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Dakota Kai on Winning Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, Which Legend She’d Like to Face

February 18, 2021 | Posted by Jeremy Thomas
Raquel Gonzalez Dakota Kai NXT

Dakota Kai is the first-ever women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic winner along with Raquel Gonzalez, and she weighed in on the win in a new interview. Kai spoke with Ryan Satin at FOX Sports about the win and more, and you can check out highlights below:

On what it meant for the women of NXT to have their own Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic: “Oh, gosh. We were all so stoked when it was announced. I think a lot of us only found out, like, a couple of days before that NXT episode where the trophy was presented and Beth announced it. I feel like it’s definitely another step in the evolution that started a few years ago. This is definitely another huge, huge milestone for that. We were all so stoked to just be a part of it. I know a lot of the talent that we have at NXT in the women’s locker room right now, we didn’t necessarily have interactions, unfortunately, with Dusty because a lot of us came after his passing. But, gosh, he’s such a legend, and just to have the first Women’s Dusty Classic be announced, it was definitely an emotional, overwhelming experience.”

On if Dusty’s presence is still felt at the Performance Center and in NXT: “100 percent. That beautiful, beautiful trophy that you see, that’s always on display at the Performance Center. So whenever we go into the PC, whether it be gym or class or anything like that, it was always so proudly on display in the middle of where all the rooms were. So his presence was still very much alive there. Just hearing the stories of those who interacted with him before and, you know, the hilarious stories and his involvement, especially with the promo class side of things. Yeah, his spirit is very much kept alive.”

On feeling like the tournament was hers and Gonzalez’s to win because of their experience as a team: “I mean, I don’t want to, like, put it that way … but, yeah. We were confident from the start in terms of winning this whole thing. Even just being a part of it, I was so grateful to have the opportunity. But we were confident from the get-go that we were going to win it all. It’s almost one year, I think, to the day, that we’ve been together. While we’ve had each other’s back here or there, when I went after Io [Shirai], she was there for me. When she went after Rhea and through War Games, we were both there for each other. We had each other’s backs. But this is the first opportunity we’ve had to work together for something as a team. So yeah, it meant a lot to us.”

On being the first winners of the women’s Dusty Tag Team Classic: “I feel like it still hasn’t really sunk in yet. I’ve done a few interviews so far, but every time I say it, it just feels weird. I understand that it happened, but it just hasn’t really set in. I was talking to Raquel earlier today. At the end of that match, when we finally got to breathe a little bit because that whole day was crazy and stepping up onto the podium with Regal and the millions and millions of streamers — so much confetti — I feel like, at that point, it finally sort’ve sunk in. We had a moment where we looked at each other, and gosh, it was crazy. I think I’m still trying to absorb everything that happened, but [I’m] absolutely grateful and so, so thankful for that opportunity. Especially to work with Raquel to achieve that goal.”

On which legend she’d like to have a match with: “When I started watching, Trish was at the top of her game. So it’d either be Trish or, I think, Beth. I feel like Beth Phoenix has still got a lot left in the tank, and I think if she was still wrestling now, with the locker room that we have at NXT, there’s so many options for amazing matches and stories. And she’s so nice, too.”