Awesome Kong Recalls Dixie Carter Denying Her a Pay Raise on Dark Side of the Ring

Dark Side of the Ring Season 7 debuted last night on VICE TV, airing the first two parts of “Jeff Jarrett & The Battle for TNA.” Former TNA Knockouts World Champion and Hall of Famer Awesome Kong (aka Kia Stevens) was among the subjects interviewed for the documentary. During the premiere, she spoke at length about former TNA President Dixie Carter refusing her to pay her a raise when she asked for one.

Awesome Kong revealed that while signed to TNA, she was making less money than a manager at McDonald’s. She explained (via Fightful), “It kind of felt like [Dixie Carter] didn’t appreciate her homegrown talent. Kurt is making a little over a million dollars a year. Kurt Angle deserved more than a million a year, in my opinion. Can you tell me that I’m not worth 1/10th of Kurt Angle?” She continued, “I asked for a raise and let them know that as you break it down, I make less than a manager at McDonald’s. The reply that I got was, ‘We do not dispute any of the points you made; however, we cannot pay you that sum at this time.'”

She also shared a story about how multiple women in the Knockouts division had to moonlight at blue-collar jobs due to the low pay. She stated, “There were more than two TNA Knockouts who held the TNA title that had to moonlight in very blue-collar jobs. One worked at a bar. She would be on TV and the customers would say, ‘Isn’t that you?’ She would say, ‘Yes, may I take your order?'” Kong added, “Dixie knows that we’re struggling, and she’s still hiring people in front of us.”

Part 3 of “Jeff Jarrett & The Battle for TNA” will air on Tuesday, July 14 on VICE TV. The first two episodes are available to stream now on VICETV.com. You can also check out my report on the first two episodes, plus a Q&A with series executive producer and co-creator Jason Eisener RIGHT HERE.

Additionally, Robert Leighty released his full reports on Episode 1 HERE and Episode 2 HERE.