Jade Cargill has revealed that Charlotte Flair was her preferred WrestleMania opponent, said Ripley has always had the backing of the WWE machine in a way she never did, and acknowledged that the match with Ripley ultimately came down to money.
Speaking on the Joe Budden Podcast, Cargill was asked directly whether she would have rather been facing Flair at WrestleMania 42 and gave an honest answer about the reaction difference between the two potential matchups.
“It was just, we’ve always teased Charlotte Flair since day one,” Cargill said. “And every time I had a face-to-face with this girl, we got a huge reaction. I’ve had maybe two face-offs with Rhea. The reaction, it was a total difference in reaction here. I would think that we’ll build more to Rhea because we don’t have history. Not saying Charlotte and I have history, but there’s been more of a reaction with Charlotte and I having attitude and yelling at each other than that.”
Despite her preference, Cargill said she understands the business reasoning behind the current direction. “I believe the reason why we went this route is because it’s more money that’s going to be made going against Rhea,” Cargill said.
Cargill then made a pointed observation about the difference in how she and Ripley arrived at their current positions.
“Yeah, she’s great. She’s great. But however, she also is backed and always has been built by WWE,” Cargill said. “She came from the indies. Yes, she went to NXT. Her character has developed along the way. If you see how she looked when she first got into wrestling to now, it’s a huge transformation. But also the machine does that for you. It pushes you. It helps you try different things, and she goes out there and she delivers every single time. So you’re going to do nothing but invest more and more and more.”
Cargill was clear that her own path involved none of that institutional support. “I’m raw,” Cargill said. “My first match ever was on TV. I didn’t go through the indies. I didn’t go through all the training. I didn’t do all that. My NXT was AEW.”
Cargill’s first-ever professional wrestling match took place on AEW Dynamite in March 2021, a mixed tag in which she teamed with NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal against Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet. She challenges Ripley for the WWE Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 42 on April 18 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit the Joe Budden Podcast with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
