Eric Bischoff shares his belief that ODB was ahead of her time, and she still has a lot to offer today.
ODB was one of the top stars in TNA's Knockouts Division. She debuted for the company in 2007 and stayed with them until 2014. During her initial run, she won the Knockout's Championship four times, and she also held the Women's Knockouts Tag Team Championship with Eric Young. ODB returned to IMPACT multiple times over the years, including a brief run in 2021.
On his 83 Weeks podcast, Bischoff and co-host Conrad Thompson were discussing the legend's time in TNA, and Thompson brought up how timing can be everything. He pointed to ODB as an example and shared his belief that she was ahead of her time. Thompson then asked Bischoff whether he'd agree that ODB would have some buzz if she was in her prime today. Bischoff agreed and described how ODB stood out because she was the opposite of everyone else in women's wrestling at the time.
“She would, and I dig her. She was real, she was relatable. When you had the rest, you had the Beautiful People, and a lot of the women in wrestling at that time, they were hot, and they knew they were hot, many of them were, and they relied on that, the physical appearance and the sexuality. That was kind of coming off the WWE Diva thing, and that was the nature of women’s wrestling at that time, generally speaking. Here you have someone that comes along, and she is the exact opposite of all that. On top of that, she’s got a voice like The Crusher, which I just think is so sexy and cool. She was tough, she sounded tough, she looked tough, and she leaned in that character. She was very real, which is why she did so well," Bischoff said.
Bischoff continued by sharing his belief that ODB still has a lot to offer today, but he noted that he doesn't know what her mindset about her wrestling career is. He stated that she can cut a promo and make people believe, and these skills go a long way .
"I agree with you, Conrad. I think if timing was a little different, if she came storming out [for] WWE or AEW today, I think she still has a lot to offer. I don’t know where her head is at. I don’t know where she’s at physically, if she can works or if she even wants to work anymore. But she can cut a promo, and she can make you believe, so you’re about 75% there. Now if you can just finish it off with some great action in the ring, you’re making money today. I can’t say enough good things about her. She’s very cool," Bischoff said.
The WWE Hall of Famer then noted that ODB didn't play politics. He stated that he was fun to work with, and she was a true professional. Bischoff then emphasized that, if the timing had been a little different, her career might have produced even more success.
"She’s very independent-minded, by the way. My impression of her was that she didn’t play the politics, she really didn’t. She was fun to work with, a real pro, and I agree. If the timing would have been a little different, we’d be having a whole different conversation about ODB," he said.
ODB recently shared her thoughts on potentially working with WWE. Check out her comments here.
Click here to see what ODB had to say about her favorite opponents in TNA.
In a previous interview, ODB said she got the call to compete in the Royal Rumble, but someone turned it down. More information is available here.
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