Shotzi says the difference between WWE NXT and the main roster goes well beyond the size of the stage. Speaking to The Takedown on SI in July, she described an NXT environment where wrestlers could train together, plan matches and refine backstage segments before the cameras rolled.
“You get time to really work on it. To plan your matches,” Shotzi told Zack Heydorn about NXT. She said main roster television required performers to arrive on the day of a show while a much larger production moved around them, leaving less room to prepare.
“It’s completely different. It’s so chaotic on the road,” she said. Shotzi also recalled dealing with the deaths of her father and stepfather during that period, along with the pressure of travel and limited use on television. She said she would bring more confidence to a second main roster run if the opportunity ever came.
Her focus in the interview was on the freedom she felt after leaving WWE and joining MLW. Shotzi said the company understood the character she wanted to present and involved her in decisions about its direction, a change that helped her recover some of the confidence she had lost.
Kevin Owens had once challenged her to reconnect with the fearless performer he remembered from her independent run, Shotzi said. She hoped he could see that side of her again in MLW, where she was working with the Good Brothers and defending the women’s championship at the time of the interview. WrestlingHeadlines has also covered the support she received from Charlotte Flair and Bayley after her WWE exit.
Source: The Takedown on SI interview with Shotzi Blackheart.
