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Interview: Jordynne Grace Talks Impact Wrestling on Twitch, Intergender Wretling, and More!

By Patches Chance

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Fresh off an amazing 2018 and a great start so far to 2019 at Impact Wrestling Homecoming, “Thicc Mama Pump” Jordynne Grace took the time to speak exclusively with Daily DDT. Grace talked about Impact Wrestling airing on Twitch, All Elite Wrestling’s move towards equality in pay, Nia Jax being in the Men’s Royal Rumble, and more!

Since debuting in Impact Wrestling in November of 2018, Jordynne Grace has quickly become one of the most dominant competitors in the Knockouts Division. On top of that, Grace’s other big moments throughout the year put together a resume strong enough for Sports Illustrated to name her one of the top ten female wrestlers of 2018. When I spoke to Grace, the first topic on hand was that spectacular year.

Patches Chance: First, now that we’re a little over a month into the new year, I wanna touch briefly on the year that 2018 became for you. Whether it was All In, your debut in Impact Wrestling, or capturing the PROGRESS Women’s Championship, you had one hell of a year. What were some of your favorite moments and matches in 2018?

Jordynne Grace: Literally the three moments that you just described were my favorite moments [laughing]. Obviously, All In is definitely my number one and will probably be my number one for a really long time. Winning the PROGRESS [Women’s] Title is obviously up there too. That was on the last day of 2018, so it barely counts.

PC: Now moving forward to 2019, how have you felt your work so far has set the tone for this year of your career?

JG: I feel good about it. Homecoming was my first ever pay-per-view, so I think that kind of set the tone for the year. I have a lot of things coming up. I mean, I’m going to Australia twice this year, so I think that’s pretty crazy. It’s really exciting. It’s for two different companies, so I’m really looking forward to that. I’m going to all these different countries, and I’m ready to dive into the year.

PC: Since being in Impact, you’ve been wrapped into the supernatural storyline involving Rosemary, Dark Allie, and Su Yung. What’s that been like and how do you feel things like that help set Impact Wrestling apart from other wrestling companies?

JG: I’m not gonna lie, it’s probably the weirdest thing I’ve ever been involved in. I’ve never been involved in anything like it, so it’s just interesting to see. I don’t know if there’s anything in wrestling like it right now, actually. Just the stuff they do with the effects and people disappearing from the ring. It’s just absolutely insane, and I definitely think it sets Impact apart because it gives it more of like— almost like a movie feel with the special effects and stuff like that.

PC: Impact Wrestling recently made the move to live stream their weekly show on Twitch as well as continuing their television deal with Pursuit Channel. How big do you think that move was for Impact?

JG: I think it’s huge. I think it’s probably the best thing they’ve done in years, as far as like streaming live on Twitch. Twitch is a really big thing right now, and I think partnering with Twitch was just— I didn’t expect it, but it was probably one of the best moves they can make at this point. Especially with everyone complaining about how no one gets Pursuit.

PC: Impact Wrestling has also had a push in recent years to partner with several independent promotions, and has been truly international with shows and television tapings in the UK, Mexico, Canada, and India. Is there a promotion you’d like to see them partner with or a country you’d like to compete in with Impact?

JG: It’s not a specific promotion, but I really really really want to go to Italy. That’s where my grandpa is from, and he died recently. So that’s one of my top places to visit, just to go and to visit where he’s actually from.

PC: I do have a few questions pertaining to intergender wrestling. First, I wanna ask about Nia Jax getting involved in WWE’s Men’s Royal Rumble. How big did that moment feel to you for intergender wrestling?

JG: I think it was a monumental moment. A girl hasn’t been involved in a battle royal in years. I forget exactly what year, but I think [Awesome] Kong [aka Kharma] was the last one involved in one. So I think they kind of shied away from it for a long time. And I think by putting her in the battle royal, a lot of people don’t think it was the right person, but I think it was exactly the right person because she’s the biggest girl in WWE right now. All the guys she was in the ring with, she outweighed and she was taller than almost all of them. So I think if WWE is going to make a push for intergender wrestling, she’s a really great person to start with.

PC: What have been some of your favorite intergender matches you’ve gotten to be a part of?

