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TNA Knockout Gail Kim was a recent guest on Smart Mark Radio, and the following are interview highlights:
On her thoughts on the TNA product:
"Impact Wrestling has really shaken things up. You see a lot of new young talent that they’re trying like Ethan Carter and The Wolves who are really great additions. Ethan, I've worked with in WWE when he was in NXT and I remember thinking, 'Wow, this guy has a lot of charisma.' I was shocked to see him be released, but that was a blessing in disguise for us because we got a hell of a talent. I think people are going to see us invest in younger talent and new faces and really just try things and see what works."
On recent changes to the TNA Knockouts division:
"I feel like for the longest time we've been hearing from fans, 'Oh, we need more Knockouts. It’s getting stale with the same girls.' It’s been a struggle for us, but I think we've done a great job so far. I wanted everyone to be patient because we pride ourselves on the Knockouts division having talented girls. You can’t hire girls just because we need new girls. We were looking for quality, and now we've brought back Angelina Love and they’re going with the Beautiful People which is a proven success. We've brought in Santana who plays Brittany now and she's already debuted. We have a bright future. I think there’s going to be a lot more changes and it’s going to be for the best."
On plans for her character going forward:
"Alpha Female was just a temporary thing over in the UK. Who knows for her in the future? She’s got a great look and presence, but she’s not part of our regular roster right now, just to clear that up. For me, there are plans for everyone so that’s about as much as I can say. My storyline has pretty much wrapped up with Madison (Rayne) as everyone can tell. So, yeah, things are going to happen. I’m not worried. I've got so much more to show."
On her thoughts on Lei'D Tapa leaving TNA:
"She’s a great girl. She has passion and she has determination. She honestly was just very inexperienced. She only had three years of experience under her belt and it just wasn't enough right now. I had two years of experience when I got hired by WWE and I got fired, and that was the best thing that ever happened to me. I didn't know it at that time, but it just motivated me even more and I think she’s the same type of person that’s going to go out and get better. She just needs more experience and I don’t see this pulling her down in any way. All of us are rooting for her because we all loved her. She has such a great look, such a great presence, and she’s got it in her blood. I have no doubt that she’s going to be a big star one day. It just takes time.
Wrestling is an art. I've been wrestling now for 14 years or so, and I've told her that for me to feel totally confident to where I could lead in the ring and give it my all and be a veteran, it took me eight solid years. People don’t realize how much time it can take, and I'm still learning every day. I don't want people to be discouraged; a lot of people make assumptions when people are gone. Just remember that nobody really knows what’s going on behind the scenes. I just think that things happen for a reason, and she’s such a good human being that I really feel like good things will happen for her."
On improving her promo skills:
"All of us have to work at it. I guess some people just have natural talent. I would say my strength is being in the ring and having matches. For me to have a promo, it takes a while for me to prepare. I feel like Impact Wrestling has given me so many opportunities to talk. Pat Kenney, or Simon Diamond, he normally works with us girls on our matches. He was put with us also to develop our characters, and that's one thing Pat has really worked on with me. When we’re at live events or anything like that, he wants me to cut promos and he wants me to get better. He wants me to get as much practice as I can, especially during that run when I was doing the open challenge with some of those indie girls. I had talking segments every week and that’s not my comfort zone. He really helped me a lot, so I thank him for that."
On her past feuds with Taryn Terrell and Awesome Kong:
"Kong was my first, I call it magical feud because we had pure magical chemistry. I honestly never thought that something like that would happen again where people really recognized our hard work and we got their respect and it made a name for us. I’m very fortunate that it happened again, with Taryn last year. For me to have those opportunities in my career twice, I’m so grateful, and I just want to make even more magical moments going forward. The day that I start moving slower is the day that I’m going to retire. I just want to keep on making more magic and blowing people away with my matches – that’s what I want to be remembered for."
Nick was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of 18, when he decided to pack his flack jacket and move to New York City.
