Candice Blair Ava

Candice Blair
Blair at a house show in late 2019.
Birth name	Candice Blair Ava
Born	May 19, 1993 (age 26) San Francisco, California, United States
Resides	Los Angeles, California, United States
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Candice Blair Candice Blair Ava
Billed height	5 ft. 8 in. (1.7 m)
Billed weight	126 lbs. (56.7 kg)
Billed from	San Francisco, California Long Beach, California
Trained by	EAW Performance Center Cameron Ella Ava Consuela Rose Ava Camille Jane Ava
Debut	2011

Candice Blair Fernandez- Ava (born May 19, 1993), better known by her ring name Candice Blair, is an American professional wrestler, reality television personality and mostly known for her time in Joshi Extreme Takeover where she is a former JET Academy Champion and Strong Style Wrestling, where she is a founding member of the Shoot Nation stable. She formerly appeared in Elite Answers Wrestling's developmental territory, NEO, and its offshoot company, War Made Wrestling, where she was its inaugural and only Valkyries Champion. In November 2019, Ava signed to EAW in a part-time contract that allows her to be part of the company, but also wrestle in the independent wrestling scene.

Early Life

Ava was born in San Francisco, California, and raised both there and in Los Angeles. Her mother, Carmen Estefania Mercedes Ava is Mexican-American and her father, Henrique Fernandez is of Spanish ancestry. She is the youngest of four sisters, preceded in birth by twins Cameron Ella (an eventual EAW Hall of Famer) and Consuela Rose, and other older sister Camille Jane (also known by her ring name, Ms. Extreme). Although she is close to her mother, she has little to no memory of her father and says she is content with not having a relationship with him. She was active in cheerleading in middle and high school and eventually began training to become a wrestler during her junior year.

Professional Wrestling Career

XMW (2011)

Ava joined XMW at the age of eighteen, shortly after graduating high school. Her tenure in the company, however, was short-lived.

Elite Answers Wrestling (2016 - 2017)

War Made Wrestling (2017)

It was announced that Ava had signed with EAW, the company for which both of her older sisters already worked, in December 2016. The announcement came in tandem with the announcement that EAW was reviving its offshoot project, War Made Wrestling, the following month. She debuted under the shortened name Candice Blair on the premiere January 23 broadcast, where she last eliminated Cassiopeia in a Steel Gauntlet to be crowned the Valkyries Champion. On the February 6 episode, she defeated Bianca Auriel.

Developmental (2017)

In January 2017, Ava was assigned to the EAW Performance Center. She later debuted in a tweener role once again going by her full name of Candice Blair Ava. On June 24, Ava parted aways from EAW in order to go on an excursion to improve on her wrestling.

Strong Style Wrestling (2018)

Shoot Nation (2018)

In January 2018, Ava signed with Japan-based Strong Style Wrestling. Once again being addressed as Candice Blair, on January 14, she was announced as a founding member of Shoot Nation alongside Levi Maximus, Masanori Kawada, Ken Matsuda, and leader Jaydane Pendragon. Ava would end up parting ways from SSW on March 31st.

Joshi Extreme Takeover (2018 - 2019)

On April 30, Ava signed a contract to Joshi Extreme Takeover. Once again, she would be going by the name Candice Blair. On the May 31 episode of JET, Ava, as a heel, teamed with Vanessa Santiago and Virginia Atwood to defeat the team of Mizuki Nakata, Tomoyo Hirate and Yuki Sakaraba. In the process, this team gave Hirate her first loss in her career. On the June 6 episode of JET, Ava defeated Yuki Sakaraba with Hirate on commentary. After the match, Ava informed Hirate that she would be watching her match next week and she hoped that Hirate retained. On the June 13 episode of JET, Ava was featured in a backstage segment, where she showed her intentions to win Young Lioness Championship. After Hirate asked if Ava really wanted the title, she gives Ava the Young Lioness Championship since the title would be retired and the JET Academy Championship was brought to replace it. After Hirate retained the JET Academy Championship, Ava attacked her from behind. She got on the mic and stated that she felt disrespected and that at Sakura Blooming, she is going to take the title from her. On the June 20 episode of JET, Ava defeated Mitra Marvel, after interference from Santiago and Atwood. In the process, this sends a message to Hirate. At Sakura Blooming, Ava defeated Hirate to become the JET Academy Champion.

On the July 4 episode of JET, Ava, along with Santiago and Atwood defeated Mamoko Honda, Mitra Marvel and Kimiko Hayabusa in the first round match for RISE Together league. Ava, Santiago, and Atwood would make it to the semi-finals but were eliminated by JUNKO, Ai Moe and Mizuki Nakata after Moe pinned Ava. On the August 8 episode of JET, Ava defeated Hirate in a rematch for the JET Academy Championship. On the August 22 episode of JET, Ava was in the corner for Santiago as Ai Moe faced her. Ava would end up connecting with a superkick and attacking Moe as she accepts Moe's challenging of facing her. At Goddess Dream, Ava defeated Moe to retain the JET Academy Championship after an appearance from her bodyguard, Corrina Grey.

