In an exclusive interview for WrestlingNews.co, Steve Fall spoke with former Knockouts World Champion and a former two-time Knockouts Tag Team Champion Tasha Steelz. She talked about Kiera Hogan leaving Impact Wrestling for AEW, Mercedes Mone, why she re-signed with Impact, Mickie James, and more. Click below for the interview and scroll down for the transcribed highlights.
Tasha Steelz was asked if there’s a possibility of wrestling Mercedes Mone at Multiverse United 2:
‘I see it. A lot of people have been seeing it as well. Never say never. You can never say never and we’re going to just manifest it right now, speak it into existence, and hopefully at Multiverse United 2, everyone will get to see Tasha Steelz vs Mercedes Mone.”
If defeating Mickie James felt like validation for her hard work paying off:
“I feel like it was and I felt like it was a passing of the torch moment, that paving the way moment for me because I’ve gotten in the ring with so many of my peers and I felt like I was ready, but the ultimate test was, can you get in the ring with someone legendary, someone that has Hall of Fame status? Someone who has done everything you could possibly think of that you want to do. Can you hang in the ring with them and gain that respect from them?”
“When I did that and when I took the Knockouts World Championship from Mickie James, I not only got that torch passed to me, but I’ve gained that respect from her. I will forever stand by being the greatest that beat the greatest and no one can say that now. That’s a moment that I’m proud of. I have so much love and respect for Mickie James and I definitely appreciated her stepping in the ring with me and her wanting to step in the ring, not only with me, but all the Knockouts and giving all of us a chance. That’s just something you don’t see everyday. It was such a great feeling. I still get butterflies to this day talking about it.”
On why she signed a new deal with Impact in January and then stepped away for a while:
‘I love good speculation. I don’t think people do that nowadays. A lot of people predict what you are going to do next, and that’s things like social media and trolls, they always predict what you’re going to do next. I like to keep people questioning what I do. I never just leave it all out there. I like for them to question.”
“At the time after I signed my new deal, I did ask for time off. I had to step back and find Tasha Steelz because I did lose the championship and I felt like I was at the top of my game, but reality struck. Reality told me, no you’re not. There’s things you need to work on and there’s things you need to do, and that’s with everybody. That’s not just with me. Everybody has that moment. So I just had to really step back and just really work on being a better Tasha Steelz for, not just myself, but for everyone who supported me including everyone in that locker room at Impact, and management, and the girls, and the guys. They all stood behind me during that time. I did what I did. I found myself and I got better and things have just been great so far. I made my return in Windsor.”
Steelz’s thoughts on Kiera Hogan leaving Impact Wrestling for AEW:
“Kiera and I have been friends for a very long time. She’s basically my sister. She’s my little sister. Everyone says we look alike anyway. We’ve had this talk. When her deal was coming up and she was undecided what to do, I was like, Fire ‘N Flava are at the top of their game. I’m going to say to this day, we were the best women’s tag team ever. We deliver so much and our chemistry is on point. I don’t think there’s anybody that can match what we do in the ring and outside the ring. Everyone’s seen us throughout 2020. We were the most entertaining.”
“Talking to her, I said, and this is what we all think about when it comes to our careers, it’s just exploring other options, just figuring out what’s best for you. I told her that all the time. I said, ‘Listen, you have to find what’s best for you at the end of the day. We’re always going to be Fire ‘N Flava, but you always have to find what’s best for you. If you want to go out and see what else is out there, do it. You only get this life and career one time. You can’t go back and redo it, so go out and do it. I will always be here at the end of the day. I will still be your sister. I will always be your friend. I will always be there at the end of the day, and Fire ‘N Flava is never going to die. If we can reunite somewhere else, we’ll do it. If you want to reunite back in Impact, we’ll do it. However, you want to do it, go out and explore whatever you need to.’”
“Before she made that decision, we sat and talked about it. She told me what she was going to do before she announced it to the world and to Impact and I was happy for her. She went to AEW, did her thing, did some things with Jade, and now she’s back on the solo path where she should be, and she’s going to be killing it very, very soon.”
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