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Sometimes, professional wrestling's most unique twists of fate are when real life bleeds into the fictional world that fans follow. At TNA's Victory Road, Ash by Elegance relinquished the Knockouts Championship as she was not medically cleared to perform, paving the way for a new champion - NXT's Kelani Jordan to be crowned that night. Now representing both companies, Jordan leads Team TNA into tonight's NXT Showdown for the first-ever TNA Knockouts vs. NXT stars Survivor Series elimination match ever tonight on the CW Network and internationally on Netflix.
Yesterday, Jordan sat down with PWInsider.com to discuss her career, inspirations and the unique positioning she has found herself in over the last several weeks.
“Oh yes, I'm fantastic,” Jordan said with a smile ahead of a jam-packed schedule that includes NXT Showdown, TNA Bound for Glory and NXT live events. “I'm excited for this week. A lot of great things coming, and yes, it is nice to meet you.”
Jordan’s Knockouts title win came unexpectedly in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, a trip that saw her expectations change in real-time as the landscape of TNA shifted under her feet, quite a debut, indeed.
“Leading up to Canada, I wasn't sure if I was gonna be going to TNA or not, just going about my normal daily routine,” she recalled. “But then when I went to Edmonton...first time there, super cool place. The fans were awesome. But when I saw that Ash was relinquishing the title, I thought, why not try? Why not go for it?”
What followed was a Cinderella moment.
“When I was able to be in the Royal and then be able to go against Laing and become TNA Knockouts World Champion, it was like a full-circle moment,” she explained. “Obviously it feels good to have gold around my waist again, but also me and Ash have history. We had a little moment together here in NXT. She was my mentor, and seeing her at the end when I won the title and she just gave me a hug. It was just like a cool full-circle moment.”
Jordan was the first-ever NXT Women's North American Champion. When asked to compare her championship moments across the companies, Jordan admits each felt equally powerful. “Honestly, I would say about the same,” she said. “I believed in myself that I could become champion, but when it happens, it's such a surreal moment. And also it was my first time in TNA, so being able to become champion my first time, being able to elevate this title, especially when we have TNA vs. NXT Showdown tomorrow coming up. Just being able to represent both brands, it's a good pressure to have.”
As captain of Team TNA heading into the Survivor Series-style Showdown tonight, Jordan is focused and fiercely loyal, even amid split allegiances on camera.
“Mentally I feel like I live by the motto: I always stay ready,” she said. “But of course, being captain of Team TNA, I'm gonna lead the team to success. And I know here, since it's gonna be the NXT crowd, I feel like they feel that I turned my back on NXT, but I feel as champion, I have a responsibility to carry my team.”
She paused, her confidence firm. “I'm a champion in TNA, so I'm gonna ride for TNA. And yes, NXT always is in my heart and I am an NXT superstar, but right now I am champion, so I'm gonna make sure Team TNA gets the win.”
Preparation, she said, includes a deep dive into wrestling history. “I have been watching a lot of Survivor Series matches, but also one of my favorite pay-per-views is the Invasion pay-per-view. So yeah, I've been watching some tapes. I'm ready and I'm excited.”
Even as she prepares to lead, Jordan knows she’s walking into a volatile environment on the broadcast tonight.
“I feel like right now I'm in a hard place because my NXT people feel that I turned my back on them and I'm a traitor,” she said. “But the TNA people, I hope they feel that I have their back by putting myself in that position. However, I know that I have a target on my back.”
She’s no stranger to that feeling. “This is something that I've dealt with before when I was North American Champion, so I feel like I'm in the middle. So I hope Team TNA has my back in this match tomorrow,” she added. “I feel like it's gonna be hard, but also I've wrestled everyone on NXT. I've wrestled Jacy [Jayne], I've wrestled Lola [Vice], I've wrestled Jaida [Parker], so I feel like I can definitely lead the team to success because I know all of their ways.”
Before wrestling, Jordan’s life revolved around gymnastics, a background that shaped her signature athletic style.
“Gymnastics I have a lot to thank for,” she said. “It’s helped me carry over in the ring pretty easily as far as rolls, jumping off the top rope, those kinds of things. I feel like I'm very fearless when it comes to those things and being able to have body control and attention to little details.”
But not everything translated. “Gymnastics is not a contact sport, so that didn’t really translate very easily for me,” she admitted. “In gymnastics, it's just me on my own. Yes, I have a team to depend on, have my back, but when you're out there, it's just you. Whereas in wrestling, you have other people in the ring, and it's contact. You’re hitting the mat. It hurts. The ropes hurt.”
And perhaps the biggest difference? The crowd.
“In gymnastics, you tune out the crowd. You don’t listen. You’re laser-focused,” she explained. “Whereas in wrestling, you have to pay attention to what the crowds are reacting to and what they’re not reacting to. So those are the biggest differences.”
