TNA Wrestling’s KC Navarro Recalls Philly Memories, Past And Future Opponents, & Staying Blessed [Interview]

Philadelphia, PA is widely regarded as one of the great wrestling cities of this world. In addition to being the birthplace of Extreme Championship Wrestling, the City of Brotherly Love has a rich history in professional wrestling that includes some of the biggest names and promotions rolling through town. Now, TNA Wrestling is returning to town this week with a rejuvenated roster of young and hungry talent who are ready to make their marks in front of an infamously critical yet passionate fan base. And among those leading the charge for the new generation residing in the house that Jeff Jarrett built is KC Navarro. 

If you’ve been watching TNA Thursday Night iMPACT! on AMC lately, then you’re well aware that the young high flyer has been making waves in the company due to his recent association with the reigning TNA World Champion Nic Nemeth (fka WWE’s Dolph Ziggler). The pair even had an excellent match last week for the title. And though Navarro came up short against the veteran, he certainly showed great resilience by truly personifying the phrase Total Nonstop Action. 

Before he steps into the TNA ring at Temple University’s Liacouras Center for back-to-back shows on July 30 and 31, That Hollywood Show was too blessed to talk to Navarro about returning to a city that he knows very well, his current outlook on his career following a difficult injury, and where he hopes to go next on his pro wrestling journey.

Keeping It Real

THS: You’ve had a rough year. In addition to a torn ACL, you also had to deal with great personal loss. But since you’ve come back to the ring, you’ve been reminding people to be kind to everyone they encounter. When some people go through hardships like you did, they get hardened and bitter. But what motivated you to return to the public eye with such a positive message?

KC Navarro: I see sometimes what people write on the internet. They can write some crazy things. I mean, you can see some wrestlers will delete X, for example, just because of how things could get and what people can say. And you know, me just knowing all the personal stuff I go through and seeing how fans see me… They see me as a positive light. “Oh, KC’s living a great life. He’s good.” [But] I’m a human being too. I go through stuff as well and I feel like it’s important to let people know that. I’m a very open book. I have nothing to hide. I’m okay with being vulnerable and letting people know that you’re not alone. 

Not that long ago, I posted a promo I did at an indie show and I was just kind of spreading that [message of] being kind to everybody you meet. I had a long line of people coming up to me after that. People were in tears because they needed to hear something like that and it’s so important. I feel like the people in my position [should] let people know that they’re not alone. Just because we’re superstars and we live this great life [doesn’t mean we don’t] also go through these things too. It’s okay to go through these things and it doesn’t mean you’re a bad person or that nobody loves you. I love everybody I meet and I just think it’s so important to let people know they’re not alone, it’s okay, and it’s going to get better. 

I’ve had days where I’ve been like, “Man, this sucks. Is this going to get better? I’m kind of over this.” I stayed the course. I tried to stay as positive as I could. I do it for my fans. I do it for myself. I do it for my family. And you know, I feel like it’s working out good.

Returning To Philadelphia

THS: Speaking of returns, you’re no stranger to Philadelphia due to your time in several promotions in and around the city. You were also born just over the bridge in New Jersey. What does it mean to you to come back to Philly with TNA? 

Navarro: July 30th and 31st at Temple University is going to be special, man. I’m very, very excited for it. I haven’t wrestled in Philly in a few years, so it’s going to be cool to be back in Philly. Obviously, like you said, [with New Jersey] right over the bridge, I’m gonna have a lot of family and friends there. It’s going to be a KC Navarro hometown game. It’s definitely going to be a home game for me. Very, very excited to see my friends and family. They only get to see me on TV now, really, so it’s really going to be cool. Philadelphia, it’s no secret that it’s an amazing wrestling city, just like Chicago, where we’re going to have in Lockdown in August. But Philadelphia is going to be very special.

THS: Do you have any favorite moments that you associate with Philadelphia from your career?

Navarro: Actually, one of my favorite matches I’ve ever had was against Buddy Matthews [in Philadelphia] right after he left WWE. I was his first match on the indies and it was one of those matches that wasn’t even supposed to happen. I was supposed to wrestle somebody else. He came up to me and was like, “I know who you are. I don’t really want to wrestle the guy I was supposed to wrestle. I want to wrestle you.” That’s kind of how Buddy is. “You’re an up-and-coming guy and I want to work with you.” 

I was very shocked. And I feel like that was the match that put me on the map. People were like, “Wow! This KC Navarro can really go.” I knew there was a lot of pressure going into that match because I was just starting to get a little buzz, but I knew everybody was going to watch Buddy’s first match out of WWE, so people were going to tune into that. I think it got like a quarter million views pretty quickly. It blew up pretty fast. So it was a really cool experience for me and it’s a moment I’ll never forget in my career.

Total Nonstop Action

THS: It’s been great to see you mix it up with TNA standouts and legends like Leon Slater, Amazing Red, Frankie Kazarian, and Mustafa Ali. When it comes to you and partnerships though, things largely haven’t worked out in your favor. From First Class to the Nemeths, you’ve faced betrayal after betrayal after showing them kindness. Do you think you’ll continue to seek out allies or are you in DTA (Don’t Trust Anybody) mode?

Navarro: I’m definitely in a DTA mood for sure. I mean, hopefully me and Nick can squash this thing, but I don’t know, man. It sucks. My whole life has been that where I can’t trust anybody. I was bullied my entire life. I didn’t have a lot of friends. Even had family that would betray me as I got older. So it’s rough now being in a place that I thought would be my safe space. Getting put in First Class, I thought I was going to be okay. I was a little ehhh about AJ Francis, but Nic Nemeth, I kind of didn’t see that coming. Maybe I got blinded because when I was a kid, he was my hero. I got to work side by side with my hero. That’s amazing, [so] maybe I got blinded by that for a hot second. But, you know, like I said, hopefully I can work this thing out with Nic. If not, well, Nic’s screwed because I’m not happy what he did.

