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WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross was once Head of Talent Relations for the Stamford-based promotion and handled stars coming in and out. During this stint, the veteran reviewed Awesome Kong's Tough Enough tryout but felt she was "too big" to be a Diva.
Despite Ross' initial reaction, Kong would spend two years in the promotion where she competed as Kharma. Real-life circumstances got in the way of her run with WWE, but before her 2012 release, she became the third female to compete in the Men's Royal Rumble.
During a 2019 interview with Inside The Ropes, Awesome Kong commented on the rumors about Jim Ross' statements during her WWE Tough Enough tryout.
“When he said that it lit a fire up under me to be like okay, well now I have to prove [JR] wrong. I have this thing floating out in the universe to just prove this one man wrong. I’m a stubborn person and I will devote years to just say ‘f**k yeah!’” [01:30 onward]
As the crowd cheered, Kong clarified that she's actually good friends with JR today.
“We’re friends now, like, we’re friends.” [02:03 onward]
Jim Ross recently commented on Chyna's impact on pro wrestling and recalled how upset the late star was after he and Vince McMahon had to force her to wrestle females since she only wanted to wrestle men.
Missed out on last week's AEW Rampage? Catch up with the results before tonight's show right here.
What happened with the former WWE star's brief AEW run?
Longtime AEW fans likely recall that Awesome Kong was once a member of the Jacksonville-based promotion. Despite being signed to the promotion, Kong only had five matches in the promotion with two being DARK matches.
During an interview on INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet, Awesome Kong revealed that she had very little input during her time with AEW.
"I don't want to sound like I'm bashing the crew over there at AEW, especially since we were just up and running. I felt unheard. I wasn't in control," said Kong. "I couldn't get in the room where final decisions were made." (H/T Fightful)
Today, Kong is happily retired and has been inducted into the Impact Wrestling Hall of Fame, despite her brief appearances in AEW and WWE. Since her retirement, the veteran has been quiet but was last seen on screen during the Biography: WWE Legends Chyna episode.
