AEW Champ Britt Baker Makes Her Case for Joining ‘Dancing With the Stars’

Stacy Keibler, Chris Jericho, Nikki Bella, and The Miz have gone from the ring to the Dancing With the Stars ballroom over the years. 

Britt Baker—All Elite Wrestling women’s champ and a legit practicing dentist—wants to be next on that list. A diehard fan of the ABC competition series since its inception, the 30-year-old makes no bones about her DWTS desires. Here, the doctor fits us into her busy schedule to talk about all things DWTS and AEW. 

How far back does your Dancing With the Stars fandom go?

Since I was young. My mom and grandma would sit on the couch and talk about how pretty the outfits were. I’ve watched pretty much every season. I did get a little busy in the middle of my life when I decided to do dental school and professional wrestling at the same time. So if I missed one, I go back and watch them on the treadmill—I watch Dancing With the Stars past dances and professional wrestling matches. 

I wanna dance with @derekhough.🤩#DWTS

— Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. (@RealBrittBaker) October 26, 2021

Who have you particularly been impressed by?

Obviously, Chris Jericho. All the wrestlers actually, including Nikki Bella and Miz, who is absolutely killing it. He is not afraid to commit to these characters. I’m not going to lie: I did not think he would be as good a dancer as he has been. He is fantastic. I’m a Pittsburgh Steelers girl, so when Hines Ward won, it was amazing. 

How much similarity do you see between pro wrestling and Dancing With the Stars?

With professional wrestling, when you turn heel, you have to let go of every social norm you’ve ever been taught and be unlikable. You have to learn to be the villain. The dancers are turning themselves into these characters to tell a story. Just being online and seeing criticism from people who have no idea what they are talking about but feel they need to be sitting next to Derek Hough to judge—there is that aspect, too. 

Who’s your pick to win this season?

My money is on Jojo Siwa. She is so fun to watch. So entertaining. Her dances have such a different energy and life to them. Also, Amanda Kloots. If I had to put my money on one it would be Jojo, but Amanda’s story is so heartbreaking but also motivating. She is a superhero if she wins or not. 

AEW

Does your boyfriend, Adam Cole, watch the show with you?

He is on the couch when it is on. He doesn’t always commit to watching, but I’ll grab him and go, “Watch this one.” He did say he will watch intently if I ever make it on. I’m holding him to that. 

You’ve been campaigning on social media to make this a reality. You have a big fanbase now that continues to grow. What does this mean to you?

It would be a literal dream come true. Let’s add one more hat. Dentist, professional wrestler, ballroom dancer. They all go together, right? It would be really cool because it’s something I’ve been following for so long. It’s something that was totally out of reach when I was watching with my family. Now it’s something I‘m actively trying to manifest and put out in the universe. 

You tweeted wanting Derek to be your pro. But he is on the judging panel now, so who would your other choice be?

That’s so hard. Derek is so amazing. He would be No. 1. But I love Val [Chmerkovskiy], Gleb [Savchenko]. Sasha [Farber] is so fun. I think Artem [Chigvintsev]’s choreography is amazing. Whatever dance is choreographed, you are glued to the TV. I love his creativity. So one of those. 

When it comes to AEW, you’ve got a big title defense against Tay Conti on November 13 at Full Gear. How does she size up as an opponent?

When it comes to fighter instincts, I don’t think I’ve ever faced anyone on Tay Conti’s level. She can literally drop anybody. But this is professional wrestling, my reign, and my division. I’m happy to give her a shot at the belt, but it’s my era right now, the D.M.D. era. The story Tay Conti has with NXT not going her way. It wasn’t her grand stage, where now it is. She is one of the top stars in AEW. She gets one of the biggest reactions from fans when she comes out. It’s still my reign and my ring, and it’s going to stay that way. 

As champ, what do you make of MMA fighter Kayla Harrison running down pro wrestling after a recent appearance?

I say don’t knock it until you try it. You get in there with millions at home and learn the craft that is professional wrestling. It’s not easy. It’s not a walk in the park. The hardest part is building a connection with the fans. It’s the most important part. I don’t think people don’t know how hard it truly is.

You and Impact Wrestling’s Deonna Purrazzo have been pushing for more crossover with the women. How much headway have you made with the two companies in making that happen?

Deonna is one of my best friends. One day, I think, one way or another, it’s going to happen. It’s really cool Deonna and I have these underdog stories where we were not appreciated early on. And now she was ranked No. 3 in the Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 150 women’s wrestlers, and I was ranked No. 4. It only makes sense for us to square off in the ring and have a little friendly competition. She has mentioned before about having a tag match. I’d love to do that. She is one of the best wrestlers in the world, period. I want to go against the best. I want to go against her. 

AEW

Like other promotions, do you think we’ll see an all-women’s pay-per-view in AEW?

I don’t know. Never say never. As empowering as EmPowerrr is, I think it’s more empowering we’re given the platform to the main event all these television shows. To main event Dynamite. To main event Rampage. When the women main event a men’s show, it has a little extra satisfaction. 

If you could pick a celebrity to train this season and take under your wing in AEW, who do you think would do well?

In this current season, definitely Mel C from the Spice Girls. She already has the badass factor down. We just got to show her some technical wrestling and a little promo advice. She is set. Who is not going to back a Spice Girl?

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