Independent Wrestler Dono Hefner Takes on Promotion Challenges

Pro wrestling is notoriously tough; so many wrestlers around the world aspire to rise from being an unknown to becoming a recognized name in the industry.

But managing a professional wrestling promotion and assembling a show? That’s a whole different level of difficulty. Dono Hefner, a rising independent wrestler, is gearing up to take on that challenge.

Hefner, who is 20 years old, claims to be the “most OverAF independent professional wrestler” in the scene right now. He has plans for an event titled “Too Over To Care” scheduled for February 27, 2027, in Washington, D.C. Recently, in an interview, he set his sights on drawing attention to this event. His first target? Former WWE star JTG—now known as Jay Tha Gawd—whom he labeled as “soft,” asserting that he could “prove it anytime, anywhere.”

Despite the bravado in his remarks, Hefner expressed excitement for the undertaking of running his own show.

“What made me want to start is that I like to challenge myself most of the time. I like to be under pressure,” he noted. “I mean, let’s be honest here. I’m already good at this wrestling stuff, right? So, I thought, ‘Let’s just take it up a notch.’ I want to run my own show to give opportunities to others that are often missed in wrestling due to politics. I’m sure you know how that goes—there’s a lot of it. People frequently don’t get the chances they think they deserve. So, I’m not just doing this for myself; I’m actually doing everyone a favor.”

One tough challenge he shared was having to tell some people “no” when booking for the event.

“You can’t put everyone on a card,” he explained. “Once a new show is on the horizon, everyone wants to hop on it. Other than that, everything’s running pretty smoothly—there’s still plenty of time to go.”

Among those confirmed for “Too Over To Care” are Jay Lucas and Terry Yaki, a tag team duo known as Top Team, and Chulo Montana and Ykies, known as Sexy & Blessed.

In a perfect scenario, Hefner dreams of facing off against an independent wrestling legend.

“My dream match on the indies would be against Joey Janela,” he said. “I really think that if we went at it, it could be something special. And it would definitely get people talking about me afterward.”

For the time being, Hefner is focused on further establishing himself with wrestling fans as he prepares for “Too Over To Care.”