Ayako Hamada retires from wrestling following drug sentence

Ayako Hamada has been placed under probation following her arrest for possession of methamphetamines.

Initially, outlets in Japan and the US reported that Hamada had been sentenced to eighteen months in prison. Sister Xochitl Hamada, however, told Mediotiempo in Mexico that Hamada had been sentenced to three years probation, and that if she were to violate her probation she could face eighteen months in prison.

In a statement to media in Japan, Hamada announced that she is retiring from pro wrestling due to the situation. She stated that she hopes to find work as a interpreter since she is fluent in both Japanese and Spanish.

Hamada, 37, was arrested back on May 13 for possession of a banned stimulant, in this case meth. Pro Wrestling Wave, who she was working for at the time, immediately terminated her contract. Sendai Girls also stripped her of their world title, which she had just won a few weeks before her arrest. 

The daughter of Gran Hamada, Ayako Hamada started her career in 1998, initially working for the Arison promiton. She would later go on to wrestle mainly in Japan and Mexico, though she did have a run in Impact Wrestling and has also wrestled for SHIMMER. Before her arrest, she had been mainly working for Seadlinnng and Sendai Girls, along with Pro Wrestling Wave.