Despite an already legendary career and a recent TNA Hall of Fame induction, Mickie James isn’t necessarily ready to call it quits just yet. On Insight With Chris Van Vliet, she discussed her ability to continue wrestling while also acknowledging that she feels fulfilled with her accomplishments.
When asked if she could do one more match, James was emphatic. “Hell yeah, I could do 10 more,” she stated. However, she also recognized the depth of her career achievements. “But it’s also with the career that I’ve been so blessed to have, and the moments that I’ve been able to have and the people that I’ve been able to work with, I could retire tomorrow and be a happy woman. I don’t have anything else, I think, to prove in the wrestling business.”
The Unmatched Feeling of Wrestling
James contrasted wrestling with her other ventures in acting and music, highlighting the unique connection with a live audience. “But I also love it, and there’s nothing like it,” she explained. “I’ve been able to act in films. I’ve been able to do music and perform on stages and alongside mega names and stuff like that, which is also incredible. But there’s nothing like performing in front of a live wrestling audience, especially when they’re so invested in your story, in that story, because it’s the emotion, that’s what we live for. That’s that’s the art of this dance that we do.”
Finding Validation and Fulfillment
James pointed to her recent “Last Rodeo” storyline in TNA/Impact Wrestling as a pivotal moment that brought her a sense of closure and validation, particularly after feeling her first WWE run was cut short.
“I think what I was able to accomplish with The Last Rodeo solidified me. It validated me. It vindicated me,” James noted. “My first WWE run, I was able to have some amazing moments, but I think it was cut short… I was not satisfied. I would have been very unhappy. I think I would have been disgruntled, and I would have hated the business if I would have ended my career after my first run. I would have been all that work, all that dedication, everything, it would have been unfulfilled, and then I would have had a chip on my shoulder, because when I left, I had a chip on my shoulder because I felt like they didn’t have to fire me.”
She added that despite the initial disappointment of her first WWE departure, the path it set her on ultimately led to greater personal and professional fulfillment. “I feel so fulfilled now. I feel so fulfilled,” she affirmed. “Not only that, if I think about that now, and that was me in the moment… if I hadn’t even have left, not only like part of my healing journey and all that stuff, but I would have never met my husband. I would never have my beautiful son… And then I wouldn’t be here today or sitting in front of you as a Hall of Famer if that hadn’t happened, so you don’t know.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit Insight With Chris Van Vliet with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription. You can listen to the podcast on platforms like Spotify and Apple Podcasts, or watch the interview on Chris Van Vliet’s YouTube channel.
