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Kayla McMahon
Weight: 120 pounds
Hometown: Manchester, Tenn.
Every time Kayla McMahon climbs through the ropes for a wrestling match, she enters knowing the woman she will face is probably taller, heavier and more experienced.
"I honestly don't care," she says with a smile. "I will accept any match against any woman. I may be small, but I'm not afraid to do whatever it takes to get the win."
Trained by Yukon and Shane Morton, Kayla has been wrestling for about four years and has seen action in a half-dozen federations, most of them in the South. She has battled the biggest, the baddest and the best including Sex Kitten Kathy Owens, Miss Rachel and Susan Morton. Her quickness and speed combined with a large repertory of wrestling holds allows her to hold her own against the largest opponents.
Even when she has lost, Kayla has demonstrated a great deal of skill and enormous heart. She's quickly become a fan favorite because she refuses to use her size as an excuse.
"I believe in that old saying, 'It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog,' " she says. "You can knock me down, you can throw me out of the ring, you can stomp me, but I will keep getting up and coming after you. It takes a lot to knock me down and keep me down."
It's a measure of her courage that Kayla also has wrestled male wrestlers including L.T. Falk, a tough, menacing battler who treats female opponents just as roughly as his male counterparts.
Like the other women in MLW, Kayla knows that winning the championship belt would be a great accomplishment. She's convinced she has as good a chance as anyone to put the gold belt around her waist.
"I'm usually a pretty quiet, shy kind of girl," she admits. "But when I get in the ring, you'd better look out. If you push me, I'll push right back. Any girl who underestimates me is in for trouble."
Credit: Jeff Borden