Indie Promotion Under Fire For Not Paying Wrestlers

The pro wrestling world is full of all kinds of people. Sadly, some of those people are grifters and scam artists. Now another indie company is under fire for not paying up.

An independent wrestling promotion known as WrestleQueerdom held a show in Milford, New Hampshire, this past Saturday. It was produced and booked by the well-known Twitter account TransGraps. The indie promotion, however, was almost immediately called out for leaving talent stranded without pay.

The evening featured wrestlers like AEW standout Sonny Kiss, Impact star Gisele Shaw, former AEW Women’s Eliminator tournament competitor VENY, and well-known independent up-and-comer Kidd Bandit. It was also the first wrestling card to only feature trans talent.

Despite the event’s intended purpose of showcasing trans talent and introducing them to more wrestling fans, it has come under fire for backstage problems, particularly those related to transportation and lack of pay. The issues started to surface on Sunday afternoon, the day after the performance, when independent wrestler Max The Impaler gave some sage counsel in response to a since-deleted tweet from WrestleQueerdom.

Maybe save the flexing until after ALL the talent is paid.

Soon after, other wrestlers and promotions involved with the event began to respond. It included Billy Dixon, an out gay wrestler and promoter from New Jersey who runs Pro Wrestling VIBE. They took to twitter to announce that they are terminating their working relationship with TransCraps/WrestleQueedom.

Effective immediately, we[‘re] terminating our working relationship with TransGraps/WrestleQueerdom after receiving numerous complains and concerns from talent. Despite our shared vision to make this scene a better place, professionalism and doing good business must come first always.

Cameron Saturn, a wrestler and commentator for WrestleQueerdom, was another talent who stood out. Saturn talked about how a transportation mishap after the performance left a number of wrestlers stuck, necessitating the assistance of Saturn and another star. Check out all the tweets related to the whole ordeal below.

Maybe save the flexing until after ALL the talent is paid. https://t.co/QNkQZDcaa0

— Non-binary Nightmare (@_theyaremax_) August 7, 2022

Effective immediately, we terminating our working relationship with @TransGraps/@W_Queerdom after receiving numerous complaints and concerns from talent.

Despite our shared vision to make this scene a better place, professionalism and doing good business must come first always.

— Pro Wrestling VIBE (@PWVibe) August 7, 2022

I do not like talking about business but for us to try our best to help and to be told we can’t get paid because of, money needing to clear, banks having holds, and some hotel issues is a stunning amount of excuses. We’ve even asked for much less just to get home and can’t get it

— Cameron Saturn バイセクシャル (@SaturnCameron) August 7, 2022

For those coming upon this tweet now, we have received enough help to have everything covered! We are endlessly thankful for all of your alls support, if you still would like to help, reach out to other talent from the show to see if they need any assistance!

— Cameron Saturn バイセクシャル (@SaturnCameron) August 7, 2022

I didn't say anything more prior because I didn't want to ruin anything for my friends on the show. But I pulled from WrestleQueerdom ultimately because I did not feel comfortable with the way they conducted themselves. On top of asking to wait to be paid.

— Non-binary Nightmare (@_theyaremax_) August 7, 2022

I spoke with many people privately about my concerns. I just didn't want to take momentum out of the show. I know there were great matches, and even some dream matches for people. I'm proud of my friends for being amazing. UNSURPRISINGLY.

— Non-binary Nightmare (@_theyaremax_) August 7, 2022

WQ weekend - a thread.

After a grueling ordeal, we accomplished the goal! Most talent that needed to be taken care of has been handled. (That sounds so ominous out of context)

But we can breath a sigh of relief that almost everyone that needed the $ got paid accordingly.

— KIDD BANDIT (@kiddbanditpro) August 8, 2022

I will have to say that Sally is still part of the community. The mission is to create a platform that will spotlight us. I genuinely believe that was her goal and even tho she fucked up badly, I don’t think we should fully turn our backs on her (even tho she owes me 00)

— KIDD BANDIT (@kiddbanditpro) August 8, 2022

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