In part one of our interview of Alex Gracia, she explained how she transitioned from sports reporting to professional wrestling, the impact the Total Divas show had on her desire to pursue wrestling, starting her training in the school formerly known as Shawn Michaels Wrestling Academy, the development of her Pink Dream persona, and whether or not Reality of Wrestling is a developmental system.
In part two of this exclusive interview with SteelChair Magazine, Alex Gracia gives an insight into how she went from San Antonio to Reality of Wrestling in Houston, Booker T’s teaching style, a life in the day of ROW, how she ended up on the Impact vs. ROW show deep impact and much, much more in this fascinating insight into the life of a professional wrestler.
How did you decide to go to Reality of Wrestling, or did someone call you?
I was training in San Antonio, and there were two guys that I trained with that were going to Reality of Wrestling once a month for their shows, and they would come back and say: “Alex, there’s three rings over there. They have their own weight lifting.” It was just like the thought of three rings; it sounded amazing (laughs). They told me I needed to figure out how to get over there. They (ROW) have their Ladies Night Out shows every other month, so they contacted me about that because they wanted me to do a Ladies Night Out show. I was freaking out, but I finally got to go over there. So I asked them whether I could come by and train, and they just said I could come by anytime.
Everyone I met from there was really good, so I had to see what was happening. I was pretty much making an effort to go once or twice a week, every week. It was a four-plus hour drive for me. Four hours there, four hours back. You kind of have to pick and choose what kind of wrestling you want to do, and they were all about TV-style wrestling. I felt like it was the place I needed to be, but I was about to leave for Japan to go to Stardom for a few months. So that’s when I told them I was about to leave, but I told them when I get back here, I’m going to move here. Two weeks later, I was able to get myself to Houston, and I started training there full time. I just told them that this was the place where I felt like I was progressing, and I love it because we’re all about the help me help you mentality.
What’s a day in the life of ROW like? Do you take part in training sessions on a regular basis, or are you mainly around when they tape shows?
Oh, no, I train every single week. I try to be there Monday to Friday, but some of us are travelling for Indy shows through the weekend. So there are times where I am not coming back until Monday. I usually have Monday as my recovery day, and then train throughout the week. I’m there during the week as much as I can be, and the reasons I’m not there, it’s still wrestling-related reasons (laughs).
ROW is giving platforms like the ROW vs. Impact show. What was that experience like, because that must have been a big moment in your career wrestling Jordynee Grace, in what was a very good match?
Yeah, so, I didn’t even know until a day before the Impact show that I was going to have a match on that Impact show. (Laughs) so, I knew ROW was teaming up with Impact, and I thought that was like the coolest thing ever. To me, it was so exciting because I thought some of my friends from here are going to get to wrestle them, because you just want to see anyone in anything succeed.
There were then people at ROW telling me that they thought I had this match or this match, and I told them that I did not think I was doing a match. They seemed surprised that I was not doing a match, but no one had told me anything. I was still going to be there, no matter what. Of course, I wanted a match. Getting to wrestle someone from the Impact roster, are you kidding me, why wouldn’t I want a match? I was in Dallas for something two days before the show, and I was going to drive back the day of the show. That’s when they called me to tell me that I was going to have a match (laughs). I was like, “Okay, now let me start mentally preparing.” Then I was freaking out because first I was just so happy for everybody, and now I had a match of my own.
Did they tell you who you were going to wrestle?
They just told me I had a match.
Oh, wow. I thought they may have given you the name of your opponent so you could prepare.
No, no. That was also nerve-racking because I knew one of the matches was going to be a fatal four-way, and I knew one of them was going to be a singles. So when I found out I was going to be put in the singles match, I was a nervous wreck.
If they had asked you before, which match would you prefer, what would you have said?
Definitely the singles. I would prefer to be in a singles. There is a lot of things to worry about when there is a lot of other people. It’s hard enough with this one other person (laughs).
I’m sure other people have told you, but I think the match came out really well, so you should be proud of that one.
Thank you. It was cool because when I told my parents that I definitely had a match, they made plans to drive down to Houston to watch me, and I thought that was really cool.
