In a recent interview with Bodyslam.net, former WWE Superstar Lisa Marie Varon (Victoria) discussed quitting WWE and potentially being interested in transitioning to a behind-the-scenes role.
Victoria’s first WWE run lasted from 2000 to 2009. Victoria was the tenth entrant in the 2021 Women’s Royal Rumble match, marking her first appearance with WWE in almost twelve years.
You can check out some highlights from the interview below:
On why she left WWE: “The reason why I left WWE was, when I would come out to the car, the fans were, like, going ‘Oh, boo! How did you lose that match. You can totally tell!’ and I was like ‘Oh no. They’re not believing the magic.’ and it was getting to me. It was getting. It was hurting my feelings and I don’t have thick skin, whatever you guys think, I don’t. I’m very sensitive, too sensitive for the business, as Tommy Dreamer would say, but, you know, Fit Finlay was the man. He (Finlay) made us girls tough as nails, man, he was the freakin’ Godfather, I mean, the grand-daddy, like he made us freaking tough as nails. I was just, I was going to Fit (Finlay), he was like our dad, and I go ‘Man, am I ever going to wrestle for the championship belt again, or the championship straps or belts,’ right? The title whatever.’
“It was bothering me, and I went to go have a conversation with Vince (McMahon) and I was like ‘Do you guys see the championship in my future?” and they were like, THAT look. I was, like, ‘Alright, I get it.’ Basically, I was doing the outfit, came back to wrestle, to help bring up the talent, right? Enhancement, I guess you can say. So, didn’t plan on going to TNA, I just was like going ‘Man, I want to leave,’ I ended up going back and talking to Vince, Johnny Ace and Stephanie. I was knocking on the door and Chavo (Guerrero) comes by and he goes, he thought I was pitching a story line, all right, ‘You got this” and I’m like “Don’t talk to me. I’m going to cry. Don’t talk to me.’”
On what she told WWE when she left: “I went in there and I said “Hey guys, I really appreciate, like, my career. I wanna still love what I do, I don’t wanna be a bitter vet, like talking bad about “They didn’t do this with me”, I don’t, I don’t wanna be like that and I still love what I do“. I didn’t know what I wanted to be, when I grew up, even though I was an adult, and I was, like, I didn’t know if I wanna have kids. I still want to leave being on top, not like “That poor Victoria. Look what happened to her!”, you know what I mean, I still wanted a passion for it. They said “Yes. Is there anything you need?” and I go, “Could I have one last match?” and they agreed, so they had me wrestle Michelle McCool. Yeah, yeah, so I was bawling, all day, and I had a whole speech written down. Nope, didn’t even, nothing. I was so emotional, when I cry I can’t talk, I’m one of those people, you know what I mean?”
On TNA being her second family: “Yeah, wow. My second family was, like, TNA, you know, was at ODB’s wedding, Maid of Honor. Made some amazing friends, you know. Val/SoCal Val, Mickie James, myself, we have our own show in GAW TV, on Youtube. Thank you, thank you COVID for something positive out of it. Yeah, we wanted to do something and it’s our third year doing it and we love it. It’s doing well and we have amazing guests. I wanna say to everybody that wants to be a wrestler – Be kind to everybody. Don’t think you’re over anybody. The reason why, it’s like, when we asked our friends to be on our show, they don’t charge us. They’re like ‘Oh my God! I was waiting for you to ask me, I was kind of insulted you didn’t ask me’ and we’re like ‘Oh my! We don’t wanna bother you.’”
On potentially going back to WWE in a backstage role: “When people say ‘Would you go back and wrestle?,’ that’s probably your next question, I would love to be an agent, a coach. I don’t have anything else to prove in wrestling. I would rather help the younger talent, you know. Character development or work the psychology of a match, that kind of stuff, like, what Molly Holly does or what Gail Kim does, that kind of stuff. I don’t need to be on camera, you know, we have YouTube.com with GAW TV show, okay, slash (/) GAW TV show. That’s our entertainment right there, we’re in pajamas, drinking wine and shooting the s**t just, you know, having fun, having great guests on there sometimes. Just us.”
You can keep up with all your wrestling news right here on eWrestlingNews.com. Or, you can follow us over on our Twitter and Facebook pages.
Former WWE Superstar Lisa Marie Varon, also known as Victoria, recently discussed her departure from WWE and her potential interest in transitioning to a behind-the-scenes role in a recent interview with Bodyslam.net. Varon’s first run with WWE lasted from 2000 to 2009, and she made her return to the company as the tenth entrant in the 2021 Women’s Royal Rumble match.
During the interview, Varon revealed that one of the reasons she left WWE was because she felt that the fans were not believing in the “magic” of her character. She mentioned that the negative reactions from the fans were starting to affect her emotionally, as she is a sensitive person. Varon also mentioned that Fit Finlay, who was like a father figure to the female wrestlers, helped toughen them up and make them resilient. However, when she asked Vince McMahon about her chances of wrestling for the championship belt again, she received a discouraging response, which led her to consider leaving WWE.
Varon also shared that when she decided to leave WWE, she wanted to do so on a positive note and still love what she does. She expressed her desire not to become a bitter veteran who talks negatively about her experiences. Varon requested one last match before leaving, and WWE agreed. She had an emotional match against Michelle McCool and was unable to deliver the speech she had prepared due to her overwhelming emotions.
Regarding her time in TNA (Total Nonstop Action Wrestling), Varon referred to it as her second family. She mentioned attending ODB’s wedding as the maid of honor and forming strong friendships with Val/SoCal Val and Mickie James. Varon, along with Mickie James and Val, hosts a show called GAW TV on YouTube. She emphasized the importance of kindness in the wrestling industry and how their friends willingly appear on their show without charging them.
When asked about a potential return to WWE, Varon expressed her interest in working in a backstage role as an agent or coach. She feels that she has nothing left to prove in wrestling and would prefer to help the younger talent with character development and match psychology. Varon mentioned Molly Holly and Gail Kim as examples of wrestlers who have successfully transitioned into backstage roles.
In conclusion, Lisa Marie Varon’s interview shed light on her departure from WWE, her time in TNA, and her potential future in a behind-the-scenes role in the wrestling industry. Her experiences and insights provide a glimpse into the challenges and aspirations of professional wrestlers beyond their in-ring careers.