WWE NXT Star Kelani Jordan Names The Wrestlers Who Inspire Her

Former collegiate gymnast Kelani Jordan has made quite an impression since coming aboard WWE last year. While Jordan might not have signed on with any prior wrestling experience, she has made a noticeable effort to study several of the business' most successful performers amidst her continued training. During a recent interview with Denise Salcedo, Jordan revealed some of the names that have inspired her within the in-ring, promo, and style departments of professional wrestling.

"In-ring-wise, I would say RVD is someone whose style I absolutely love," Jordan said. "I love also how authentic he is, how unapologetically himself he is. That's something that I want to strive to be. I want people to be able to relate to me. Then also, Bianca Belair is someone because she's so elegant, but she's also so powerful. She has this sass to her where she doesn't let anyone walk over her. So those are people who I studied. Then for promo-wise, I love hearing Daniel Bryan cut his promos. He's very energetic and it's cool to see even his evolution of how he started promos to where he was doing promos. For style, I think I look at all the women [and] how they dress. I take a little bit of 'Oh I like how they did that, I like how they did that,' and then make it my own."

After completing a series of "WWE NXT" live events, Jordan made her televised in-ring debut against Wendy Choo on the May 12 episode of "NXT Level Up." Five months later, Jordan found herself as a finalist in the 2023 "NXT" Women's Breakout Tournament, before moving on to the 2023 Women's Iron Survivor Challenge at "NXT" Deadline.

If you use quotes in this article, please credit Denise Salcedo and provide an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.