Mercedes Mone: podcast appearances and interviews

Mercedes Justine Kaestner Varnado, born January 26, 1992, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Performing under the ring name Mercedes Moné, she is a former AEW TBS Champion and holds the record for the longest reign in that title's history. Varnado has also appeared for AEW's partners, Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre and New Japan Pro-Wrestling, as well as on the independent circuit. She gained prominence during her tenure in WWE from 2012 to 2022, where she performed as Sasha Banks. Varnado is notable for being the only woman to win championships across major promotions including WWE, AEW, NJPW, and CMLL.

Her wrestling career began in 2010 on the independent circuit, notably winning the Chaotic Wrestling Women's Championship. In 2012, she signed with WWE and was assigned to NXT, eventually winning the NXT Women's Championship. Her match against Bayley at NXT TakeOver: Respect in October 2015 was historic; it was the first women's match to headline an NXT TakeOver, the first iron woman match in WWE history, and then the longest women's match in WWE history at 30 minutes. The match received critical acclaim, named Pro Wrestling Illustrated Match of the Year, with Varnado being named Woman of the Year. In WWE, she held the Raw Women's Championship five times, participated in landmark events such as WWE's first women’s Hell in a Cell match, and became a WWE Women's Grand Slam and Triple Crown Champion. She also won the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship and was named Wrestler of the Year by Sports Illustrated in 2020.

After her departure from WWE in 2022, Varnado made her NJPW/Stardom debut in 2023 as Mercedes Moné, winning the IWGP Women's Championship. Following the end of her contract, she signed with AEW in 2024, where she won the TBS Championship in her debut. Her record-setting 584-day reign and multiple accolades include being named Woman of the Year by PWI twice and ranking No. 1 in the PWI Women's 250, making her one of the most decorated wrestlers in history. Outside of wrestling, she stars as Koska Reeves in the Disney+ series The Mandalorian.