The legacy of Gail Kim saw her becoming a top all-time female wrestling star despite not doing well in WWE. Kim proved that women could find other alternatives to making their name outside of the biggest wrestling promotion. TNA banked on Gail and she helped them create the credible Knockouts Division as a huge part of the company.
RELATED: Gail Kim: 10 Of Her Best Instagram Posts, Ranked
Kim getting inducted into the Impact Hall of Fame ended her career in the grandest fashion. Since then, Gail has been actively discussing wrestling on social media along with her behind-the-scenes role in Impact Wrestling. But during her time in the business, Kim has been involved in backstage stories that are a little hard to believe.
10 Vince McMahon Insulted Her Looks
Vince McMahon’s view of women’s wrestling and Gail Kim completely ruined her experience in WWE. Jim Ross confirmed a story to Kim that McMahon flat out didn’t think she could be attractive due to being an Asian woman.
The story got stranger when Ross revealed to Vince that the demographic was strong in the adult entertainment industry. Basically, Gail had to deal with the ridiculous beliefs of her boss that were very disrespectful.
9 Encountered WWE Writers Crying
The job of a writer for WWE is one of the most stressful duties in wrestling. Gail Kim transitioning into a backstage role for Impact Wrestling led to questions of fans asking if she would ever join the WWE creative team.
A story was shared by Kim about a writer crying backstage after getting yelled at in a meeting. Various stories from former writers confirm that Vince McMahon makes the job tough from last minute changes to cursing out people he disagrees with to getting upset if someone dares sneezes in his presence.
8 Trish Stratus Vouched For Her
The friendship between Trish Stratus and Gail Kim grew despite WWE not putting them together too often. Stratus has revealed that she wanted to work a bigger program with Gail like she did with Victoria, Jazz, and Molly Holly of the era.
WWE just didn’t believe in Kim as a top talent and it always held her back from getting involved in major angles. Gail did get placed in a short term tandem with Molly as a heel.
7 Triple H Helped Her Confidence Following WWE Release
The end of Gail Kim’s first WWE run was a huge blow to her confidence. Kim always had talent, but the opportunity to shine outside of WWE seemed unlikely for any women in wrestling at the time since TNA didn’t have a women’s division yet.
RELATED: 10 Backstage Stories About Trish Stratus We Can't Believe
Triple H was surprisingly one of the people to help her most on her final WWE night. Kim revealed that Triple H praised her work and told her to not let the disappointment question her skill set moving forward.
6 WWE Wanted To Make Her A Star in One Night
Gail Kim essentially had just one night to make her mark in WWE. The company debuted Kim in an impressive faction by having her win a battle royal on her first night with the Women’s Championship on the line.
Many wrestlers would love such a push, but it made little sense since fans knew nothing about her, and the aftermath didn’t provide any more insight. Gail struggled with the short title reign and never received another fair shot after WWE’s early plan backfired.
5 Caught Vince Watching TNA Backstage at WWE Event
There is a belief that Vince McMahon knew nothing about TNA and never even acknowledge the product on his own time. Gail Kim revealed that there was at least one instance of him having eyes on TNA television during an episode of Raw backstage.
RELATED: Torrie Wilson: 10 Backstage Stories About Her That We Can't Believe
The memory of Kim was that it came during the segment of Ric Flair making his TNA debut. Flair joining TNA was highly controversial at the time since WWE gave him the perfect retirement. Vince keeping his eyes on a TNA monitor during a WWE show is a fascinating visual.
4 Didn't Believe Stephanie Was Genuine About Women's Movement
Stephanie McMahon has been used as an on-screen figure rallying for the Women’s Evolution in WWE. However, quite a few wrestlers have been skeptical of Stephanie’s intent since she didn’t speak up for the women in past years.
Gail Kim believed that Stephanie was being disingenuous since she worked there when no one with power vouched for the women when Vince booked them poorly. Stephanie staying quiet until the fan movement started by Triple H’s NXT booking made the timing come off more questionable.
3 TNA Only Wanted Her As Manager In The Beginning
The legendary TNA career of Gail Kim wasn’t expected to happen when the company signed her. Kim joined TNA when only Traci Brooks, Jackie Gayda, and SoCal Val were the women on the roster as on-air talent.
TNA initially wanted Kim to be a manager only when working with Jeff Jarrett and America’s Most Wanted along with the occasional photo shoots for the women. Gail pushed hard for a women’s division and convinced TNA to give them a chance when she hit a home run in the early stages of its inception.
2 Vince Had No Plan For Romance Reveal with Daniel Bryan
The only noteworthy storyline for Gail Kim in her second WWE run came when she was revealed as the love interest of Daniel Bryan. Two great workers being placed together usually leads to success, but the relationship angle did nothing for either wrestler.
Gail revealed that she didn’t believe Vince McMahon had any plan for them together. The bigger storyline intent for Vince was The Bella Twins thinking Bryan was a virgin when confusing the definition of the word vegan. Kim being Bryan’s girlfriend was just used as a reveal for when the Bellas realized their mistake.
1 Freddie Prinze Jr. Was Turned Down Pitching Gail/Awesome Kong WWE Feud
Actor Freddie Prinze Jr. had a couple of stints in WWE as a writer and had many interesting ideas turned down. The writing job wore down Prinze when having to deal with the chaos of the WWE environment while also handling wrestlers’ egos.
Prinze revealed he wanted to build to a huge match at WrestleMania of Beth Phoenix beating an undefeated Kharma aka Awesome Kong. The start of Kharma’s dominance was to see her having a feud with her former TNA rival Gail Kim. Prinze claimed that Michelle McCool didn’t want to drop the title to Kharma which canceled the plans for Kharma, Phoenix, and Kim.
NEXT: TNA: 5 Reasons Gail Kim Is The Best Female Wrestler Ever (& 5 Why It's Awesome Kong)
