Gail Kim On Sasha Banks, Naomi, Slammiversary, The Kill Wall & More

It’s no question that Gail Kim is undeniably a trailblazer in the Knockouts Division. The achievements of Kim’s career are many, having been the first-ever Knockouts Champion. Kim withdrew from in-ring action after being the first woman to be inducted into the TNA Hall of Fame and shifted into a position as a producer. Kim motivates today’s Knockouts to achieve their best while carrying on the heritage of the greatest women’s division in professional wrestling history.

Women’s Wrestling Talk was able to chat with the seven-time Impact Knockouts Champion, who revealed who she would want to see join the greatest women’s division ever.

“I mean Sasha is out there. She’s technically still under contract, but I do love her work. Of course Naomi. Both of them, are incredible workers. I was lucky enough to be able to work with Naomi when she was doing the early stages of NXT, always loved her. She’s never changed inside and outside the ring. So grounded and incredibly athletic. I think she’s probably the most athletic woman I’ve ever been in the same company with.”

She continued saying how she would love to have another pure Asian wrestler within the company. “Someone maybe that comes out of Japan. KAIRI technically left the company and she’s in Stardom. I kind of would love to see her or any Japanese or Asian wrestler that’s more of their style come to our company and join our roster. We have a very diverse roster. I will say anyone who’s truly passionate about being a part of a strong division.

We’re very fortunate because we’ve built up this reputation as being a company that cares about women’s wrestling consistently. I get a lot of inquiries about women wanting to be a part of this roster. So I feel very fortunate that a lot of women are reaching out and they recognize that we care about them.”

Kim noted that she wants to avoid having an “X” on her face, but she has great expectations for Slamovich’s future in Impact Wrestling as the discussion proceeded with laughs and joking about Gail may be ending up on Masha Slamovich’s Kill Wall.

“I don’t intend to be a part of the kill wall. *Laughs* She’s one of the Knockouts that I have such an eye on. I get chills when I think about what her future could be because we hired her at Knockouts Knockdown. To watch Masha grow into this incredible performer. I remember when she wrestled Deonna (Purrazzo), to me it was one of the best matches on that PPV. I was like ‘We need her. We need her on our roster.’

I’m excited for her because she can really go hardcore, but she’s also a great wrestler in the ring. She could go technical, she’s like Japanese strong style whatever you want to call it. She can do all kinds of styles and she’s got great instincts. There are a couple of people I want to see her face and Havoc is definitely one of them in terms of a longer feud or the Jordynne Graces’ or the Deonnas’. She and Deonna already had a great match but I can’t even imagine what it could be like over the course of several matches.”

After Gail Kim’s declaration earlier this year, the Queen of the Mountain battle at Slammiversary has become the main attraction. In this match, four past Knockout Champions will compete to become not only the queen but also the champion. Current champion Tasha Steelz faces some formidable opponents in this match. Sunday, June 19th, Deonna Purrazzo, Chelsea Green, Jordynne Grace, and the return of HBIC Mia Yim will all compete.

Gail Kim shared with us the creative idea behind this match for the Knockouts division.

“When it came to this anniversary PPV, the Knockouts have always been the cornerstone of this company for the past 15 years. We needed something big. We just completed and have the milestone of the Knockouts Ultimate X match. It kind of reminded me of watching the girls on this roster fighting for that match a couple of months ago. Hell, how I felt fighting for certain matches throughout the years.

When it came to Slammivesary 20, there was no hesitation, there was no fighting. It was literally like, ‘Let’s bring this match that we’ve always had for the men as a staple in this company’s history.’ We believe in the women, and I’ve already put pressure on everyone to steal the show.”

You can check more of the topics discussed in our interview below.

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