ORLANDO, Fla. - For a tag team like Fabulous Fitness, Wrestlemania week is their Super Bowl.

• WrestleMania was originally scheduled for April 5 at Raymond James Stadium
• Dozens of independently-run shows were forced to be canceled
• WrestleMania was taped on a closed set in Orlando

“This is like an opportunity for us to be seen by many eyes that are around the world that don’t have the opportunity to sit in a seat and see us do what we can do,” Frank Ciaramello, also known as "The Fabulous Kiki Roberts," said.

WWE's WrestleMania 36 was to take place in Tampa Sunday, capping off a week that would have brought in more than $150 million to the Bay Area, and put plenty of eyes on independent wrestlers looking to make names for themselves. Instead, it was moved to Orlando at WWE's Performance Center on a closed set over two days.

"Everyone is always looking for the next top guy, or the next top gal so to speak," Ciaramello's partner Alberto Cortes, who goes by the name "Big Kahuna Khan," said "And Wrestlemania weekend is such a big weekend as far as finding the next talent."

The two are local talent in fact, trained at the Team 3D Academy in Orlando. This was supposed to be their big week, but now, they're out of a paycheck with dozens of independent shows canceled.

"We sell whistles, and headbands, and you just name it, whatever we can sell to just get it out there," Ciaramello said. "That’s where the money is made for us, so losing that money was huge."

Some like Tallahassee-based performer "Effy" were supposed to wrestle more than 10 times, and even host a show.

“I remember Brad from [Game Changer Wrestling] kind of looked and me and was like, 'is this going to affect the show?' And I was like there’s 'no way, there’s no way,'” he said.

"Effy’s Big Gay Brunch" was supposed to be a celebration of the LGBTQ community in pro wrestling, and Tampa was a natural fit to host.

"When you have 100,000 people coming into Tampa, and Tampa itself being such a large LGBTQ safe city, it’s a big opportunity to put it on a stage where we don’t have to fit in their world, they have to come fit in to our world," Effy, whose real name is William Gibson, said. "And they’ll enjoy it if they give it a try."

But instead of enjoyment, it’s disappointment, and empty pockets.

“It’s between $3,500 and $4,000 that I’ve invested into the event on my own, which is not everything that would be invested in there,” he said.

But others are choosing to remain optimistic about the situation.

"Every setback has a comeback," Cortes said. "And I do know that with this unfortunate situation, it’s going to come into a more fortunate situation in the future."

Because just like in any championship bout, the journey for these indie wrestlers is all about the chase.  

"It’s bigger than it’s ever been, and there’s a huge demand for it," Ciaramello said. "And I’m a strong believer that when something goes away that is so good, when it comes back, they want it so much more."