TNA Wrestling Hall of Famer Gail Kim discussed her experiences working with 17-time World Champion John Cena in an interview with Jackpot City Casino.
Kim said, “I’ve worked with John, and he is incredible. I can’t say enough about him in terms of how hard he works. Always the first one to the building, and when you walk in, he’s signing massive piles of autographs, and doesn’t stop. I always said him and Miz were probably the two that I noticed were the hardest-working guys in the company at that time. I just respect people who work so hard and sacrificed so much.”
On how she would book Cena’s final match:
“If I was the booker, I would leave it up to him in terms of who he wanted to wrestle in that last moment and make it special. Of course, they say on your way out, you’re supposed to build someone up, but I don’t know who that would be right now. It’s really hard to say. No one’s springing out as the top choice there. And I don’t even know if they’re gonna do that. John is so special that he may just get a special farewell on his own, and he doesn’t have to do the traditional thing of putting someone over. And I wouldn’t have a problem with that, because I think he’s earned that right.”
On Vince McMahon:
“[Vince McMahon was] my unapproachable boss. I think he made himself somewhat unapproachable unless you developed a relationship with him. That’s partially on me; I was very intimidated. He’s a very intimidating man, and even the times when I took the risk to try to talk to him one-on-one, I got shooed away by someone else, they’re very protective. So, I can give him respect for what he’s built in the business, but of course, there are a lot of other controversies out there that I don’t agree with, obviously, as a woman.”
On the legends Who brought wrestling into the mainstream:
“Hulk Hogan brought pro wrestling to the mainstream audience in the 80s. I remember as a kid, watching wrestling. Me and my sister being children and, like, waiting up really late on Saturday Night’s Main Event. It was so special to us, and the storylines and the characters back then. There was no internet, so everyone just believed everything in pro wrestling. It was such a wonderful time. I don’t know if you watched wrestling as a kid back then, but it was very real, very memorable. But Hulk Hogan wasn’t my favorite, I’ll say that. I liked some of the mid-card guys, I guess you would call them the Intercontinental champions at the time: Tito Santana, the British Bulldog, Bret Hart. I kind of liked more of the smaller guys, I guess, or the ones that moved around quicker, or certain characters, like Ricky Steamboat, and Jake “The Snake,” and Rick Rude, and Miss Elizabeth.”
