This is the first of five interviews I conducted with TNA talent backstage at Universal Studios in Orlando, Fla., before the Impact taping on March 28:

Your injury history has been well documented, but you seem to be doing well since signing with TNA. Is that the case, and if so, how much do you attribute it to the lighter schedule?

Yeah, I feel great. I haven’t felt this good in years. I actually got my weight down under 210. I’m in the best shape of my life since I wrestled in the Olympics. Thank God. I’m not going to BS anybody and say that I have a lighter schedule, because I don’t. I am on the road just as much, but I wrestle half as much. I try to do a lot more promotion. Anything to help promote TNA, whether it’s the television show, the pay-per-view, the video game, the action figures – whatever marketing thing that we’re going after, I’m always there promoting it. They keep me pretty busy from that aspect.

I also do a lot of interviews during the week and we do a lot of media days. Usually I’m the one who does the media days for the pay-per-views – usually but not always. I think we’re doing two days for me before Boston [site of the Lockdown pay-per-view on April 13]. I do a lot of autograph signings for the company. What that does is that brings in more revenue for them. The company gave me a great guaranteed deal, and I want to give back. I only wrestle so many dates, so they give me a certain amount of money per date, and by the end of the year my money doesn’t match my guarantee – I usually make a lot more than what I earned. So I do a lot of dates where I do autograph signings or promotions for TNA that makes up for it. I want to work for the company and work for the money. I don’t just want it handed to me. I like helping promote the company.

Being in TNA is way more exciting than WWE, because they’re established. They’re already a huge Fortune 500 company. They’re obviously the biggest wrestling company in the world. But TNA is making history. We were nothing five and a half years ago, and now we’re a wrestling power. We’re not at WWE’s level yet, but we’re going to get there. It’s fun being a part of it because I’m seeing it growing every week. Now, I feel like I actually have a purpose, instead of just being some top wrestler for a company, and basically all they wanted to do was wrestle me into the ground. Here I have a purpose, and that’s to make TNA the best possible company it can be, and it feels good. It feels good when you hear, “Hey, we did our highest rating this week.” And I’ve heard that a lot in the last year and a half or so.

We’re in 125 countries now, and I’ve already represented TNA over in Japan. I went over to Germany and England to set up our tours. I do all that stuff. I even went out to Vegas and went to a bunch of promoters to do house shows, and [TNA owner] Dixie Carter had me sell the shows. I explained to them why they should buy them. So they have used me more than just a talent, and it feels good. I’m helping them in every aspect. And I’m also helping them in a creative aspect, from a writer’s standpoint. They include me in on that and I like doing it.

One thing I don’t like is politics in wrestling. You’re going to have that, but here, if there are any, it’s very little. I’m the top guy and I’m not stopping anyone from coming up and taking my place. I want somebody to come up and take my place. In WWE it’s the opposite. Everybody is trying to keep everybody else down. I want everyone to come up to my level. Me and [Samoa] Joe are going to have a great match on pay-per-view. I want him to look better than I look so that his value goes up. That’s how we all are. We all want to make each other look good. It’s a lot different locker room than it is in WWE.

You actually answered several of my questions in your response. Let me shift gears and talk to you about your wife, Karen. Historically, this business has not been great for marriages, especially when the wife also becomes talent. Did you have any trepidation about her coming into the wrestling world?

When she did her first promo, I was blown away. I was thinking, “Wow, this girl is huge. She can make the company some money.” Jeff Jarrett came to me right afterward. He actually got out of the truck from directing, and we had just gotten backstage after doing the promo in the ring, and he said, “Kurt, she’s huge money.” I said, “Jeff, that’s the same thing I was thinking when I was in the ring with her.” He said, “Well, will she take a job?” “I said, “You’re going to have to ask her.” She said, “Sure, but I have to be home this many days a month. I can’t do house shows; I can only do TV and pay-per-view. Every once in a while, pay to have my kids come down and go to Disney World while I’m working and it’ll be great.” Thank God, it’s actually brought us closer together. We spend more time together, and it actually did the opposite of what it’s done in the past to others. It’s been great.

There’s been a lot of talk about you doing MMA. Is that still in your future, or is it too late at this point?

