Jade Cargill Reveals What Shaq Said That “Lit A Fire” Under Her Before AEW Debut
In an interview with The Zaslow Show, AEW TBS Champion Jade Cargill discussed her family's reaction to her entering the world of professional wrestling. According to Cargill, her mother was not a huge fan of her taking up the career, while her daughter, Bailey, has been a huge supporter, so much so that Jade Cargill referred to her as her biggest fan.
"My mom said no," Cargill revealed. "She said 'you're going to get hurt.' When somebody thinks of wrestling, the first thing they think of is getting body slammed and getting hurt. My mom is still not a fan of me wrestling at all. My daughter is one of my biggest fans. She's my wrestling partner. She loved it, we put her in tennis, soccer, golf, and right now, wrestling is her thing. I understand my mom because I'm like 'no.' My brother is another big fan of mine. My family, they'll go with whatever I go with. My mom, however, is not a fan.
"My daughter was there the first day I stepped foot in the ring. My daughter has always been there. I would get tossed and every single second I got hit, my daughter would start crying. I would have to get out the ring and talk to her and get her to understand. Eventually, I was like 'when I'm winning, and beating him up, I need you to cheer for me.' She has been in this since she was two, watching me get beat up by these gigantic men since she was two. When people are booing me, she'll look at them with this stern face. She'll turn around and clap and cheer for me. I tell her that I'm a superhero, and mommy has to go and fight crime right now. We're learning together. She's gotten in trouble in school for using wrestling moves."
Several wrestling and baseball fans will note that Jade Cargill is married to former Major League Baseball All-Star Brandon Phillips, who played for the Cleveland Guardians, Cincinnati Reds, Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Angels, and Boston Red Sox throughout his career. Despite his accolades and recognition, Jade Cargill revealed she's starting to get more recognition out in public than Phillips.
"I think I'm starting to get more recognized than Brandon, so it's pretty interesting," Cargill said. "It's surprising still. When I'm home, I'm a whole different person. I'm wearing sweats, wearing a hat. I'm like 'oh, gosh, I have to start looking decent when I go to Target.' It's a whole new world. I'm so used to people interrupting him at dinner and wanting to get pictures and autographs and things from him, so now, that world has changed. He's the co-owner of a team right now and the stay-at-home dad. It's such a weird world."
As for her AEW debut in March of 2021, Jade Cargill revealed what it was like working with Shaquille O'Neal, who she teamed with to defeat Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet. She also shared details of a conversation she had with the NBA great right before they walked out for their match.
"It was a dream come true," Cargill said. "This is a man that everybody watched growing up. I think every commercial break, you see an advertisement for this man. For me to even be in the same room and share conversation, share a ring with this man, was a blessing in disguise. Who gets a debut match with Shaquille O'Neal on prime-time TV? I remember before going out, I said 'you ready?' He looked at me and said 'no. Are you ready? This is my world. I work in entertainment. Are you ready? Don't embarrass me.' That lit a fire under my ass. It was a surreal moment. This is a moment when people can see me. This is the time for me to make my mark."
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit The Zaslow Show and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription