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Last week, PWInsider.com sat down with WWE Hall of Famer Booker T to discuss his promotion Reality of Wrestling running a number of events Wrestlemania 38 week in conjunction with World Class Pro Wrestling, Vader's WWE Hall of Fame induction, paying tribute to the late Sherri Martel next month, honoring Black Bart, Sharmell and much more. The following was transcribed by Billy Krotchsen.
Mike Johnson: Hey everybody, it's Mike Johnson back in the audio section of PWinsiderElite.com. It is Monday, March 8, 2022 and we are getting closer to the biggest weekend in wrestling - Wrestlemania 38, as well as a lot of other events that are taking place starting March 31st - April 3rd. We are very happy to be on the line with someone who has wrestled at many Wrestlemanias - Booker T, WWE Hall of Fame two times over. Booker's Reality of Wrestling will be teaming with World Class Pro Wrestling to bring a number of events to the Dallas area Wrestlemania weekend, including Texas Showdown, Don't Mess With Texas, the Sherri Martel Women's Classic and Texas Legends which will feature a tribute to longtime journeyman former WWF star, UWF star Black Bart. We got a ton to talk about, so let's not waste any time. Booker, sir, how the heck are you?
Booker T: I'm above ground. Today is a good day.
Mike Johnson: Amen to that. Well let's do the obvious first, a big weekend for Dallas, let's talk about how Reality of Wrestling and World Class Pro Wrestling ended up tag-teaming on all these big events that are going to be taking place in the Greater Dallas Metro area?
Booker T: Well we're pretty much focused on the same thing, and that's keeping independent wrestling alive here in Houston. You know, I represent Paul Boesch, you know and I'm sure they represent the Von Erichs down there, that right there definitely motivates us to do something really, really cool and just be the best Texas wrestling. The best Texas wrestlers out there male and female, bring them all together under one banner and do something really cool. I think the Sherri Martel Classic is going to be one for me that really warms my heart because Sherri Martel has done so much for this business. To give one of these females a rub, as far as to say you may be the next Sherri Martel, I think that right there is going to motivate those ladies to go out there and give the best show they ever could put on, on that Saturday. So guys, get ready.
Mike Johnson: Obviously Sherri was a big part of your career during the Harlem Heat era. What do you think Sherri would think of the modern-day accomplishments of the WWE women's division and all these great athletes that just populate every corner of pro wrestling now? Sherri was so awesome at everything that she did, whether she was wrestling or she was managing or she was commentating, like she had it all down. What do you think she would think of how far things have evolved for women in the pro wrestling game?
Booker T: Well you look at a lot of the women wrestlers today as you watch the landscape and you watch how they go out there and perform, they're not Divas, they are truly professional wrestlers. And Sherri, I think she would be really, really proud because Sherri was no Diva. She would get out there and scrap with the best of them. She'd take those high heels off and she would go, man. (laughs) I think Sherri would be so proud to see where the women have come in professional wrestling today, to actually have their own pay-per-view, I think that something that's really cool but for me, to be able to honor Sherri Martel for what she did for myself and my brother, she definitely was our legitimizer, she made us credible and and I tell you for me, this is going to be a great, great day to let the world see the Sherri Martel Classic. And like I said, to see those women go out there and perform for Sherri Martel is going to be awesome as well.
Mike Johnson: One of your students AQA is going to be in the Sherri Martel Classic. She's just popped up in AEW, she had a short run in NXT. When you look at so many women that you trained like Rok-C and AQA, what's the key to training a great female wrestler to get them prepared so that they could potentially be the next Sherri one day and that they're mentally and physically prepared to have an opportunity with the WWE, NXT or AEW? Is it different from training the male professional wrestlers at this point or since women's wrestling opportunities and roles have evolved so much, is it pretty much the same in terms of how you train talents?
Booker T: I pretty much train my talent the same way, there's no wrong way of doing it as long as you're doing it right. (laughs) If they can pick that up they've got a chance of making it in the business. But I just try to put them out there and let them make mistakes, just like I do with the guys. Women, of course, are going to deal with different things than the men have to deal with, and I always tell me girls, "If you find yourself in a predicament where you're not being treated the way I treat you, give me a call and I'll straighten it out," you know what I mean (laughs). It's always about just going out there and being the best talent, it's the only thing that's going to get you to the next level.
Mike Johnson: So last time we had you on we talked a little bit about the Sportatorium but there's a lot of Dallas wrestling personalities who were pretty much immortalized in that market who are involved in World Class Pro Wrestling - Eric Embry, James Beard, a number of others. Thoughts on getting a chance to congregate with them again and work with them on such a big weekend.
Booker T: You know, I got schooled in Dallas, when you talk about guys like Eric Embry and James Beard, who was the first person that got me booked in Japan, got me booked in Korea, was so instrumental in my career. To see him now, still the humble guy just trying to work with these young guys and get them to the next level, it's really, really awesome. Like I said, Black Bart did wonders for me, Manny Fernandez, Maniac Mike Davis, God bless his soul, so many of those guys did so much for my career, for me to actually go back and do it where I started, this is my playground, the Sportatorium, 10,000 Industrial Blvd, to be able to go back to Dallas and do it. it's going to be awesome, and then to step into the ring on Thursday night with my former tag team partner, former tag team championship partner RVD, that's going to be pretty cool. We're calling this an exhibition match, one of those matches you see Floyd Mayweather Jr. have, where you get paid 20 million dollars but he doesn't get hurt (laughs), but we're going to gp out there and show what talent is really supposed to look like, still today at 57, I'm going to show the world Booker T still has a little bit left in the tank.
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