No, it isn’t [too late]. I just did a training session on Tuesday before I came here. I am in the process of signing an agreement to fight Randy Couture. We both signed a no-compete clause, which means the company that I’m not allowed to say who it is, signed us to a deal where we couldn’t go anywhere else to do this; we have to do it with this particular company. That’s the first step. The next step is signing the fight. And then after that it will be, instead of me training periodically, it will be me training more consistently. So, I’m open to it. If I’m going to do it, I don’t want any guys fed to me. In other words, I don’t need to make my name bigger in order to fight a top guy. I’m there already. I know my caliber of athleticism and what caliber of guy I want to go against – it’s Randy. I consider him one of the best fighters of all time. I think Randy and I would have a heck of a fight. We’re both very well-conditioned athletes.

It should be very exciting, but me wrestling fulltime and doing the fighting also, the advantage goes to Randy. He’s already established as a fighter. Even though I’m an Olympic gold medalist, it’s been years since I really competed. It’s just a matter of getting some training down. I’m not timid or scared of a large crowd – that’s not going to bother me. I’ve been in cages – I’m not worried about that. I know that when I get in there, I will be ready. Am I ready right now? No. I have to train to get ready. I’ve been working a lot on my technique more than anything. My conditioning will come down the road six weeks before the fight; that’s when I’ll really clamp down and train hard. As far as technique and stuff, that’s why I’m periodically going to the Pittsburgh Fight Club and training and making sure that I learn the proper technique so I don’t get myself in trouble.

You mentioned earlier about wanting to bring guys on the roster up to your level. Samoa Joe already has main-evented pay-per-views with you. Who are some others that you think will eventually rise up to the main-event level?

Actually, let’s talk about the guys. Samoa Joe isn’t there yet. If you’re going to put him on the same pedestal as me, I don’t think he’s quite there. Can he get there? Yeah. A.J. Styles, is he there? Not yet. He will get there. Robert Roode is a great example. He’s a guy that’s going to end up being a major big-time star. James Storm – another guy that’s mid-cardish right now that’s going to end up being a big star. Abyss, when he comes back, we’re actually going to back up and redo his whole character and make him more of a monster. He’s going to be a bigger star. We have a lot of talented kids. Kaz is another kid that I think is going to have a big future. He just needs to work a little bit more on his promo skills. The tag teams are great. The Motor City Machine Guns – even if you split them up and let them go singles, they are exciting and they’re fun to watch; they have so much talent.

Right now, the established guys are me, Kevin Nash, Christian Cage, Sting and Booker T. I’d say that’s the first level. And then you’ve got Abyss, Samoa Joe and A.J. Styles that are right there. And Tomko, I forgot about him. So those guys are right about ready to make it. And the guys right under them are James Storm, Robert Roode. Even guys like Eric Young. Even though his character is somewhat of a goofball, he’s a great wrestler and people love him. As silly as his character is, people love that kid and he’s very talented. Our X Division is incredible and doesn’t get the credit it deserves. I like wrestling those guys in the X Division. I don’t get to do it enough, but when we do I have a lot of fun.

It’s weird, because WWE has five hours of programming a week, and when I was up there, I’d be looking around and thinking, “There’s really nobody left for me to work with.” I came down here and I was like, “Wow, I can work with this guy, this guy, this guy, this guy – it seemed like the list went on and on.” I know there are some guys that are even under the guys that I mentioned, but eventually they’re going to get there. I want to wrestle those guys. One guy that’s getting over really big, and his character is a little bit off the wall, is Black Machismo. He’s doing a great job. I guess in TNA there’s a little bit of something for everybody. We have a lot of different characters and stuff like that, but one thing we do have is really good wrestlers.

After your in-ring career ends – whenever that is – do you want to stay involved in the business in some capacity?

I will stay with TNA definitely, and I mean this with all my heart, for at least the next 10 years. Whether it’s wrestling, agent, producer, even helping out with promotion, I’ll be here the next 10 years; I’m not going anywhere. I want to see it all the way through. I don’t want to bow out before this company is head to head with WWE, and it’s going to happen eventually. It’s happened before in the past with WCW and WWF, and it’s going to happen again with TNA and WWE. And God willing, it happens while I’m still wrestling. But if I’m not, and it’s six or seven years from now and I’m retired, I will still be in the company in some capacity.

The next TNA Q&A will be with Gail Kim.