Macey Estrella-Kadlec (née Evans; born March 24, 1990) is an American

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

signed to

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

, where she performs on the

SmackDown ''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes sim ...

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create ...

under the ring name Lacey Evans. Originally introduced to wrestling while serving as a military police officer in the

Marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

, Evans trained and began her career on the independent circuit. She started working for WWE in their

NXT NXT may refer to: Professional wrestling * ''WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010 ** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory * ''NXT UK'', the British spin- ...

developmental territory in 2016, and participated in their inaugural

Mae Young Classic The Mae Young Classic was a women's professional wrestling tournament and WWE Network event produced by WWE, an American-based professional wrestling promotion. The event was named in honor of the late Mae Young, a WWE Hall of Famer who is consi ...

. After feuding with

Kairi Sane is a Japanese professional wrestler and actress currently working for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and World Wonder Ring Stardom under the ring name Kairi (stylized in all caps). Housako is also known for her work with WWE as . She is the cur ...

in NXT, Evans debuted on ''Raw'' in January 2019, entering a feud with

Becky Lynch Rebecca Quin (born 30 January 1987) is an Irish professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE under the ring name Becky Lynch where she performs on the Raw brand. Lynch is one of WWE's most recognizable and highest-paid wrestlers. Twitter name ...

that culminated in a

mixed tag team match Much like the singles match, tag team professional wrestling matches can and have taken many forms. Just about any singles or melee match type can be adapted to tag teams; for example, hardcore tag team matches are commonplace. Tag team ladder ...

in the main event of Extreme Rules.

Early life

Estrella-Kadlec was born Macey Evans in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

on March 24, 1990. According to

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...

, she was "raised in a home torn by depression, drug and alcohol abuse" and had to live in tents at times while growing up due to her parents' legal problems. Her father, who had entertained thoughts of becoming a wrestler but never acted on them, died of a drug overdose before she got her WWE tryout.

Military career

MCRD Parris Island Anti-Terrorism-Force Protection Exercise 150205-M-MJ974-125

Estrella-Kadlec is a veteran of the

, serving as a military police officer with the

Special Reaction Team A special reaction team (SRT) is a specially trained team or element within law enforcement units of the United States Army, Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force, Marine Corps, and civilian police departments that responds to the highest-risk situations ...

. She enlisted at age 19 and served for five years, earning a bachelor's degree and starting a construction business while on active duty. She was introduced to professional wrestling while in the Marines through a Staff Sergeant who promoted independent shows on the side. On the second show of which she attended, the Staff Sergeant booked her to wrestle him.

Professional wrestling career

Independent circuit (2014–2015)

Estrella-Kadlec trained under Tom Caiazzo at the American Premier Wrestling training facility in

Statesboro, Georgia Statesboro is the largest city and county seat of Bulloch County, Georgia, United States, located in the southeastern part of the state. Statesboro is home to the flagship campus of Georgia Southern University and is part of the Savannah–Hine ...

. She made her debut for the promotion in 2014, later winning the company's World Heavyweight Championship.

WWE

NXT (2016–2019)

On April 12, 2016, Estrella-Kadlec signed a WWE contract. On October 20, at a house show, she made her wrestling debut as Macey Estrella, in a

battle royal Battle royal (; also royale) traditionally refers to a fight involving many combatants that is fought until only one fighter remains standing, usually conducted under either boxing or wrestling rules. In recent times, the term has been used in a ...

, which was ultimately won by

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

. Three months later, in her first appearance on ''

'', Evans teamed with

Sarah Bridges Sarah Rowe ( née Bridges; born September 10, 1993) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Valhalla. From 2017 to 2019, she was a member of the stable The Riott ...

in a tag team match which they lost to the team of

Billie Kay and Peyton Royce The IIconics are an Australian professional wrestling tag team consisting of Jessie McKay and Cassie Lee. They are best known for their time in WWE as The Iconic Duo and later The IIconics, under the individual names of Billie Kay and Peyton ...

. In 2017, Estrella was given the ring name Lacey Evans, which is coincidentally, her sister's maiden name. She was used mostly as a

jobber Jobber may refer to: Athletics * Job (professional wrestling) - A professional wrestler who routinely loses a match. * Wichita Jobbers, a minor league baseball team in the Western Association from 1905 to 1911 Commerce * A person or corporation ...

to various competitors. In July, Evans participated in the inaugural

, defeating

Taynara Conti Taynara Melo Guevara (née de Carvalho and formerly Conti; born June 9, 1995) is a Brazilian professional wrestler and judoka. She is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where she performs under the ring name Tay Melo () and is a member of th ...