What’s it like working with Booker T, and how involved is he in your matches?
He’s there every show, and if he is not there, it’s because he’s booked at WWE somewhere. But yeah, he’s there every single month, and we have time to talk to him every single show day. He’ll kind of tell you what he expects from you. So he’s very, very involved, and I think he is more involved than what people realise. Even at training every week, he’s at least there once a week, and that’s with his busy schedule. So it’s cool that he makes the time because obviously he’s investing in the school, investing in us, and really wanting us to succeed. Booker will tell us straight up what we’re messing up on, but he’ll also tell us straight up what we’re doing well. I really like people that are straight forward. So it’s just like tell me what I’m bad at and I’ll go fix it (laughs).
Booker always talks about “Shakespeare” in his interviews. He talks about how important it is to tell a story and build the drama. Does he bring that up often?
He’s one-hundred-percent about the story and getting a connection with the audience. You’re using the wrestling to get a story across. You’re using the wrestling to form some type of connection with these people. He has stories where he said sometimes he didn’t even remember ninety-percent of his matches because he only remembers I’m going out there for the people. I’m going out there because I want them to remember this. I want them to have that connection, and he’s all about making sure he’s able to form memories for them.
So that’s what I really liked about coming here too because he really helps you understand who you are. It’s like, “Okay Alex, you’re The Pink Dream, cool. But who is that? What do you want people to get from you while you’re in the ring?” You’re not always going to be able to speak in the ring. So I need to figure out how to use wrestling to show them that I’m here to win a fight, but also, this is who I am. I want you to get a sense of who I am.
You won your first championship with them in August (2019), the Diamonds Championship. Can you describe what that victory felt like? Because regardless of the promotion, winning your first title, that’s pretty special.
Yeah, it was super emotional. Not just because it was my first title, but because everything was happening… When I was moving to Houston, I got in a car wreck. Then, great news, I got invited for my WWE tryout. Then the week after that, I found out one of my best friends in the entire world passed away. So that was just another build on. I was coming back and facing a lot of things eternally, and I was trying to morn, while trying to prepare for like the biggest interview of my life. Going to the PC. I came back from my tryout, and it’s such a mixture of emotions when you come back from a tryout. You think you know various things, but they don’t tell you much.
Do you find that you’re constantly going back over the session, nitpicking things?
When I first came back, I was doing that. For like the first two weeks, I was doing that, and then I told myself I had to stop (laughs). I just thought to myself I had to come back with the same mentality. every single day I am trying to progress and get better at something. And just trying to have a goal for that day. Then I found out about the six-way match, and that week specifically was very overwhelming for me. A lot of things going on in my personal life. I hadn’t seen my family in a while, and sometimes when I’d see them after shows, they’re heading back home already.
So when I finally won the title, it felt like something was going right. Maybe I am getting better. Maybe this whole thing is what I am supposed to do. It’s so easy to get down on yourself after a bad match or to question what you’re doing. You get so confused because so many things in life are happening, and so many things in wrestling are happening. You put yourself in a situation where you’re like, “Okay, I’m struggling financially just to do something that makes me extremely happy.” People think you’re crazy, but you don’t think you’re crazy because I’m extremely happy doing this. But you’re also in a very tough situation until you do finally make it out. So until you make it out, you do start to question yourself. So that moment, it was a win.
What’s the goal moving forward? What’s the goal for Alex Gracia?
My goal is I want to be an asset to one of the biggest wrestling companies out there, and I feel that just because I am so competitive, whoever decides to give me a chance, I wanna change the game for them. And I might not be there now, but I am definitely someone who is going to work to change the brand. Even when I came to ROW, I wanted to do something good for them. I wanted to be a valuable player, and I want to be an asset to your company. You helped me so much. You welcomed me here and made this another home for me, so I want to give back however I can.
Of course, you want to make it where you’re going to be okay financially with wrestling. That’s all I want to worry about. I want to know that’s all I have to do is my wrestling. You don’t have to go get multiple jobs and all that. I know that if I am able to hound in on this, it’s going to get twenty times better.
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