Smackdown Live competitor Lana recently spoke with Josh Barnett of Forthewin of the USA Today Network about the upcoming Money in the Bank event where she is scheduled to face off against Naomi for the Smackdown Women’s title. Here are the highlights:
Her in-ring journey:
“I’m really excited about showing my in-ring journey because I have been training a lot over the last year. It wasn’t always a skip in the park, but I was just so hungry to learn. My past is very, very different than [the other performers]. But I am a strong believer in following your own path, no matter what people think.”
Her gimmick change:
“I’m the same ‘Ravishing Russian’ that you’ve always known. It’s funny to me when I hear people say that it’s a new character. I embody ‘Ravishing.’ I come out in the most ravishing dress. I have a ravishing entrance. I’m ravishing people’s hearts. I was managing Rusev and wearing a suit because if you’re managing someone or an agent in real life, you are going to wear a suit to work. Right now, I’m the focal point, I’m the one competing. If people know anything about Russians, we do things really over the top. We wear high heels everywhere. We show up in the most extravagant outfits. I am just embodying how I was raised and what I grew up in. Some people might think we’re extra, I just think we’re ravishing. I’m the same woman, I’m just going to be crushing people myself.”
Being bred for the entertainment industry:
“If you have an idea of the stereotype of a Russian teacher and their type of discipline, that was my teacher. They came with little paddles and threw shoes and the more they screamed at you, the more they believed in you. You wanted them to scream at you and call you stupid. That bred me for the rest of my life. That prepared me for the entertainment industry – ‘It’s OK. Don’t believe in me, laugh at me, think I’m not going to succeed, but I’m going to prove you wrong.’”
You can read the entire interview here: http://ftw.usatoday.com/2017/06/wwe-lana-rusev-money-in-the-bank