NXT Women's World Champion Stephanie Vaquer appears destined for WWE's main roster, and when that happens, it means WWE Hall of Famer Booker T will no longer be able to call her "Devil's Kiss" signature move in his unique style.
The WCW icon has repeatedly gone viral for his reaction to Vaquer performing the move on her opponents (we've included a reminder for you below). However, some fans have inevitably argued that he's either objectifying a female wrestler or shifting the spotlight to himself.
Vaquer certainly doesn't seem to have an issue with it, and in a recent interview with Denise Salcedo, Booker T explained that he's simply trying to get her and the move over and not making it about himself in any way.
"I think she liked it. Because when she started doing it, she would point at me," he explained. "And so, like, let’s get ready to have some fun. So, I… A lot of people, you know, they look at it and they go, 'Booker T just tried to steal the shine.'"
"But I tell you, like I said when I was a young wrestler coming up, the Spinarooni, would not be the Spinarooni if it wasn’t for a guy by the name of Mark Madden going crazy when I did the Spinarooni, 'Spinarooni, Spinarooni, Spinarooni,' and then it became a household name."
"So, for me, I’m trying to do the same thing for these young guys and these young girls coming up right now," Booker T concluded.
Vaquer recently talked to WrestleZone about her unique face paint and the NXT women's division. She explained where the inspiration for what's become a huge part of her in-ring persona comes from:
"Yeah, of course. It’s difficult for me to explain in English, but it’s a Japanese culture. The name is Kintsugi. For example, when you break a plate, Japanese people believe [you can repair it with kintsugi]. You can use gold or silver and you make a ‘new’ one, but it’s more beautiful. It’s more important when something broke and you repair it."
"The NXT Women’s Division is the best Women’s Division on the planet, to me. So, if we continue to work together and [we’re a] good team, we will continue to be the best division on the planet. So, I’m so proud of all of the women’s division. I’m learning a lot here. And for me, it’s so important to be the champion representing all my NXT Women’s Division."