A former estate agent has swapped selling houses for selling out arenas in Mexico, working his “dream job” as a lucha libre wrestler.
Callum Aslantepe, 29, from Swindon, travels around the country wrestling as the character Prince Phoenix.
In January, he wound down his estate agency business to move to Mexico full-time after a successful tour there in 2025.
“It’s a huge part of the culture here. For an average show in the UK we’d get maybe 300 people on a good night, in Mexico we’re talking thousands of fans,” he said.
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Aslantepe went into estate agent work after leaving college, eventually setting up his own business, Aslan Real Estate, selling properties in Wiltshire.
But as a child he “fell in love with wrestling” and, between the ages of nine and 15, he attended a Swindon training school run by 4FW, now called British Kingdom Pro Wrestling.
After 10 years away, he returned to wrestling and started touring the south west and Wales with the company.
“We’d frequently be working Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays – so a gruelling weekend and lots of travel – but wherever I’m wrestling, I’m happy,” he said.
His move to Mexico came after a successful tour there last year.
Aslantepe’s character Prince Phoenix is a rudo – the theatrical villain who bends the rules. He faces the técnicos, the high-flying heroes in the ring.
“I keep Phoenix close to myself but turn it up by 1,000, so everything’s a bit more flamboyant,” he said.
“I grew up watching wrestling and always favoured the bad guys and it’s a lot easier to get somebody to not like you.
“Prince Phoenix is a cool guy but I wouldn’t get on his bad side.”
Aslantepe said there were lucha libre arenas all over Mexico and it was “ingrained” in Mexican culture after stars of the 1960s and 70s became national celebrities.
“Whether you’re a técnico or a rudo, you get mobbed by fans and it sometimes takes me 30 minutes to get to the locker room,” he said.
Nadia Sapphire, a promoter from British Kingdom Pro Wrestling, first met Aslantepe as a teenager.
“He was obsessed with wrestling,” she said. “He had all the figures and was just like a little brother to me.
“He’s so fun to be around.
“The estate agent business was going well and he’s betting on wrestling but I’m happy for him because he’s living in a beautiful country,” she added.
“I miss him loads but whenever Callum is back visiting there will always be a place for him here.”
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