Gail Kim gave major praise to Jeff Jarrett for helping to bring women’s professional wrestling to an unprecedented level in the business, particularly when it came to the development of Impact’s Knockouts Division. Kim joined her old foe Awesome Kong on Wednesday’s episode of “Busted Open Radio” as the two shared some of their memories, but before the Impact Hall Of Famer opened the scrapbook she tipped the cap to “The Last Outlaw” of AEW, saying the Knockouts owe everything to him.
“I still tell him to this day, he gave us the opportunity,” Kim said, who recalled that when first going to TNA she was warned Jarrett hated women’s wrestling.
Kim says she never had any indication of that actually being the case. She was initially a manager for nearly a year and a half, but she always wanted to wrestle. She said Jarrett first tested the waters by having her feud with Jackie Moore in 2007.
After that was considered a success, Kim was told that TNA would be bringing in women wrestlers and introducing the Knockouts Title. All that eventually led to her classic rivalry with Awesome Kong.
“Jeff just saw something magical,” Kim said as she called her and Kong trying to prove themselves. “Scott D’Amore, I remember him telling me, ‘Jeff just loves you and [Kong]. He loves what he’s seeing.’ So they kind of saw it in us before we really realized.”
Mickie James agreed with Kim on the misconception about Jarrett. James believes, in actuality, Jarrett didn’t like that women’s wrestling was more watered down and sexualized. She noted that Jarrett also gave her one of her first opportunities.
“I think that he doesn’t get the credit that he deserves in a lot of respect of the people he gave opportunities when nobody else would,” James said.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Busted Open Radio” with an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
