In a recent interview with Fightful, Scott D’Amore expressed his deep appreciation for Dixie Carter’s pivotal role in the success and survival of TNA Wrestling. He emphasized that the company might not have made it through its challenging times without her leadership. Carter served as the president of TNA from 2003 until 2017, a period marked by both significant achievements and formidable obstacles. D’Amore reflected on her vision and commitment, highlighting how her efforts laid the foundation for the promotion’s growth and evolution. Without her influence and guidance during those crucial years, he suggested, TNA might not exist in its current form today.
Scott D’Amore said:
Dixie was the President when I first came to TNA in 2003. I worked with her for many years. It’s part of that interesting dynamic that if you ever want to hear about, check out Jeff Jarrett’s podcast, he has some really interesting podcasts about the political dynamics of the TNA office. Dixie gets slagged a lot. You can say some of it is justified, but there is one things that is certainly an indisputable fact; Dixie loved TNA Wrestling and everything Dixie did she was doing because she thought it was best for TNA Wrestling. Dixie has a heart. I was in the Nashville office one day when I got a phone and my father had a heart attack or stroke. I was shaken. When I walked back into the room, Jeff could tell right away. He’s like, ‘What’s wrong?’ I was choked up and could barely get the words out. He’s like, ‘Go see Bob Ryder,’ who did our travel. ‘Get home.’ Dixie followed me out of the office door as I was going to Bob’s office and she goes, ‘Don’t worry about having Bob book you a ticket. My dad’s jet is in town and he’ll fly you anywhere you need to go.’ That type of commitment to the people around her is commendable. There is not reason for her to have to do that. That was her first thought, without hesitation. I’ll always appreciate that type of kindness. There was a story one time where Kenny, when he was carrying all the titles, didn’t like to carry the belts, so they put them on the production truck. When Kenny had to fly to Nashville, it might have been for Slammiversary, the belts were somewhere on the highway in one of the production trucks and not near the back. We had to figure it out. What we ultimately ended up doing, Dixie had a replica, a perfect replica, of the TNA World Title. I sent some folks to her place, she met two people she had never seen before with the warmest hugs, chatted with them, and handed over the belt. We were able to find a copy of the one belt, but we couldn’t find the other. Dixie ultimately provided it. I enjoy being able to be the facilitator at Slammiversary in Nashville a couple of years ago where we took that photo of Ed Nordholm, Billy Corgan, and Dixie Carter together. I thought that was a cool shot to say, ‘It’s business, and sometimes business doesn’t go great or end great, but that doesn’t mean there can’t be a future with respect for each other.’ That photo meant a lot to me because I’ve dealt with all three of them, Dixie and Ed more than Billy, but I thought it was great to have all three of them there to take that photo. At the time, those were the three TNA Presidents in history. To me, Dixie has always been a friend of the house. You can knock Dixie for some of her stuff running the company, and fans do, and that’s their right, but anyone who thinks Dixie did something other than what she thought was best is mistaken. She did some good. Let’s be honest. TNA Wrestling does not make it out of 2003 without Dixie Carter. If you’re a TNA Wrestling fan today, you owe an appreciation for what Dixie did and her belief in the company. She used all of her efforts for all of the years she was here to try to make it as good as she could make it.“
Dixie definitely helped TNA stay alive.