in the first round, but losing to

Toni Storm Toni Rossall (born 19 October 1995), better known by the ring name Toni Storm, is a New Zealand-Australian professional wrestler. She is currently signed to AEW, where she is a former AEW Women's World Champion. She previously worked for WWE ...

in the second round. On the January 17, 2018 episode of ''NXT'', Evans established herself as a heel, as she complained to NXT general manager

William Regal Darren Kenneth Matthews (born 10 May 1968), better known by the ring name William Regal, is an English retired professional wrestler. He is known for his over 20 years spent in WWE, as both a performer and an on-screen authority, and for his t ...

for allowing "the lowest forms of societal trash" like Nikki Cross, Ember Moon, and

to compete in the women's division. In April, Evans was placed in her first feud with Sane, as the two exchanged victories and attacked each other throughout the next few weeks. Eventually, Evans lost to Sane on the June 6 episode of ''NXT'' to end their feud. Throughout the rest of the year, Evans started a winning streak, defeating the likes of

Dakota Kai Cheree Georgina Crowley (born 6 May 1988) is a New Zealand-born professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Dakota Kai. She is a member of Damage CTRL and is one half of the cu ...

and

Candice LeRae Candice LeRae Gargano ('' née'' Dawson; born September 29, 1985) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand. She is a former NXT Women's Tag Team Champion and was a member of The Way. L ...

. In December, she competed in a

fatal four-way match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "Glossary of professional wrestling terms#Gimmick, gimmick matches" in the Glossary of professional wrestling terms, jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. So ...

to determine the number one contender for the

NXT Women's Championship The NXT Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended on the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory. Introduced on April 5, 2013, t ...

, however, the match was won by

Bianca Belair Bianca Blair Crawford (born Bianca Nicole Blair; April 9, 1989) is an American professional wrestler and a fitness and figure competitor. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Bianca Belair, a ...

Raw and SmackDown (2019–present)

On the December 17, 2018 episode of ''

Raw Raw is an adjective usually describing: * Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made * Raw food, uncooked food Raw or RAW may also refer to: Computing and electronics * .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...

'', Evans was advertised as one of six NXT wrestlers about to move to the main roster. She lost to

Natalya Natalya (russian: Наталья) is the Russian form of the female given name Natalia. The name Natasha (russian: link=no, Наташа), being originally a diminutive form of Natalya, became an independent name outside the Russian-speaking state ...

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 carnivals and circuses. In the past, professional wrestlers used such terms in the presence o ...

on the January 7, 2019 tapings of ''

Main Event In sports, a card lists the matches taking place in a title match combat-sport event. Cards include a main event match and the undercard listing the rest of the matches. The undercard may be divided into a midcard and a lower card, according to ...

'', and made her official main roster debut at the

Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming List of WWE pay-per-view and WWE Network events, event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named afte ...

on January 27. She entered the women's

Royal Rumble match The Royal Rumble match is a professional wrestling match based on the classic Battle Royal match in which a number of wrestlers (traditionally 30) aim at eliminating their competitors by tossing them over the top rope, with both feet touching the ...

at number 1 and lasted over 29 minutes, eliminating The IIconics (

Billie Kay Jessica McKay (born 23 June 1989) is an Australian professional wrestler. She is best known for her time in WWE, where she performed under the ring name Billie Kay and for her time in Impact Wrestling, where she competed as Jessie McKay. In J ...

and

Peyton Royce Cassandra McIntosh (born 10 November 1992) is an Australian professional wrestler. She is best known for her time in WWE, where she performed under the ring name Peyton Royce and for her time in Impact Wrestling where she performed as Cassie L ...

), before she was eliminated by

Charlotte Flair Ashley Elizabeth Fliehr (born April 5, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Charlotte Flair. She is currently inactive. She is a second-genera ...

. After that, Evans repeatedly appeared on ''Raw'', ''SmackDown'', and pay-per-views to interrupt various segments and matches by walking out on stage, waving to the crowd, and leaving. Shortly after

WrestleMania 35 WrestleMania 35 was the 35th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown, and 205 Live brand divisions. The event took place ...

, Evans was drafted to the

brand as part of the

2019 WWE Superstar Shake-up The 2019 WWE Superstar Shake-up was the thirteenth WWE draft – and the last to be branded as the Superstar Shake-up – produced by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE between the Raw, SmackDown, and 205 Live brands. Instead of ...

, and placed in her first feud on the main roster as she continuously attacked

and

SmackDown Women's Champion The WWE SmackDown Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, defended on the SmackDown brand division. It is one of two women's world titles for WWE's main ros ...

