Deonna Purrazzo thinks IMPACT's Knockouts Division is at its best, and she's excited to see what the future holds.
Since she arrived in IMPACT in 2020, Purrazzo has become one of the faces of the Knockouts Division. She has won the Knockouts Championship twice, and she has faced stars like Mickie James and Thunder Rosa. Throughout her time with the company, the Knockouts have continued to make history; Purrazzo and Mickie James memorably headlined IMPACT Hard To Kill 2022. In doing so, they became the first women to main-event a pay-per-view in IMPACT history.
Speaking with Jim Varsallone of the Miami Herald, Purrazzo was asked to share her thoughts on the current state of the Knockouts Division. She responded by stating that the current version of IMPACT's best, as the roster features plenty of diverse performers who bring different elements to the table. Purrazzo also highlighted the way that IMPACT continues to give the Knockouts opportunities in the main event spot.
“This is gonna get criticism, but I think this is the best version of the Knockouts Division [laughs]. Not only because I am the head of it. I think that we have so much diversity, we have so many people that bring so many different attributes to the table. Everyone is unique in how they look and how they dress and how they present themselves. On top of that, we’re getting pay-per-view main events. We’re getting TV main events consistently, whether it’s singles matches or tag team matches. I can only speak for myself, but I’ve done that seven or eight times [in 2022]. So I think we’re continuing to get a bigger and bigger platform as the years go on from IMPACT management, from Scott D’Amore, and I’m just really proud of all the work we’ve done for women’s wrestling and continue to do and will do in the new year," Purrazzo said.
When asked to name a Knockout fans should keep an eye on, Purrazzo described how she's excited to see what Gisele Shaw does in the new year. She noted that "The Quintessential Diva" has only scratched the surface throughout her time in IMPACT so far, and she believes Shaw will blow the roof off the place when she finds her footing.
“I’m so excited to see what Gisele does in the new year. I think she’s an incredible, crazy athlete, and I think that we’ve only kind of scratched the surface in what we’ve seen her be able to do. She’s mot had too many singles matches. She was tagging a little bit with me and Chelsea, and that didn’t work out, but I think that once she finds her footing as a singles competitor, she’s gonna blow the roof off the place with what she can do and her athleticism. So I’m really excited for her," Purrazzo said.
Mickie James recently called Jordynne Grace the future of the Knockouts Division and women's wrestling as a whole. Check out her comments here.
In an interview, Grace agreed that she is overlooked, and she described how tribalism in wrestling is at fault. Click here to see what she had to say.
Check out the updated card for IMPACT Hard to Kill here.
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