Victoria On Why She’s Hasn’t Retired Yet, Discusses AEW and Ashley Massaro’s Death

– Victoria recently spoke to Wrestling INC about a variety of subjects. Highlights from the interview are below.

On Not Retiring: “It’s flattering. Wrestling fans always appreciate historical people in the business. I will always have a job through independents and conventions, especially now with the girls kicking butt right now. They are getting such a big push in the industry that it’s better for all of us. Even though I’m not currently on WWE, I still get the benefit from it. You never know when we’re going to come back or make some appearance, but I’d say this is my last year doing independents, singles matches,” she clarified. “You might see me do a referee spot or do a run-in to help another girl. Stuff like that. I’m 48 and been doing this for so long. My body hurts. We are bad asses that do our own stunts, so it takes a toll on your body.”

On Wrestling Melina: “Her and I have good chemistry and are really good friends. You always have your best matches with your friends because you’re willing to go the extra mile. There is that trust where you trust your body in someone else’s hands. When Bambi asked who I wanted to face, originally it was ODB. Then she lost her food truck. My next choice was Melina. She said, ‘Absolutely. I would be honored to.’ We’re from a golden era and generation where we tell a story in our match. It’s not going to be a spot fest. We were so winded the last time we faced each other. At the end, we felt like we were at war because we have a lot of pride in what we do. I think people will be really happy with our next match.”

On AEW: “AEW is awesome in giving a bigger platform for more wrestlers to have jobs and as a paying gig. They haven’t reached out to me, but I am always open to discuss. Though the current developments didn’t weigh heavy on my making the decision. I’m still good in the ring, so people ask me why I’m retiring when I’m still good in the ring. I go, ‘Exactly. I still want you to remember me good in the ring.’ I don’t want to get sympathy or people to say, ‘Oh my gosh, she was such a bad ass back in the day.’ I still want to be good out there and not keep pushing my body where I can’t execute the moves. I give a 110 percent when I wrestle. I want people to walk saying, ‘She is 48? And still work like that?’ I still have pride in what I do.”

On Charlotte Flair: “Of course, being Ric Flair’s daughter, you can’t expect anything less but greatness,” Varon said. “I never had a big program with Nattie. She is an awesome wrestler and a veteran there. I wrestled Mickie James. I had the best times in the ring with her. There is so much good talent out there. Ember Moon, I’m a big fan too. It’s hard to pinpoint one that I would have a number one spot for. They are all doing so great.”

On Ashley Massaro’s Death: “It’s sad about Ashley’s death. She brought all us girls much closer together where if you have a problem, we are a phone call away. We didn’t know a lot of what she was going through. When I read some stuff, I had no clue. When we go to work, our problems are outside the door. We’re there for a job. We wrestle and have this happy face. We don’t want people to know we have any problems at home because it might affect your work in the ring. Everything was hush hush. Not that it was taboo, but the feeling that you didn’t want to hinder anybody with your problems because we are here to do a job.”