. This led to a title match between the two for the

Raw Women's Championship The WWE Raw Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, defended on the Raw brand division. It is one of two women's world titles for WWE's main roster, along ...

on May 19, at Money in the Bank, where Evans lost to Lynch via

submission Deference (also called submission or passivity) is the condition of submitting to the espoused, legitimate influence of one's superior or superiors. Deference implies a yielding or submitting to the judgment of a recognized superior, out of re ...

. A few minutes later, Evans helped Flair win the SmackDown Women's Championship from Lynch as she hit her with her finisher, the Women's Right, and allowed her to take advantage of the attack. Throughout mid-2019, Evans continued to feud with Lynch and chase her for the Raw Women's Championship. On June 23, at Stomping Grounds, she lost again to Lynch, and in the main event, was

Baron Corbin Thomas Pestock (born September 13, 1984) is an American professional wrestler and former professional football player. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Baron Corbin. Pestock is a former off ...

's choice for a special referee for the

WWE Universal Championship The WWE Universal Championship is a world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, representing the SmackDown brand division. It is one of two world titles for WWE's main roster, a ...

match, due to

Seth Rollins Colby Daniel Lopez (born May 28, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Seth Rollins (often referred to as Seth "Freakin" Rollins). Prior to signing ...

dating Lynch. On July 14, at Extreme Rules, Evans and Corbin challenged Lynch and Rollins for their respective titles in a Last Chance

Extreme Rules match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

, where they failed to win the match after Rollins pinned Corbin, thus ending her feud with Lynch. 2019-05-09 21-55-33 SM-G950F 213 (cropped)

As part of the 2019 Draft in October, Evans was drafted to the

brand. On October 31, at Crown Jewel, Evans and Natalya became the first female wrestlers to wrestle in Saudi Arabia, where Evans lost. The two women embraced afterwards, breaking kayfabe to absorb their historical moment. On November 24, at

Survivor Series Survivor Series is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving, it is the se ...

, Evans then went on to compete in the first ever 15 woman elimination tag match representing Team SmackDown, where for the first time ever, the NXT women's locker room would also compete in the match. Evans was able to eliminate Charlotte Flair (Raw) by pin, after

Asuka Asuka may refer to: People * Asuka (name), a list of people * Asuka (wrestler), professional wrestler * Asuka (wrestler, born 1998), professional wrestler also known as Veny outside of Japan Places In Japan * , an area in Yamato Province (now ...

turned on her team and shot poison mist into Flair's eyes, allowing Evans to take advantage of the situation and hitting her with the ''Woman's Right''. Shortly after, she was eliminated by Natalya (Raw) via roll up, however, Team NXT ultimately won the match when

Rhea Ripley Demi Bennett (born 11 October 1996) is an Australian professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Rhea Ripley and is a member of The Judgment Day. She was also the inaugural N ...

pinned

Sasha Banks Mercedes Justine Kaestner-Varnado (born January 26, 1992) is an American professional wrestler and actress. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sasha Banks. Banks previously wrestled o ...

(SmackDown), making her the final woman standing. On the November 29 episode of ''SmackDown'', Evans took exception to Banks and Bayley insulting the SmackDown roster, particularly the women, for losing to Team NXT at Survivor Series. After exchanging insults, Evans hit Banks with the ''Woman's Right'' and left the ring, thus turning face for the first time since early 2017. On January 27, 2020, at the

, Evans unsuccessfully challenged Bayley for the SmackDown Women's Title. On April 5 (taped March 25/26), at

WrestleMania 36 WrestleMania 36 was the 36th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown, and NXT brand divisions. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic ...

, Evans was part of a five-way elimination match for the

. Evans lost the match after being pinned by Bayley after interference from Banks. On the April 24 episode of ''

'', Evans competed against Banks in a qualifying match for the opportunity to be in the Women's Money in the Bank match. Evans won the match after hitting Banks with the ''Women's Right'' (while clutching a fan with a picture of her daughter on it in her hand) and pinning her. On May 10, at Money in the Bank, Evans was unsuccessful in the namesake match, as she was pulled down a ladder by Asuka, who went on to win. On the July 10 episode of ''SmackDown'', Evans attacked

Naomi Naomi or Naomie may refer to: People and biblical figures * Naomi (given name), a female given name and a list of people with the name * Naomi (biblical figure), Ruth's mother-in-law in the Old Testament Book of Ruth * Naomi (Romanian singer) (bor ...

