TNA Hall of Famer Gail Kim recently spoke with Sportskeeda to discuss the Knockouts influence on the Women’s Revolution, on wanting to see Awesome Kong become the next Knockout inducted to Impact Wrestling’s Hall of Fame and her take on Rosemary’s character. Highlights of the interview below.
On the Knockouts division not getting enough credit for the ‘Women’s Revolution’: “I’ve spoken about this before and everyone has their opinions. There were so many points when women’s wrestling was strong. When I started with WWE, they had a strong women’s division. But what I was referring to was ‘The Impact Knockouts Revolution’. At the time when we did it, there was no women’s wrestling on television that was at the forefront. It was literally like women’s wrestling was dead for a while, and it was very frustrating for me because I always loved the sport of wrestling. I did the manager thing for over a year. At first, I was just patient and happy to be back in the company where I felt passion again, but after a while, it felt like I was wasting my time and I didn’t want to waste my talent because of what happened to me previously. I felt like time was ticking. So, Impact gave us that opportunity and has pretty much never stopped. So, I sometimes feel like they don’t get the credit they deserve because they started this women’s wrestling movement and it’s never stopped. We’ve gone through ups and down and of course, rebuilding stages, but it’s never stopped and they’ve always believed in the women. That’s why I’ve always felt very loyal to this company. Because they gave us a chance and even if we disappointed at times because we are not perfect, they just kept rolling with it. So, if we have contributed to the whole big picture of women’s wrestling today then I’m very happy.”
On which Knockout should be inducted to Impact Wrestling’s Hall of Fame: “Well, the first thought that comes to my mind obviously is Awesome Kong. I have nothing but the deepest respect for her. We just had unbelievable chemistry, unbelievable deep respect for one another to this day. She was my partner throughout. Fans will come up to me. Sometimes I think back and am like, wow, that was ten years ago. For the fact that fans still love it and remember it, that’s what’s special to both of us.“
On Rosemary’s character and TriplaMania XXV controversy: “Rosemary, I love her. Number one, I think she’s just well rounded in every way. She’s polished in her character, her promo work, her in-ring work. She’s just very good. I love that she’s different. With regard to what happened with her and Sexy Star, whether it’s her…it could be anyone, a male wrestler or a female wrestler, that’s just something you don’t do. A well known unwritten law. You need to take care of your partner in the ring and trust one another because we literally put our lives in each other’s hands. You know, you have to be trained, and you have to be smart and you have to be careful. I hope that Sexy Star learns her lesson. I don’t know what’s going on with her right now but I lost a lot of respect for her.”
Gail also discusses the Jim Cornette and Santino stand-off controversy.
You can read the full interview here.
What are your thoughts on the interview? Would you you like to see another Knockout inducted into Impact’s Hall of Fame? Do you think the Knockouts get enough credit for the ‘Women’s Revolution’? Let us know in the comments below!
