TNA Star Jordynne Grace Describes WWE NXT Debut, Efforts Toward Secrecy

Following her surprise appearance in the WWE Royal Rumble earlier this year, TNA Knockouts World Champion Jordynne Grace showed up once again on "WWE NXT" last week. This time, Grace challenged Roxanne Perez to a match for the NXT Women's Championship at NXT Battleground this weekend. Appearing on "Busted Open Radio," Grace discussed the lead-up to her appearance, including how closely kept the secret was.

"It was really hard, but I had my husband," Grace said. "I tell him everything so of course I told him, but other than that I was like, 'There's no way.' I love surprises in wrestling, so honestly it wasn't super difficult to not tell anybody."

While some of Grace's friends wondered why she didn't alert them, the TNA star said that the element of surprise was worth it. Grace also discussed running into Ethan Page ahead of the show, who is a former Impact/TNA star and was making his own "NXT" debut that night. Additionally, Grace confirmed previous reports stating that fake names were used for the "NXT" rundown, such as Lita and Alexa Bliss, to hide the fact that Grace was showing up. When the moment finally arrived, one aspect of her appearance in particular caught her off guard.

"Hearing the 'TNA' chants definitely got me emotional, because that's something you would never expect to hear in a million years," Grace continued. "I think you have to make the most of every opportunity that you're in the spotlight, and I think that couldn't have gone any better, to be honest."

Before her match against Perez this weekend, Grace will wrestle on "NXT" for the very first time. Then, she'll get an opportunity to capture the NXT Women's Championship when Battleground takes place at the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sunday, June 9.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.