Mia Yim returned to Impact Wrestling at Under Siege in her first event since the WWE released her in one of their budget cutting moves.
Mia recently appeared on Denise Salcedo’s podcast and she talked about her life after being released by the WWE and her return to Impact Wrestling.
It was a cool surprise to see her return at Under Siege and we’re excited to see what she has in mind for her new run in Impact, especially since she said she plans to retire with Impact.
Returning home
Fans welcomed Mia back to Impact Wrestling with open arms, fond memories, and a look to the future and what it means for her.
She wasted no time in staking her claim for a shot at the Knockouts Championship as she joins the first ever Queen of the Mountain match at Slammiversary.
She’ll face off with Knockouts Champions Tasha Steelz, Chelsea Green, Jordynne Grace, and Deonna Purrazzo on Jun 19.
So, when Denise asked her about what it’s like to return to Impact Wrestling, we weren’t surprised by her answer.
“It’s an amazing, incredible feeling just to know that I know a majority of these people from the last time I was there, to meeting new people that I felt like I’ve known them forever. So it’s a really cool feeling to walk through those doors and to be welcomed by old, new, everybody, and not even just talent like production and the office.
“I’ve never worked with Scott (D’Amore) before, but man, is he cool. He’s just cool to just sit back and just talk with. It’s a really nice feeling.”
I just interviewed Mia Yim, that will be going up shortly. She did tell me that she plans to retire with IMPACT Wrestling. Not anytime soon, but she seems very happy with the freedom she's being given at IMPACT Wrestling.
— Denise 'Hollywood' Salcedo (@_denisesalcedo) May 23, 2022
When she was asked what it was like returning compared to her previous run with the company, she was quick to point out how welcoming and encouraging they were about helping develop her character.
“Freedom. Not that we weren’t free before, but the minute I signed my contract, I got a text like, ‘Hey, what do you want to do for your character?’ I said, ‘These are just suggestions. We don’t have to go for it, but I’ve been sitting on these ideas for the past two years.’ So I just talked to them and they’re like, ‘Okay, great. We’ll set everything up.’ I was like, ‘This is so cool.’
“The fact that they straight up asked me what I wanted to do says a lot. Then the fact that they actually went about and did it, it was like, I want to retire at Impact. This is where I want to stay forever at this point. So it was definitely a different feeling.
“I felt like I was being heard and listened to. They really took my ideas and like, even little tweaks, they asked, ‘Hey, how do you feel about this?’ It was like, ‘You’re really asking me?’ So it’s nice to feel like I’m respected as a human.”
As fans, we’re glad she’s so enthusiastic, but we’re also happy she decided to come back for another run. It feels right. Especially when she wasn’t sure she was going to wrestle following her WWE release.
“A lot was going on in my mind. Me and Keith (Lee) got released the same day, so it was a lot of just trying to figure out like, I’ve done everything I wanted to in my career. I set a goal for myself and I’ve done it all. So do I even want to wrestle anymore with the toxicity of social media and with what I did the last time like, I was a joke. So, it was like, do I even bother?”
Real life popped up and she decided to stay for a couple of months and take care of anything that needed her attention so Keith wouldn’t have to worry about it.
The time helped her figure out what she wanted to do, and that’s when her friendship with Gail Kim gave her a good push.
“I’m close friends with Gail (Kim), and I’ve been talking to her ever since I left Impact the first time. So we’ve been talking and I originally didn’t want to sign anywhere. I didn’t want to do TV. I didn’t know what I wanted to do. But Gail was putting over the company, putting over the talent, even Scott, and putting over everything.
“With Gale being in the position in Impact as the head of the Women’s Division, I have no question, no second guesses, no hesitation that if I were to go to Impact under Gail’s leadership, everything’s gonna be fine. Like, there’s no drama. I didn’t want to deal with drama or politics. If I was going to wrestle, I just wanted to wrestle and hang out with my friends. That place, I have a lot of friends. I know that I would have a lot of wrestling opportunities. So, it was a no brainer for me to finally just be like, okay, I’m gonna give it one more try.
“I don’t want people to remember me as what I’ve done the past year or two. I want people to remember me as Mia Yim. That I’ve had a decade worth of work under my belt before I had the whole thing happen. I want people to remember that. I’m not just a manager for a group or whatever. Once I decided I’m gonna give wrestling a try, it was like, ’Count me in, Gail.’ At Impact, I’m gonna be okay.”
We have every belief this is going to be a fun ride and we hope she has as much fun as she’s given us over the years.
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