No matter what happens at Showdown, Jordan heads to Bound for Glory in Lowell, Massachusetts, for one of the biggest matches of her career, defending her Knockouts title against Indi Hartwell.
“I'm super excited for Bound for Glory,” she said. “I love wrestling in Lowell. The fans are awesome there, and we were just there for NXT Heatwave, so I'm excited to go back into that city.”
Preparation has been both mental and physical.
“I’ve been making sure I'm sharp mentally, sharp physically,” she said. “Also, Indi, I’ve wrestled her obviously in TNA. However, my first ever live event when I was only three or four months in, Indi was my tag team partner. So this is also a cool moment because now I'm finally having a singles match with her. I’ve never had a singles match with Indi. She’s a very strong wrestler, very charismatic. She’s awesome, she’s a powerhouse. And she also has more experience than me, so I know it's gonna be a great match, but of course, it's gonna be and still Kelani Jordan.”
A self-professed Rob Van Dam fan, Jordan’s in-ring creativity and fearlessness clearly channel “The Whole F’n Show.”
“First, RVD is awesome,” she said. “When I was able to meet him, I had met him a few times before, but being able to do a backstage [scene] with him and also just pick his brain...it’s a moment I'll never forget.”
“Being able to hear his experiences, his journey, but also him telling me how to navigate this business and to believe in myself, be unapologetically me, is something I'll always cherish,” she added.
And yes, Van Dam approves of her tributes. “He really liked that I was paying tribute to his moves and paying homage to him, and I’m happy he wasn’t insecure or like ‘don’t do it,’” she said. “He was like, ‘Oh, I love that you’re doing that. Keep doing it. You’re killing it.’ It’s awesome. So I think that’s super cool.”
When asked what she’s learned most since entering professional wrestling, Jordan paused thoughtfully.
“I definitely have come out of my shell,” she said. “I never really was introverted or shy, but I feel like I’ve grown so much as a person, as a performer, as an entertainer. Also, I would say I realized that I'm tougher than I thought.”
She elaborated: “Yes, gymnastics is a hard sport, but like I said earlier, it's not a contact sport, and I feel like I am tougher than I thought, physically, but even more so mentally, because obviously I’m putting myself out there on a public platform. Sometimes there are nice comments, sometimes there are not-so-nice comments. But I feel like really just believing in myself and tuning out the negativity has helped me grow as a performer.”
As if she didn’t already have enough to juggle, Jordan now faces another storyline wildcard tonight at Showdown: Jordynne Grace serving as guest referee for the women’s Survivor Series match.
“I don't know how I feel about Jordynne Grace being the special guest referee because she said that I was a gaslighter,” Jordan said with a grin. “So I don't know if she's gonna be on my side or try to pull some sneaky business. I guess we'll see where her true loyalty lies if she tries anything.”
The NXT brand recently began running events outside of Florida again, and Jordan is embracing it.
“This will be our second one recently because the last one we did was in Augusta, Charleston, Spartanburg, and Rome,” she said. “That was my first experience doing the live event loops on the road, and they’re great. They’re awesome. Being able to perform in front of different crowds, because every city’s different.”
“It was just a fun experience, being able to learn and adapt to whatever arena I’m in,” she continued. “So I'm excited for the ones this weekend. I’ll be in Cincinnati and Detroit, and then of course getting ready and flying to Lowell, so I'll be in the first two.”
Jordan’s confidence doesn’t stop at Bound for Glory. She already has a few dream challengers in mind.
“When I retain this title, I would definitely want to wrestle Tasha Steelz,” she said. “I love her work. I think she’s amazing in the ring, and I’d love to work her.”
“There are a lot of wonderful and talented people,” she added. “I would like to wrestle Xia Brookside. I would also like to wrestle Lei Ying Lee again because I feel like she deserves another opportunity. I love the Elegance brand, so I would love to wrestle those girls as well.”
As TNA and NXT brands continue their partnership, which is designed to run over the next several years, Jordan sees the experience as eye-opening and transformative.
“It’s always awesome to be able to wrestle different people that you normally wouldn’t be able to wrestle,” she said. “But also for me, my own personal experience, I’ve only ever been in NXT. I’ve never experienced another locker room, so this was a huge learning experience to see how different brands operate, how different people wrestle, just the whole nine yards.”
“For me personally, it was an amazing learning experience because, like I said, I’ve only ever been in NXT.”
Win, lose or draw this week, Kelani Jordan’s star will continues to rise towards a future Wrestlemania debut.
“I’m super excited,” Jordan said of her career and current positioning. “It’s a good pressure to have.”
NXT vs. TNA's Showdown airs tonight at 8 PM Eastern on Netflix internationally and The CW Network in the U.S. TNA Bound for Glory will stream live on TNA+, Triller TV, and pay-per-view this Sunday.
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