Brooke Tessmacher did not enjoy her time in WWE.
IMPACT Wrestling released its Knockouts Round Table discussion today, which features Gail Kim, ODB, Christy Hemme, Brooke Tessmacher, Taryn Terrell, and Velvet Sky talking about the trials, tribulations, genesis and evolution of the division.
The women began by sharing their first experiences with the company and detailed the growth of the Knockouts Division. Gail Kim was a driving force behind many of the women being brought to TNA, eventually winning the first Knockouts Championship at Bound For Glory 2007. Brooke Tessmacher, however, didn't join TNA until 2010. Before then, she had a brief stint in WWE that kicked-off with the 2006 Diva Search. She had this to say about the competition:
"So when I got let go from WWE, and everybody knows I went in I was just a pretty face. I was the model. I came in through the Diva Search... When you come in in the Diva Search, it's just like your tarnished. They're just waiting for you to fail. It's like you just get the short end of the stick and they think you're not serious. Even when I was doing the audition, I remember being literally the only one in there that didn't just travel around to auditions, teaching everybody who all the wrestlers were. I grew up as a fan. That's what we did as a family. We were very poor and the only thing we did as a family was watch wrestling... I remember being back at the auditions and I was teaching Layla and The Bella Twins and Maryse and everybody who everybody was, and as we all know they went on to be big, big stars."
Tessmacher didn't make the cut at that point but did receive a developmental contract shortly afterwards. She debuted on the main roster in 2007 as part of Extreme Expose with Kelly Kelly and Layla on the ECW brand. Her experience was not positive, though, pushing her away from the business after just one year.
"I didn't make the cut at that point but got a job later on and it was pure hell to go through. I never got to actually wrestle besides like a few battle royales and things like that, always being the first thrown out or the second, maybe getting to throw one little punch. It was just so sad, and then I got let go."
Brooke says that she was heartbroken that she never got to be anything or get trusted with anything during her time with the company. She put wrestling behind her, opened up a business, got her realtor's licence and thought that was the end of it. A phone call from Terry Taylor asking her to come to TNA, which she didn't know anything about at the time, was what brought her back. She admits to being intimidated by seeing what the women were doing but is thankful to Gail Kim for teaching her everything she knows.
Tessmacher is a 3-time Knockouts Champion. She last competed for the promotion in June of 2017.
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