For the next few weeks, Ava participated in the RISE Grand Prix, where the winner would receive a JET World Championship Match. Ava managed to get nine points after victories over the likes of Rachael Frost, KAGUYA, Kimiko Hayabusa and Stela Delgado. However, it was a loss over Stacy Deville, which got her eliminated from the tournament. At the RISE Grand Prix, Ava, Santiago, and Atwood, now known as The Blondetourage, would face Suplex Orgy (Stacy Deville, Kim Dynamo and Lena Skye) and were to lose to them. On the October 31 episode of JET, The Blondetourage appeared in the backstage segment claiming that Atwood, Santiago, and Grey would bring home the JET Trios Championships at JET 10. Ava appeared during commentary for the Deville's match with Jellyfish Cho. Deville managed to get the victory over Cho, but Ava was not convinced that Deville did anything to earn the match. On the November 28 episode of JET, The Blondetourage faced Suplex Orgy with Santiago getting the victory for her team by pinning Hayabusa. At Kyoko Spotlight, Ava retained the JET Academy Championship against Deville. On the January 28 episode of JET, Ava attacked Midori Mayamoto during her match against Corrina Gray. At Collision Course, Ava retained her championship against Miyamoto. Post-match, she attacked Miyamoto, who ended up being saved by a returning Ai Moe. At Cinderella Story, Ava dropped the title to Moe, ending her reign at 260 days.

In March 2019, Ava was requested her release from the promotion.

Various Appearances (2017- Present)

Elite Answers Wrestling (2017- Present)

In 2017, Ava made her first appearance since being released from Elite Answers Wrestling during the Specialists Rampage Match, but was eliminated by Jael Arcana-Rosario. In 2018, Ava made an appearance during the November 30 episode of Dynasty. Ava appeared in a segment with her sisters, Cameron Ella, Consuela Rose, and Camille Jane when it involved their thoughts on the engagement of Mr. DEDEDE and their mother, Carmen Ava. On the December 7 episode of Dynasty, Ava appeared as a maid of honor for her mother and Mr. DEDEDE's wedding. She ended up getting sucker-punched by her biological father, Henrique Fernandez and speared by Mr. DEDEDE as she tried to save her mother from Mr. DEDEDE and her father's assault.

On the November 23 episode of Showdown, Ava made her appearance in EAW programming in almost a year, interrupting a segment by Kensingten Calhoun-Astor. Calhoun-Astor was talking about her treatment on Showdown and announced herself as a participant in the Specialists Chamber at EAW Road to Redemption (2019). Ava cut a promo on her whereabouts and special part-time contract before announcing that she was also in the Specialists Chamber. On the November 30 episode of Voltage, Ava faced Calhoun-Astor in a losing effort after submitting to "Something to Cry About." On the December 1 episode of Voltage, Ava made an appearance during a Triple Threat between Sarah Price, Joy Cassidy, and Serena Riot. Soon after the match, a brawl erupts with all of the women as security guards try to hold them back. On the December 7 episode of Dynasty, Ava was the first woman to answer Specialist Champion Darcy May Morgan's call to step up to her. Soon after, another brawl erupts. On the December 8 episode of Showdown, Ava faced Ryan Wilson in order to qualify for the King of Elite Tournament. After a distraction by Calhoun-Astor on commentary, Wilson rolls up Ava for the victory. Ava soon after chances Calhoun-Astor up the ramp. At Road to Redemption, Ava took part in the Specialists Chamber, making it to the final three before being eliminated by May Morgan.

Modeling Career

Almost immediately after leaving XMW, Ava embarked on a successful modeling career, which she now juggles in addition to wrestling.

Other Media

Ava was featured as a cast member on The Plunge, a reality show aired on the EAW Network that details the life of Performance Center recruits. She is also a recurring cast member on True Avas.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2016 - 2017	The Plunge	Herself	Main Cast (Season 1)
2016 - Present	True Avas		Main Cast (Season 1 - Present)

Personal Life

Around the age of twenty, Ava battled with depression and the abuse of drugs and alcohol. Consequently, she spent time in rehab and credits this with helping her to beat her addictions. She says the influence of Camille, who was most instrumental in urging her to get help, made a world of difference.

Though a natural brunette, Ava dyes her hair frequently, having been seen in a wide range of shades including platinum blonde, pink, purple, light blue, and red.

Ava resided in Tokyo, Japan, and had lived there for about six months prior to signing with SSW and stayed there during her time in JET. As of June 2019, Ava resides in San Francisco, California. She describes her sisters, Heart Break Gal, and Cleopatra as her biggest influences in wrestling.

In Wrestling

• Finishing Moves
  • Candy Destroyer (Canadian Destroyer)
  • Candy Lock (Inverted Figure Four Leg Lock)
• Signature Moves
  • Lariet Takedown
  • Forehand Chop
  • Spear
  • Tilt-a-whirl Crossbody
  • Kicks to the head
  • Matrix
  • Japanese Armdrag
  • Over-the-shoulder Armdrag
  • Multiple Kick Variations
    • Shoot
    • Spinning Heel
    • Calf
    • Back
    • Drop
    • Savate
    • Roundhouse
  • Inverted Stomp Facebreaker
  • Single Knee Facebreaker
  • Handstand Scissors Takedown
  • Tilt-a-whirl Headscissors Takedown (sometimes into a crossface)
  • Sitout Jawbreaker
  • Slingblade
  • Chokehold STO
  • Bicycle Knee Strike (from all directions)
  • Meteora
  • Standing Moonsault into double knees combination
  • Hair pull Gory Special.
• Nicknames
  • "The Princess of NEO"
  • "The White Canary"
  • "Atomic Blonde"
  • "The Self-Proclaimed Ace of JET"
  • "The Hot Commodity"
• Managers
  • Cameron Ella Ava
  • Ms. Extreme
  • The Blondetourage (Virginia Atwood, Vanessa Santiago, and Corrina Grey)

• Entrance Themes
  • "Disconnected" by VERIDIA (EAW; January 2018 -March 2018)
  • "MIC DROP" by BTS (JET; May 2018 - March 2019)
  • "Diva" by Beyoncé (EAW; November 2019 - Present)

Championships and Accomplishments

• War Made Wrestling
  • Valkyries Championship (1 time, inaugural and final)

• Joshi Extreme Takeover
  • JET Academy Champion (1 time)

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