Beth Phoenix wrote:
I would not glorify the despicable act of violence towards women by even mentioning that name. [xx]
Beth Phoenix wrote:
I would not glorify the despicable act of violence towards women by even mentioning that name. [xx]
A new threat to dominant Divas Champion Beth Phoenix has emerged, in the form of the ultra-intense challenger Tamina Snuka. Can “The Warrior Princess” dethrone The Glamazon when the two clash for the title at WWE Elimination Chamber?
Having plowed through the Divas division since winning the “Butterfly Championship” at WWE Hell in a Cell last October, Phoenix recently declared to WWE.com that she was bored with her lack of competition. In no uncertain terms, she stated that there are no legitimate contenders to her title and plans on being Divas Champion forever.
However, Tamina has apparently taken issue with The Glamazon’s bold pronouncements. The daughter of WWE Hall of Famer “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka has proven herself a tough and animalistic opponent, one that Beth has yet to best one-on-one in the squared circle – though the two dangerous Divas have certainly seen what the other can do in through tag team showdowns.
The fuse to their explosive pay-per-view showdown was lit on the Feb. 10 edition of SmackDown. After defeating an agile Alicia Fox, Phoenix prepared to inflict further harm on her conquered adversary. However, The Fabulous Firebird’s assault was interrupted when Tamina’s music hit the speakers and the tenacious second-generation Diva stormed the ring.
Rather than attacking each other, their eyes locked in an intense stare down – each wearing a hint of a smile that seemed to indicate that they both welcomed the other’s challenge. Whether it was a sign of mutual respect, enmity or amusement, that shared look foreshadowed a looming bout between the pair.
Beth Phoenix might have spoken too soon when she declared that there were no worthy rivals left for her in the Divas division. Tamina will bring not only her impressive size, strength and speed to the ring, but also a proven and impactful weapon – her father’s earth-shattering splash off the top rope.
When the powerhouse Divas Champion faces her most feral foe will she be able to continue her dominant run on top? Find out when WWE Elimination Chamber airs live on pay-per-view Sunday, Feb. 19, starting at 8 ET / 5 PT. [xx]
The pairing of Beth Phoenix and Natalya may have had some different names during their tenure atop the WWE Divas division, but their impact has always been consistent — pain and suffering for the “Barbie dolls” who have taken to wrestling.
As they say, the best storylines have a bit of truth to them. Given that both Natalya and Phoenix paid their dues on the indy scene for years and years before their break in WWE, it’s natural for them to target the girls that may have gotten into the wrestling business through modeling or the Diva Search contests.
“Beth and I, we’re very real. I think that people, whether you like us or hate us, we’re not the norm, we’re not the cookie cutter, we’re not Barbie dolls. We pride ourselves on being very, very, very different. Both of us love Olympic powerlifting, both of us have a very strong confidence about us when we’re in the ring,” Natalya recently told SLAM! Wrestling.
“We really know what we’re doing, and people can respect that. We’re very much on the same page, and different in a lot of ways, but we’re very much on the same page. I think we want to make change as far as the Divas go, and the Divas division for WWE. I think making girls cry is a perfect way to say, ‘Hey, we’re in charge, and if you don’t like it, then deal with it.’”
The Divas of Destruction have targeted Kelly Kelly in particular, but Eve Torres and Alicia Fox have been recently victims too.
Over the weekend, the news of Strikeforce’s women’s featherweight champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos’ drug-test failure for steroids sent shock waves throughout the MMA world, with major questions arising over what it means for Cyborg’s career and for an already struggling women’s MMA division in North America.
The news also garnered a strong, deeply disappointed reaction from Beth Phoenix, current WWE Divas Champion, who posted the following on her official Twitter account yesterday: “So disappointed in Cris Cyborg. What a let down to women that looked up to her. #noshortcuts.”
Interestingly, Cyborg has reportedly expressed interest in working with WWE before, back in early 2011 when she and Strikeforce were at loggerheads over money and she was looking for other options in the United States. Eventually, she ended up working out a compromise with Scott Coker and returned to the Strikeforce in the summer.
Who knows? Now that the Brazilian fighter has a lot of time on her hands (she has been suspended for a year by the California State Athletic Commission), maybe a role in WWE will suddenly become more likely? Certainly a Cyborg vs. Phoenix match would be a spectacle in itself. [xx]
Alberto Del Rio and Beth Phoenix were both injured at Monday’s WWE RAW Supershow from Philadelphia.
Beth Phoenix has a nasty lump on the side of her face following her match with Alicia Fox. At this time, it’s unclear at what point in the match the injury takes place, but it looks like she has a golf ball sticking out of her right temple. She tweeted:
@AliciaFoxy tried her hardest to destroy my face. There will be hell to pay for trying to tarnish my beauty.”
“After hours in the trainers room, I broke a lot of mirrors with my fists.
Phoenix’s partner Natalya tweeted a message of support:
“@TheBethPhoenix i am sorry to see what happened on Raw…But we are still UNBREAKABLE.” [xx]
Not everyone goes home happy after the Slammy Awards. Or if you’re Beth Phoenix, you go home in shock with a red slap mark across your face, courtesy of Kelly Kelly.
The Glamazon didn’t even give Kelly a chance to relish her award for Divalicious Moment of the Year before trying unsuccessfully to swipe the Slammy out of her hands on Monday night. She felt she deserved it, envelope be damned.
Well, guess what? She did deserve it.
Phoenix isn’t the only one who has legitimate beef over leaving empty-handed, though. By our count, there were five Slammy Awards that could have feasibly gone another way in the voting. That includes Superstar of the Year, which the WWE Universe bestowed upon CM Punk.
With that said, it’s time to take a case-by-case look at the snubs of the 2011 Slammys. In other words, who has reason to complain about being passed up for awards? And whether you agree or disagree with our selections, be sure to lend your voice to the snub debate on our Facebook page.
Divalicious Moment of the Year | Snub: Beth Phoenix
As much as it was a terrific 2011 for Kelly Kelly, let’s face facts: the Divas Championship changes hands multiple times every year. Winning the title with a victory roll over Brie Bella arguably doesn’t give it award-worthy oomph. But what The Glamazon is managing to do in the ring redefines the WWE Universe’s expectations for a Divas match. The Survivor Series crowd was floored by Beth’s top rope Glam Slam, a maneuver that looks devastating enough on its own. While we’re at it, Natalya’s double Sharpshooter also had more “wow” factor as a Divalicious moment. Long live the “pin-up strong” movement. [xx]
As previously reported, WWE filmed an angle at Tuesday’s SmackDown tapings that never aired on television. After a divas tag team match, Kaitlin turned on her partner AJ Lee and aligned herself with their opponents, the divas of Doom.
No word yet on why WWE scrapped the segment from this week’s SmackDown broadcast. Officials had been talking for a while about putting Kaitlyn with Beth Phoenix and Natalya but had also been discussing turning both Kaitlyn and AJ Lee heel. [xx]