Mickie James Reveals How Long She Was Told Her Career Would Last
Mickie James far surpassed the length of time she was originally told she would be in professional wrestling.
The 10-time Women's Champion throughout WWE and Impact Wrestling revealed on SEScoops how long she was told her career would probably last.
"I've had a lot of good, amazing teachers and people I can lean on and learn from, right? Or [people] that believed in me enough to push me to believe, or perhaps didn't believe in me at all and it pushed me even more," James stated. "But it's been crazy, and I said this recently, but when I first got into wrestling, the common thing I remember people saying ... 'Once you go up and you go up, you'll have a five-year career. You have a great run, you can go home and have kids, and [write a] next chapter'."
Not only has James' career been over four times as long as she was told it was going to be at 23 years, but she has also competed in both Impact Wrestling and WWE for more than five years, respectively. James debuted in WWE in 2005 as an obsessed fan of Trish Stratus and would last in the company until 2010. During her run with the company, James tallied up five Women's Championships and one Divas Championship, a feat few other women can tout.
James then went to TNA from 2010 until 2013 where she found even more success, winning three TNA Women's Knockout Championships over her time with the company. James made her return to WWE in 2016, aiding 'Five Feet of Fury' Alexa Bliss and being by her side. James was with the company from 2016 until 2021 in a much less successful run than her first, not winning any Championship gold this time around. When James was released, the now-infamous 'Trash Bag Incident' occurred.
James returned to Impact Wrestling in 2021 and won the Impact Knockout's Championship for the fourth time. James then made history and decided to put the 'Trash Bag Incident' behind her as she competed in the 2022 Women's Royal Rumble while the current Knockout's Champion. She brought the title out with her and used her theme song from Impact Wrestling: 'Hardcore Country'. James was able to eliminate long-time rival Michelle McCool during the match but was ultimately eliminated by WWE Hall of Famer Lita. The Royal Rumble would end up being won by a returning Ronda Rousey.
James since lost the title to Tasha Steelz at Impact Wrestling's Sacrifice event in early March. James last wrestled in April, teaming with her husband and former Impact World Champion, Nick Aldis, to take on and ultimately defeat the team of Chelsea Green and Matt Cardona, the latter of which was recently injured.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit SEScoops and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription