Roxanne Perez discusses winning the NXT Women’s Championship.
Perez won the Iron Survivor Challenge at NXT Deadline to earn a title shot. She then cashed it in on the December 13 episode of NXT, where she dethroned Mandy Rose and ended her lengthy reign.
Speaking on WWE After The Bell with Corey Graves, Perez recalled her reaction to the victory and stated that her tears were real, as she felt like the trials and tribulations she faced to get to that point were all worth it. She made it clear that signing with WWE and winning a title in the company has been her main goal since she was 10 years old.
“I’m sure as everybody saw, as soon as that bell rang, I just burst into tears, and they were real tears. I think all the trials and tribulations and everything that I went through, since I was 13 years old to get to this moment, started replaying in my head. I just thought, ‘Wow, all of those moments, even the super bad moments, they were still worth it because in that moment, winning the NXT Women’s Championship, just becoming a WWE champion, that was my biggest dream since I was 10 years old. So the fact that it just happened, it was real, it honestly didn’t feel real at the moment. But the fact that it was, so many emotions that just came out of me that night.
Perez was also asked to compare her NXT Women’s Championship to how she felt when she won the ROH Women’s World Championship. She emphasized that winning the gold in ROH lit an even bigger fire under her, as she realized that she could make her dreams come true. With that in mind, she kept pushing forward, determined to get to WWE.
“I think, when I was ten years old, I said, ‘Alright, I’m gonna be in the WWE one day. I don’t know how I’m gonna do it, but it’s gonna happen,'” Perez said. “I found independent wrestling, and I thought, ‘Okay, so if I make a big enough name for myself on the independent scene, hopefully WWE will scoop me up.’ So that’s what I did. Literally everything, I started training when I was 14, and ever since then, I was like, alright, I’m putting my foot on the gas pedal and I’m not looking back, and I’m gonna do everything I can to make sure that WWE calls me. I don’t have to call WWE. They call me.
“So that’s what I did. I think winning the Ring of Honor Championship, that was so surreal just because of the fact that it made me realize that all of my dreams could truly be possible. Obviously my biggest dream was becoming a WWE champion, but becoming the first Ring of Honor Women’s Champion at 19 years old, it just clicked and I realized all my wildest dreams are so possible. It honestly lit a bigger fire in me to keep going so that I could get to that end goal. I still have so many other goals here in the WWE, but just accomplishing that one was amazing.”
If you use any of these quotes, please link back to the original source and credit this source for the transcription
RELATED: Booker T: I’m So Proud Of Roxanne Perez, It’s Been Awesome To See Her Success
