Stephanie McMahon says her husband, Triple H, deserves the praise for how the Mae Young Classic came to be.
"It really is my husband's vision and dream to make the Mae Young tournament happen. He made this happen, from start to finish," McMahon said during an interview on the latest episode of the McMahonsplaining podcast.
The Chief Brand Officer for WWE, McMahon spoke to McMahonsplaining in an interview just before the live Mae Young Classic finals took place. She also credited a host of others for making WWE's all-female Mae Young tournament come together.
"I have to say that it really is because of our fans, the WWE Universe, that really made this happen," she said. "It's because of all of the women who have paved the way, from the great Mae Young to the Fabulous Moolah to all of these women who have competed in this tournament to all of the women training at the Performance Center to all of the women that are a part of NXT and Raw and Smackdown Live ... and all of the women wrestling in independent circuits everywhere."
Stephanie McMahon also talked about how she was surprised by many of the wrestlers during the tourney:
"I was blown away and I was really humbled because I think that, as a McMahon and as WWE through and through, I think that I wasn't necessarily aware of all the talent that was out there. I was just absolutely blown away. And what these women left in the ring. I mean, their hearts, their souls, their blood, their sweat, their tears—not literally blood—they left it all out there and you could feel it. These are women who never had guaranteed time. They are women who have traveled the world for just a few minutes, for a maybe. My husband likes to say that there was a rainbow but there was no pot of gold."
She said she also liked the message the tournament sent to her three daughters, noting the variety of the different women competing in the tourney.
"It is varied. It is amazing. Because women are varied and amazing, and there's nothing that women can't do. And yes, absolutely, for my three daughters, 11 and 7 and 9, for them to have this opportunity to see these women rise to the occasion, to grab that brass ring, absolutely that's imp to me," she said, adding, "It's providing a platform for women everywhere."
Click here to check out full interviews with both Stephanie and Triple H as part of the podcast.