JG: Obviously the All In battle royal, but that’s not like a singles match. I was the only girl involved, but that’s in a category all on its own. As far as intergender wrestling, last year I had a lot of intergender matches. And I actually took some time off from intergender wrestling after I sprained my ankle really badly, just because it takes a toll on your body that I think wrestling the girls sometimes doesn’t take, if that makes sense. Obviously you have to lift a lot more weight, and they’re throwing you around more than the girls ever possibly could. So I just took a break from it for a while. I think my first intergender match back is next month after like six months of taking some time off from doing that. But last year I wrestled David Starr, and I loved that match. He’s one of the best in the world, and I really liked that. That was at Nova Pro. I’m trying to think, I have a really bad memory, so I’m trying to think of what other intergender matches I did last year that I really liked. Oh, I wrestled Fred Yehi, and he’s just so funny and fun to wrestle. So I think those two with David Starr and Fred Yehi were my favorite.

PC: Back on the note of WWE, it’s looking very possible that we’ll see Ronda Rousey and Becky Lynch as the main event of WrestleMania 35. How big do you think that would be for women’s wrestling?

JG: I mean, I think that would be kind of the pinnacle, right? That would definitely be the biggest thing that could happen for women’s wrestling at this point. For them to wrestle and main event on the biggest pay-per-view, the biggest event ever in wrestling, that would be the pinnacle for women’s wrestling. It’s like, now we’re truly equal.

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PC: I do want to touch on All Elite Wrestling, specifically on the news that the company will not have a gender wage gap and will pay male and female talent equally. How important do you think that is to the industry?

JG: I think Brandi explained it on Twitter, because basically what she said is that entry level men and women aren’t going to be paid differently. Normally in jobs, entry level people, sometimes the women are paid lower than the men. So I think that’s kind of what she was saying by that, but I think that’s a huge step in the right direction. I mean, most women in wrestling don’t get paid nearly as much as the men because I guess we aren’t seen as that important, or we’re seen as kind of like a side show of wrestling, just an extra added bonus so that’s what we’re paid as instead of the main event, so I think it’s a really big deal.

PC: On the note of women’s wrestling still unfortunately being seen as a sideshow by some, you’ve talked before about how men still sexualize women’s wrestling. Do you think that’s something that could be lessened by making intergender wrestling more common and mainstream?

JG: I don’t know. I don’t think it ever will, honestly. I think it’s always gonna be a thing. I mean, even women in MMA fights are sexualized. I see videos of Ronda Rousey’s getting “giffed” by weird MMA pages. So, I don’t think it’s gonna change unless men change, and I think that chance is very slim. It’s unfortunate to think that, but I think that’s the reality of it.

PC: Back on AEW, one name we’ve heard is reportedly headed there is Kylie Rae, who you’ve crossed paths with a few times. If AEW and Impact Wrestling were to work together, would you want to face her again?

JG: Oh, absolutely. The two times that I’ve wrestled her have been two of the best matches that I actually had in 2018. And the first match we had, we actually only had about five minutes to put it together, and it turned out to be, like I said, one of my best matches in 2018. So I think she’s awesome, and she’s really easy to work with.

PC: Impact Wrestling recently had a set of television tapings in Mexico. Having worked there earlier in your career, what was it like to go back there as a part of Impact?

JG: It was so different going back now that I’m with a bigger company as opposed to when I was wrestling over there for one of the smallest companies in Mexico. I mean, just the way that you’re treated is really different. When I was over there, I was the only American on the entire show, and clearly that was not the case when I went with Impact this time. So it was a really different experience. I actually never thought I’d go back to Mexico just because of the experiences I had, and a lot of them were pretty bad. That’s when I was first starting out. So just to get the opportunity to go back and kind of like not have a bad taste in my mouth anymore, was really worth it.

PC: Back on the note of intergender wrestling, I want to ask you specifically about the possibility of doing that in Impact Wrestling. We’ve seen stars like Ethan Page and Brian Cage in the X-Division, both of whom you’ve competed with elsewhere. Would you like to do that in Impact, and potentially even become the first female X-Division Champion?

JG: I feel like that’s a long way off, but obviously it would be amazing if that ever were to happen. I don’t know if Impact would be willing to take the step. They have a really strong women’s division right now, so I’m not sure if they’re concentrating on that. But it would be a huge thing to set them apart if they ever decided to do that, or even let a woman compete in one of those kinds of matches. I mean you saw all the attention that All In got just from having one woman in a battle royal, just imagine what that would do for Impact.

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PC: That just about wraps things up. Thank you for taking the time to talk to us. Do you have any final shout outs before we go?

JG: Just that I’m currently working on DM’s of a Female Indy Wrestler: Volume 3, and it’ll be my last one. So, I should have that out within the next couple of months. It’ll be a trilogy, so I’m excited about that.

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