By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
Good Karma Wrestling with guest Mickie James
Hosts: ESPN Chicago’s Jonathan Hood, ESPN Milwaukee’s Gabe Neitzel, and ESPN West Palm’s Brian Rowitz
Twitter: @GKW_Wrestling
She talked about the current state of Impact Wrestling: “I feel like there’s a change in the air, and I feel like a lot of people who perhaps may have been sleeping on Impact. And, you know, there’s been like a whole lot of, like, team A versus team B and team B versus team A, and it’s like everybody has to pick a side, pick a side, pick a side. And the whole time, like Impact has been the net, if you will, that everyone’s shooting over when the sense of like they’ve been.
“I’ve always given a lot of credit to Impact. I think that you can’t deny 20 some years of history, and you look at the roster and the people that have come through Impact, and there’s a reason why it has the library. It has. It’s had the talent that it’s had. It’s had, you know, everyone who you see, who you see on like television and you see like, oh, a major star. AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, all of these people, they were Impact, they were TNA, you know. And it was because of those opportunities and those like X-Division style matches and these different types of way to present wrestling and to present these characters. That really made people fall in love with them. And you look at some of their stuff that they were doing there, and now they’re getting to do that at WWE or they’re doing it at AEW.
“I feel like. Honestly like 2024, I don’t know, I just feel really good about it. I feel really, really good about it. I say, oh, people have been sleeping on impact, but maybe it’s like the quiet little monster and then, you know, people are going to be reminded, oh yeah, Impact is one of the best shows on television.”
On Nick Aldis making his WWE debut: “I’m so excited for him and I’m so proud of him. It’s been a long, long time coming. This is his dream too, it always been his dream since he was a little boy. We found each other at Impact Wrestling at TNA at the time in like 2011 and I think a lot of people underestimated him. He’s not been given an opportunity to truly shine for one reason or another and I think that marriage is about sacrifices and balances and I think that he sacrificed, especially the 2nd time I went back to WWE, he sacrificed a lot because I was on the road full time. With our son and with his career and different things and I just think it’s time and I’m so grateful that he’s finally getting an opportunity to show the world who he is.
“I’ve always thought, talent, in ring, just his charisma, he’s so articulate, and he can really captivate an audience. He’s so well spoken, I think this role is perfect for him. Obviously, I have faith in him that he’s going to nail it and knock it out of the park. But I really hope that the WWE Universe really embraces him and loves him for the talent that he is.”
Why is the Knockouts division so sustainable: “I think because women strive to come to Impact Wrestling. I think that if they know that if they’re, you know, if they have their sights set on even if they have their sights set on end goal WWE that they know that the place to really hone in on your talent and to be challenged the most and to get the most opportunities as a Knockout is Impact Wrestling.
“And I think that’s because of the precedent that was set when the knockouts division was created when it was truly formed that the women were equal and we were the same and we would get equal time and equal opportunities and, you know, not just like opportunities of Oh, the style matches, but time on television of like creating your character and telling those in depth stories of why you’re having a match in the first place, you know, to get to that moment.
“So, all of that. And I think it was something special and unique because if you remember when the knockouts division was being created, women were not, you know, getting time like that. We’re not getting types of matches like that on television. And they were being portrayed in a very different light and nothing. I mean, I was a wrestling fan and that I fell in love with wrestling and got into wrestling as women were doing all kinds of crazy things from, you know, we say that, but you know, Trish and Lita, main eventing and, you know, Victoria and Trish having a hardcore match.
“I mean, those were groundbreaking for the time, especially, you know, for that company. It was huge. It was huge massive steps, but Impact was always, you know, I feel like highlighting their women in a whole different way, in a whole different way.”
Other topics include whether Nick Aldis still travels with his gear, her transition out of WWE, what will steal the show at Bound for Glory, and more.
GEE, wonder if Mickie will use Nick to get back into WWE on a regular basis for a bit so she can again get the attention she oh-so-desparately needs?
Did Nick use Mickie to get into WWE when she was there? Maybe she goes back, maybe she doesn’t, but this seems uncalled for.