Photo: Courtesy of All Elite Wrestling
In professional wrestling, the term "hometown pop" is used to describe a boosted crowd reaction an already popular superstar gets in their return to their home city.
It'll be hard to beat the "hometown pop" AEW Women's Champion Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. received from the Pittsburgh crowd during Wednesday (August 11) night's episode of Dynamite.
Already one of the hottest acts in pro wrestling, the Punxsutawney native made her first appearance in the Steel City since winning the title in May.
Fans at the Petersen Events Center at the University of Pittsburgh showered the real life dentist -- wearing a custom jacket featuring the logos of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pittsburgh Pirates and Pittsburgh Penguins -- with cheers, "D.M.D." chants and -- as requested -- waved Terrible Towels during Baker's in-ring segment with AEW commentator Tony Schiavone.
"I wasn't afraid to step up when this city needed a champion," Baker said, leading to 'D.M.D.' chants and towel waving from the crowd in attendance. "And I bleed black and gold just as much as anybody in here, but we can all admit, this has been a difficult year for us. So Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, I present to you, hope."
Baker is set to defend her title against Red Velvet -- who attacked her after the in-ring segment -- during the debut episode of Rampage, which will also be held at the Petersen Events Center, on Friday (August 13) night.
"And speaking of hope, Red, you might have had a glimmer of it if you were wrestling me in any other city, but not Pittsburgh. Not here, not Brittsburgh," Baker said.
Baker recently returned to Western Pennsylvania during an appearance at Steel City Con in June.
The appearance came weeks after the real life dentist/professional wrestler defeated Hikaru Shida via submission to win the AEW Women's World Championship during the promotion's Double or Nothing pay-per-view on May 30, her first championship in a major wrestling promotion.
After the match, Baker, an avid Pittsburgh sports fan, said she was proud to take on the role of the "face of Pittsburgh" amid a "brutal" year.
"Somebody's gotta be the hero of Pittsburgh so I'm happy to do it," Baker said during a post-Double or Nothing media scrum. "We're repping the 4-1-2."
Earlier this year, Baker gained praise throughout the wrestling community for her groundbreaking 'Lights Out' hardcore match against Thunder Rosa, which was the first women's wrestling match to main event a televised AEW show since the company launched in 2019.
Baker was defeated by Rosa, but was trending on social media throughout the night after fans and wrestlers alike praised her performance, which included having her head busted open and taking rough bumps throughout the match, which included, in some instances, landing on thumb tacks.
Baker, who graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine in 2014, has stayed true to her Western Pennsylvania roots throughout her professional wrestling career.
During AEW's first live show in Pittsburgh, billed as "Brittsburgh," Baker was accompanied to the ring by Steelers mascot Steely McBeam and led the crowd at Petersen Events Center in waving Terrible Towels during her entrance.
Baker also appeared in the Pittsburgh episode of the late Anthony Bourdain's 'Parts Unknown' alongside her boyfriend, Adam Cole, who wrestles for WWE's NXT brand.