Jade Cargill describes her time in AEW as her version of NXT, saying she learned professional wrestling on live television without any traditional developmental training.
I'm raw. My first match ever was on TV. I didn't go through the indies. I didn't go through all the training. I didn't do all that. My NXT was AEW," Cargill said in an interview on Scores & Assists with Joe Budden.
The WWE Women's Champion contrasted her path with WrestleMania 42 opponent Rhea Ripley, who came up through the traditional indie-to-NXT pipeline before becoming a main roster star.
A First Match Like No One Else
Cargill's professional wrestling debut came on national television in AEW alongside Shaquille O'Neal in 2021, with only a single practice match under her belt beforehand.
They told me, 'You're going to be a bad guy and you're going to go out there with Shaquille O'Neal' on national TV. I just did it," she said. "Probably one, two, three people in the entire world get something like that to start off with. I'm just blessed.
Cargill went on to hold the AEW TBS Championship for over 500 days before signing with WWE. She told Budden that the rapid trajectory has come with real weight.
Me being skyrocketed to the top, that's a lot on my shoulders," she said. "People think it's so easy to be at the top. I'm a freaking human. I put on my pants just like everybody else.
Cargill defends the WWE Women's Championship against Ripley at WrestleMania 42 on April 18-19 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