THS: You’ve challenged for the International, X-Division, and World titles since your return. It’s great to see you earn these opportunities, but prior to your injury and the breakup with AJ Francis, you popped up in NXT. You didn’t get a shot to compete there at the time, but now that you’re healed up, is it high on your list of priorities to take advantage of the WWE/TNA relationship and wrestle on NXT or even AAA or EVOLVE?

Navarro: Absolutely. If I was to do it this time, I would definitely like to come in as a strong representation for TNA and that would be coming in as a TNA champion, whether that’s X-Division Champion, International Champion, [or any other] champion. I really would like to defend our ground on a higher scale. Like I feel like me going there now, I’d just be coming in as a TNA guy representing TNA. I want to be going in there like, “Nah, I want you to try to take something from us.” Obviously, that happened with the World Title, right? So I don’t want that to happen again. This time, I want to be able to represent TNA on a higher scale if I was to go back to NXT and even if we did it at EVOLVE or if we went to AAA. I’d like to be a champion walking into that for sure.

Oh The Places We’ll Go

THS: People always talk about dream matches all the time. There are plenty of potential bangers for you in TNA right now. But who do you think you could get into the ring with and surprise the audience? Like someone that is underrated who fans wouldn’t expect to take KC Navarro to the limit?

Navarro: That’s a good question. You’re talking about more like an up-and-coming guy?

THS: Yeah, exactly. Like someone who is maybe in the same position as you were a few years back and now they’re on their way up. But it can be anybody. 

Navarro: There are a couple guys who I watch that I definitely feel if they got the opportunity, would be next up. [First,] Malik Del Vonté. He’s from the Northeast. Very talented guy. Somebody I’ve known for many years. Honestly, somebody that moves a lot like me. He’s somebody that I could definitely see being a standout in the X-Division.

Another one is J. Boujii. He’s been taking over. He’s been doing Power Slap. I don’t know how he got involved in that, but he’s somebody that’s got a lot of personality. I feel like if me and him got on the mic against each other, I think that’d be very entertaining for a lot of fans. 

And then there is another guy that I feel like would shock a lot of people because he’s somebody that’s not like Boujii or Del Vonté, [who are more] like my size. His name is Steve Gibki. Big, jacked dude, but he can move and he can go. He looks the part, acts the part. Me and him have had some matches and I feel like if he got the opportunity to wrestle me on a stage like TNA, I feel like it’d be a match that make people go, “Wow, I definitely did not expect that.”

THS: You’ve had matches with your sister, All Elite Wrestling and Ring of Honor star Diamante, before. But you’ve come a long way since the last time you two last faced off in an official capacity. What do you think would be the biggest differences between wrestling her now and back in the day at Battle Club Pro?

Navarro: (laughs) I’m a lot more jacked, so it might be a little hard for her to pick me up this time. I’m also a lot smarter as a wrestler. I think I learned a lot by staying away from the chancla. Once I see that in her hand, I’m just gonna run. Or I will have another weapon ready because I was not ready for that when she pulled that out and started beating my ass all over New York City. I think that would be the biggest difference for this match if we did it again. [Or] I’ll just call my mom! I didn’t do that last time. My mom would have been the perfect weapon to use [against Diamante]. I think that’s what I’m gonna do. I’m gonna hide my mom underneath the ring and just use my mom [as special enforcer].

THS: After recently signing with Paragon Talent Group, you announced that you’re ready to bless the world again by taking more bookings. From firsthand experience due to seeing your run in Warrior Wrestling in the Chicagoland area (which is where TNA Lockdown will be next month), I can say that indie promotions should be knocking down your door. But are there any promotions or locations that you’re particularly hoping to wrestle in at some point in the near future?

Navarro: I would love to go back to the UK. I loved my time in PROGRESS. PROGRESS was a lot of fun. I feel like there’s so much talent in the UK that is so underrated, and I would just love to go there and just work some more of those guys. I’ve never been to Germany and they’ve got an awesome talent pool over there as well. And I’ve also never been to Japan. So if we’re gonna talk out of the country, those are the places I would definitely like to go. Other than that, I’m willing to go anywhere and face anyone. I’m at a different level of my career and I’m just ready to prove that I’m one of the best now. I’m gonna do a little thing that I took out of Nic Nemeth’s book and just steal the show everywhere I go.

The Legacy of KC Navarro

THS: Finally, TNA has had a number of iconic eras throughout its history. Fans of Dark Side of the Ring got to look back at one of the infamous ones during season seven’s recent three-part premiere.  But when you’re looking back at your time in TNA at the end of your career many years from now, how do you want the history books to remember KC Navarro? 

Navarro: Man, I would want everybody to remember me as somebody that was very resilient. I feel like I take that from Mike Santana [now known as Cruz Montana in NXT]. Very resilient, very locked in on what he wanted to do, and achieved it. That’s how I feel. I feel like I’ve always had the odds stacked against me, but I never let that define me. 

And I feel like I’m going to be that guy who is just going to inspire a whole new generation of young talent. Smaller guys that think [they] might not make it? Nah, man, you can. I’m 5’6”. I’m like 170-something pounds, if I’m lucky. Maybe soaking wet. But I just want to be that guy that inspires a new generation of talent and gets people to truly believe in themselves to another level. Because you can say that you believe in yourself and you can chase then and kind of give up. But I want people to have that same resilience and know that I had that resilience of never giving up and just going after everything I’ve ever dreamed of and believed in.