, after she lost a karaoke contest to her, thus turning heel once again. As part of the 2020 Draft in October, Evans was drafted to the Raw brand. On the January 4, 2021 episode of ''Raw'', Evans started a storyline with Ric Flair when, during a match against Women's Tag Team Champions Charlotte Flair and Asuka, Evans flirted with Flair. During the following weeks, Flair managed Evans, usually distracting his daughter Charlotte, including a participation in the Women's

. On February 15, Evans' real-life pregnancy was announced and incorporated into a storyline on that night's episode of ''Raw'', in which Flair is implied to be the father. Evans was scheduled to face

for the Raw Women's Championship at

Elimination Chamber The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was founded by Chris Jericho , created and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel ...

but the match was cancelled due to her pregnancy; the storyline with Flair was cancelled as a result. She was reportedly planned to win the title at the event. After over one year of inactivity due to her pregnancy, on the April 8, 2022 episode of ''SmackDown'', Evans returned to the show as a

face The face is the front of an animal's 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 aff ...

in a

vignette Vignette may refer to: * Vignette (entertainment), a sketch in a sketch comedy * Vignette (graphic design), decorative designs in books (originally in the form of leaves and vines) to separate sections or chapters * Vignette (literature), short, i ...

talking about her life, but she was drafted to Raw as a heel character. Weeks later, she was moved to SmackDown again. On the June 10 episode of ''SmackDown'', Evans made her in-ring return, turning again into a face character, defeating

Xia Li Zhao Xia (; born July 28, 1988) is a Chinese-American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown (WWE brand), SmackDown WWE brand extension, brand under the ring name Xia Li ...

to qualify for the Women's

Money in the Bank ladder match The Money in the Bank ladder match is a multi-person ladder match held by the professional wrestling promotion WWE. First contested at WWE's annual WrestleMania event beginning in 2005, a separate Money in the Bank pay-per-view was established ...

. At

the event ''The Event'' (stylized as THE EVƎNT) is an American television series containing elements of science fiction, action/adventure and political allegory. It was created by Nick Wauters and aired on NBC from September 20, 2010 to May 23, 2011. ...

, she was unsuccessful in winning the match. On the following episode of ''SmackDown'', Evans turned heel when she berated the fans and attacked her tag team partner Aliyah.

Other media

Estrella-Kadlec made her

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

debut in the ''Rising Stars'' DLC for ''

WWE 2K19 ''WWE 2K19'' is a professional wrestling video game developed by Yuke's and published by 2K Sports. It was released worldwide on October 9, 2018, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It is the twentieth overall game in the ''WW ...

'', and as a regular playable character in ''

WWE 2K20 ''WWE 2K20'' is a professional wrestling video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It was released worldwide on October 22, 2019, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It is the twenty-first installment o ...

'' and ''

WWE 2K22 ''WWE 2K22'' is a 2022 professional wrestling sports video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It is the twenty-second overall installment of the video game series based on WWE, the ninth game under the ''WWE 2K'' banne ...

''.

Personal life

Estrella-Kadlec has been married to her husband Alfonso, since January 13, 2010. The couple have two daughters and reside in

Parris Island, South Carolina Parris Island is a district of the city of Port Royal, South Carolina on an island of the same name. It became part of the city with the annexation of the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island on October 11, 2002. For statistical purposes, th ...

Controversy

On December 20, 2022; Estrella-Kadlec posted a video on her Instagram stories that claimed

processed foods Convenience food, also called tertiary processed food, is food that is commercially prepared (often through processing) to optimise ease of consumption. Such food is usually ready to eat without further preparation. It may also be easily por ...

caused ADHD and Autism. Her story caused major backlash from both wrestling fans and her peers in the wrestling industry.

All Elite Wrestling All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. It is considered the second largest wrestling promotion in the United States behind WWE. AEW is owned by Shahid Khan and his son Tony, ...

stars

Nick Comoroto Nicholas Comoroto (born April 22, 1991) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Comoroto began his career in 2013 on the independent circuit. In 2019, he signed a development contract with WWE, but was ...

and

Kip Sabian Simon James Kippen (born 19 May 1992), better known by the ring name Kip Sabian, is an English professional wrestler. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Early life Simon James Kippen was born in Great Yarmouth on 19 May 1992 ...

both revealed they have ADHD on Twitter as a response to Estrella-Kadlec with the latter harshly criticizing her.

Championships and accomplishments

* American Premier Wrestling ** APW World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) * ''

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publi ...

'' ** Ranked No. 23 of the top 100 female wrestlers in the ''

PWI Women's 100 ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publis ...

'' in 2019 *

Slammy Award The Slammy Awards is a concept used by WWE, where awards, similar to the Academy and Grammy Awards, are given to professional wrestlers and other individuals within WWE, such as commentators and managers. Introduced in 1986, there have been 13 e ...

(1 time) *** Trash Talker of the Year (

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

)

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Lacey 1990 births American female professional wrestlers Living people People from Parris Island, South Carolina Professional wrestlers from South Carolina United States Marines 21st-century American women 21st-century professional wrestlers