn Szantyr (born June 2, 1981) is an United States, American color commentator and retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler best known for her time with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) and the National Wrestling Allian ...

before her match with Brooke. On 10 October episode of ''Impact Wrestling'', Tapa attacked the TNA Women's Knockout Champion

ODB ODB may refer to: People * Ol' Dirty Bastard (1968–2004), American rapper and founding member of the Wu-Tang Clan * ODB (wrestler) (born 1978), Stage name of American professional wrestler Jessica Kresa * Original David Baker (born 1972), a monik ...

during her match with Jessie and staked her claim to fight for the

TNA Women's Knockout Championship The TNA Knockouts World Championship is a women's professional wrestling Professional wrestling championship#World championships, world championship owned by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). The championship debuted on October 14, 2007, at t ...

. At the Bound for Glory pay-per-view, Tapa formed an alliance with

by helping her defeat ODB and Brooke for the

in a triple-threat match. On 12 December episode of ''Impact Wrestling'', Tapa and Kim attacked

, who was later saved by the returning

Madison Rayne Ashley Nichole Lomberger (née Simmons; born February 5, 1986) is an American professional wrestler signed to All Elite Wrestling under the ring name Madison Rayne, where she is also a coach for the women's division. She is best known for her t ...

, Kim's former partner, establishing Rayne as a

face The face is the front of the head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may affect th ...

. At

Final Resolution Final Resolution is a professional wrestling TNA+ event held by Total Nonstop Action Wrestling in December. Initially introduced as a pay-per-view by TNA in 2005, the event originally took place in January until 2008, when TNA moved the event to ...

, Tapa teamed up with Kim in a losing effort to the team of ODB and Rayne when Rayne pinned Kim. Tapa's alliance with Gail Kim came to an end on the edition of 13 March of Impact Wrestling, when the two brawled after Kim slapped Tapa for accidentally costing her a match against the debuting Brittany, turning face in process. The following week, Tapa faced Kim in a losing effort. Following the match, Draughn announced her release from TNA. Kim would later state in an interview that Draughn was released due to her lack of wrestling experience. Tapa's final match would air on 26 March episode of TNA Xplosion, which was another loss to Kim.

Post TNA career

Tapa debuted in TNA's

(OVW), on 22 May 2013, defeating Hannah Blossom in a

dark match Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that o ...

. After she left TNA in 2014, Tapa would continue to wrestle in Ohio Valley Wrestling. During her work there, she would win the OVW Women's Championship three times. She also had a feud for the Women's Championship against the male wrestler The Bodyguy, defending the title against him. However, she would vacate the championship November 1, 2014 due to OVW discontinuing with their women's division at the time. On 6 May 2015,

Global Force Wrestling Global Force Wrestling was an American professional wrestling promotion founded in 2014 by Jeff Jarrett, the co-founder and former President of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, and his wife Karen Jarrett. It was owned and operated via its parent ...

(GFW) announced Tapa as part of their roster. She would have several matches against

Thea Trinidad Thea Megan Trinidad Büdgen (born December 27, 1990) is an American professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Zelina Vega and is the current Women's United States Champion in her ...

at the first tour of promotion. That same year, GFW began a working relationship with TNA, marking Tapa's return to TNA on the July 27, 2015, episode of ''

'' when she faced

Awesome Kong Kia Michelle Stevens (born September 4, 1977) is an American actress and semi-retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. She is best known for her time with TNA Wrestling under the ring name Awesome Kong. She also worked with Ring ...

as part of a show featuring GFW talent, which ended in a double countout. She participated in a fatal 4 way for the Knockouts championship against the champion Brooke, Gail Kim and Kong. However, she was released from her contract on September 9, 2015. During the following years, she barely had matches. Tapa, while not signed to a contract, made her debut in

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

NXT on 12 July 2017, losing to

Ember Moon Adrienne Palmer (née Reese; born August 31, 1988) is an American professional wrestler. She is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) under the ring name Athena. She primarily appears in AEW's sister promotion Ring of Honor (ROH), where she is the ...

. She served as an alternate in the Mae Young Classic. She also appeared on

All Elite Wrestling All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. It is owned and operated by Shahid Khan, Shahid and Tony Khan, with the latter serving as President (corporate title), president an ...

(AEW) on the November 3, 2020, episode of ''

AEW Dark ''AEW Dark'', or simply ''Dark'', is an American professional wrestling streaming television program that was produced by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW), running from October 8, 2019, to April 25, 2023, on AEW's YouTube channel. ...

'', where she faced KiLynn King in a losing effort.

Mixed martial arts career

Rizin Fighting Federation

On 6 November 2015, it was announced during Bellator 145 that Draughn would face

Gabi Garcia Gabrielle Lemos Gabi Garcia (born November 17, 1985) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and grappler. She is one of the most successful competitors of all time in the female black belt divisions, and a member of the IBJJF Hall of Fame. Ear ...

in an event for

Rizin Fighting Federation Rizin Fighting Federation (stylised in all caps and also known as Rizin FF) is a Japanese mixed martial arts organization created in 2015 by the former Pride Fighting Championships and Dream Stage Entertainment president Nobuyuki Sakakibara. ...

on 31 December 2015. She trained for the event at

American Top Team American Top Team (ATT) is one of the primary teams in mixed martial arts. The gym was founded by Dan Lambert, who brought in former members of Brazilian Top Team Marcus "Conan" Silveira, Marcelo Silveira and Ricardo Liborio, but there is no fo ...

gym in Florida. Garcia defeated Draughn in the first round by TKO. In her second fight for the promotion on 30 July 2017 at Rizin 6, Draughn lost to

Reina Miura Reina Miura (三浦伶奈, born 22 July 1996) is a Japanese professional mixed martial artist, currently competing in the featherweight division of Rizin and DEEP. Mixed martial arts career Early career Openweight career Miura made her amateur ...

by unanimous decision.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 0–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Rizin FF 6 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Saitama, Japan is the capital and largest city of Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Its area incorporates the former cities of Urawa, Ōmiya, Yono and Iwatsuki. It is a city designated by government ordinance. , the city had an estimated population of 1,324,854 ...

, , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 ,

, TKO (backfist and punches) ,

Rizin Fighting Federation 2 Rizin Fighting Federation (stylised in all caps and also known as Rizin FF) is a Japanese mixed martial arts organization created in 2015 by the former Pride Fighting Championships and Dream Stage Entertainment president Nobuyuki Sakakibara. Fo ...

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:36 ,

, , -

Championships and accomplishments

* AIWF Mid-Atlantic Wrestling ** AIWF World Women's Championship (1 time) *

OVW Women's Championship The OVW Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship championship in Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). The first holder of the title was ODB, who declared herself champion in August 2006. The belt was defended as any oth ...

( 3 times) *

TNA Gut Check In professional wrestling, the TNA Gut Check (formerly known as the Impact Wrestling Gut Check) was a tryout program turned indy wrestling rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a pr ...

winner * Ultimate Women of Wrestling ** UWW USA Championship (1 time, inaugural, current)

References

External links

*
TNA profile

GFW profile

Ohio Valley Wrestling profile

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tapa, LeiD 1982 births 21st-century female professional wrestlers 21st-century American professional wrestlers American football middle linebackers American football tight ends American people of Tongan descent American female professional wrestlers German female professional wrestlers Tongan female professional wrestlers Female players of American football Living people Kuwait University alumni Professional wrestling managers and valets American female mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling 21st-century American women OVW Women's Champions Professional wrestlers who competed in MMA