Dana Brooke Biography

Ashley Mae Sebera (born November 29, 1988) is an American bodybuilder, fitness competitor, model and professional wrestler currently signed to WWE under the ring name Dana Brooke, performing on the Raw brand.

Early life

Sebera was born and raised in Seven Hills, Ohio and attended Kent State University, where she graduated in 2011 with a major in fashion, merchandising and design, and a minor in business administration. As well as a short tenure as a diver, Sebera participated in gymnastics for eighteen years. After sustaining numerous injuries, including breaking both of her ankles, Sebera gave up gymnastics and instead took up fitness competition and bodybuilding.

Body fitness career

Between 2011 and 2012, Sebera held several championships within the National Physique Committee (NPC), before earning an International Federation of BodyBuilding & Fitness (IFBB) pro card in 2012. She placed twelfth at the 2013 European Arnold Classic, and thirteenth at the 2015 edition of the Arnold Sports Festival held in Columbus, Ohio. On December 20, 2016, it was announced that Sebera would compete at the 2017 Arnold Classic event in their international category, placing fifth.

Professional wrestling career

WWE

NXT (2013-2016)

Sebera was signed by WWE in June 2013 and was assigned to their developmental territory NXT, where she was given the ring name Dana Brooke. Brooke made her first television appearance at the NXT TakeOver: Fatal 4-Way event on September 11, 2014 in a backstage segment with Tyler Breeze, while a week later on September 18, she made her in-ring debut at an NXT live event, teaming with Bayley in a loss to Alexa Bliss and Sasha Banks.

After a series of introductory vignettes, Brooke made her televised debut on the April 15, 2015 episode of NXT, defeating Blue Pants and establishing herself as a villainess. On the April 29 episode of NXT, Brooke defeated Bayley after distraction provided by Emma, forming an alliance between the two. On the May 7 episode of NXT, Brooke accompanied Emma to her match against Bayley, which was followed by a post-match altercation involving Charlotte. This led to a tag team match at NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable, which Brooke and Emma lost. On the August 26 episode of NXT (which was taped at the NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn event), Brooke competed in a fatal four-way match against Becky Lynch, Charlotte, and Emma, which the latter won.

In September, Brooke and Emma started a feud with the debuting Asuka. At NXT TakeOver: Respect, Brooke lost to Asuka and also turned out to be her last televised match in NXT. Despite the loss, Brooke and Emma continued to provoke Asuka, including an attack planned by the two, which occurred on the November 25 episode of NXT, resulting in a match between Emma and Asuka at NXT TakeOver: London on December 16, which Emma lost, despite Brooke's interference. On the March 23, 2016 episode of NXT, Brooke accompanied Emma to the ring for her match against Asuka in her final NXT appearance.

Main roster (2016-present)

On the May 9, 2016 episode of Raw, Brooke made her debut on the main roster by assaulting Becky Lynch during a backstage segment, reuniting with Emma. Three days later on the May 12 episode of SmackDown, Brooke made her in-ring debut by defeating Lynch with Emma's help, and on the May 16 episode of Raw. Their association ended when Emma was legitimately injured during a house show on May 16. On May 22, Brooke appeared at Extreme Rules, dressed as Ric Flair to distract Natalya and helping Charlotte to retain her WWE Women's Championship. The following night on Raw, Charlotte turned on her father and introduced Brooke as her proteg. At Money in the Bank on June 19, Brooke teamed up with Charlotte defeating Lynch and Natalya. After starting a feud with Sasha Banks, which was followed by multiple attacks and matches between her, Banks and Charlotte, it was announced that they would face off in a tag team match on July 24 at Battleground, where they were defeated by Banks and Bayley.

On July 19, Brooke was drafted to Raw as part of the 2016 WWE draft. On August 8, she competed in a non-title match against Banks, where if Brooke won, she would be added to the WWE Women's Championship match at SummerSlam, which she lost. On the September 12 episode of Raw, Brooke slapped Charlotte after being degraded by her on multiple occasions, resulting in Raw general manager Mick Foley placing Brooke in a triple threat match against Bayley and Sasha Banks to determine Charlotte's opponent at Clash of Champions, which she lost. On the October 3 episode of Raw, Brooke got involved in a backstage altercation with Bayley right before Charlotte lost the title for the second time. The following week on Raw, Brooke attacked Bayley after her match, which led to a match between the two on the October 17 episode of Raw, where Brooke won. The feud culminated in a singles match on October 30 at Hell in a Cell, where Brooke lost.

On the March 13, 2017 episode of Raw, Brooke turned on Flair after Flair berated her for losing to Banks, turning face in the process for the first time in her career. On the April 3 episode of Raw, she solidified her face turn by teaming with Bayley and Banks against Flair, Nia Jax, and Emma, with Brooke's team emerging victorious. On the June 26 episode of Raw, Brooke competed in a number one contender's gauntlet match for the Raw Women's Championship, where she was eliminated by Jax. On the August 7 episode of Raw, Brooke competed in a triple threat match against Mickie James and Jax to determine Alexa Bliss's opponent at SummerSlam, in which Brooke was defeated.

On July 31, Brooke appeared in a backstage segment Titus O'Neil, where the two discussed the possibility of Brooke joining the Titus Worldwide brand under the condition that she first needed to "find herself."

Personal life

Sebera was in a relationship with fellow bodybuilder Dallas McCarver until his death on August 22, 2017.

Other media

Brooke made her video game debut as a playable character in WWE 2K17.

In wrestling

• Finishing moves
  • Samoan driver
• Signature moves
  • Bodyscissors
  • Enzuigiri
  • Fireman's carry slam
  • Handspring back elbow smash, to a cornered opponent
  • Handstand corner foot choke
  • Handstand elbow drop
  • Kneeling jawbreaker
  • Low dropkick
  • Modified bow and arrow stretch
  • Rounding splash, sometimes from the second rope
  • Running or rebound clothesline, sometimes to an oncoming opponent
• Wrestlers managed
  • Emma
  • Charlotte Flair
• Nicknames
  • "The Total Diva"
• Entrance themes
  • "Look But Don't Touch" by Alex Jacke, Glynn Toliver, J Henry, Khaila Locke, Richard Stuckey and Sedrick Bolden (NXT; January 2015 - March 2015)
  • "Respectful" by CFO$ (NXT/WWE; April 15, 2015-present)
  • "Chemical Mind" by Jason Davis (NXT; May 27, 2015 - July 8, 2015; used while accompanying Emma)
  • "Real Deal" by CFO$ (NXT/WWE; July 22, 2015 - May 12, 2016; used while accompanying Emma)
  • "Recognition" by CFO$ (WWE; May 23, 2016 - March 13, 2017; used while teaming with and accompanying Charlotte)

Championships and accomplishments

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • Ranked No. 26 of the top 50 female wrestlers in the PWI Female 50 in 2016