Rok-C says she is no longer somebody to be underestimated.
At Ring of Honor Death Before Dishonor Rok-C became the first Ring of Honor Women's Champion when she defeated Miranda Alize in the finals of the championship tournament. Now, she is reflecting on her championship victory and becoming the youngest champion in Ring of Honor history.
Speaking on the latest Battleground Podcast, Rok-C explains how she feels about being the youngest champion in history and why she's ready for people to stop underestimating her just because of her age.
“There's like so many emotions that go into this. Just the fact that I've been dreaming of becoming a professional wrestler since I was like 10 years old and I didn't expect to accomplish as many things as I have accomplished by now, at 19. I always knew I would turn my dreams into reality, but I didn't think that along the way, I'd be like, like making history in so many different ways, and being the first Ring of Honor Women's World Champion, and then being the youngest champion in their history. It's like, my mind is blown.”
Speaking about her young age, she would say that she's always had a problem with people taking her seriously but she doesn't think age or any outside factor should take precedent over someone's passion.
“Since I broke into the business, I always had that problem of people not really taking me seriously, or people kind of underestimating me just because of my age. But I think that is complete BS because I feel like, regardless of how old you are, or what you look like, or whatever the case may be, I think that has nothing to do with how much heart and dedication someone has. That's exactly how I got to the point of where I am right now in my career is that every time someone told me, 'No,' or every time someone says, ‘She'll grow out of it,’ I was like, ‘No.’ Any kind of little fire me to just kind of, not really not so much [to] prove people wrong, but kind of prove myself right."
Continuing on, Rok-C says she took a lot of inspiration from former WWE Divas Champion, Paige, and how young Paige was when she started wrestling.
"I looked up to Paige so much, just because she kind of had the same story and she's kind of who inspired me to kind of like, kickstart my wrestling career. She started when she was 14 or 15 and she did so much and accomplished so much. I was like, ‘Oh, I can totally do it.’ To this day, it was kind of hard, I guess it is a disadvantage, but also an advantage because, I think having all these people kind of tell me that I couldn't do it, especially being so young, kind of messes with your mind a little bit. It was hard to believe in myself, but I think things that I've accomplished along the way have kind of make me stop and think, like ‘Wait, like look at what you're doing. You're doing it and regardless of anything that anyone ever had to say.’ I'm holding the Ring of Honor Women's World Championship.”
More than anything, Rok-C is ready to take on all challengers is sees this Women's Championship as validation of her career and proof that she is no longer someone to be underestimated.
“I think right now, I know that holding that championship means that I have like, a giant target on my back. I'm aware. But I think I’ve been underestimated for so long and now holding that championship also means that it's okay to say like, I'm one of the best. I don't want people to underestimate me anymore. I hope that having this championship as proof [and] kind of shows people okay, I'm not gonna underestimate this girl, and I want to see who like wants to step up. So yeah, it's an open challenge. Like, whoever wants a shot at this title [can have one].”
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