Former Divas Champion Michelle McCool has talked about her former colleagues, including Melina, Kelly Kelly and more, all week, but it looks like it will be her latest comments that get the Internet talking.
The former WWE Diva opened up about her tenuous working relationship with the recently retired Beth Phoenix, stemming from her receiving a botched Glam Slam during a champion vs champion match on SmackDown in 2008. Michelle was the only Diva who took the move who didn’t have her arms unhooked as she came down to the mat (watch a clip here).
Speaking to her official website, McCool revealed: “Everyone always used to ask when I was going to wrestle her or I want to see you in a one-on-one match with her. I think one of the most consistent answers for any of the girls when they’re asked, ‘Who do you want to wrestle’, is Beth Phoenix — but that was never really the case for me, as far as an opponent or dream opponent. For me, that was always Molly Holly, Lita and Awesome Kong/Kharma. Personally, Beth was never the answer for me.”
Addressing that cringe-worthy Glam Slam, Michelle says: “At the time, I was like: ‘Oh, man. I’ve never seen that happen before. How did she not get my arms unhooked?’ I didn’t understand, but figured it must have just been a mistake. I never said anything, but I did have a concussion from that. But I’ll never give anybody any credit for hurting me — that’s just my stubbornness, it has nothing to do with WWE. I’ve just always been that way. At the time, I just thought she didn’t even know she did it.
“Come to find out, and it wasn’t even that long ago, I remember getting the WWE magazine in the mail and flipping through the pages. Sure enough, she’s doing an interview in the magazine talking about when she gave me the Glam Slam and saying how bad my head hit the mat, how she didn’t unhook my arms and oops! I’m just like: ‘Wow. Years later, the truth comes out’. She knew that she did that, it definitely sounded like she knew she did it at the time. I was just like: ‘Dang! What did I ever do to her?’ What was that? Was that my “I didn’t come in the ranks” welcome to the rings match — what? I didn’t care. I just blew it off.”
Michelle also reveals that the two decorated champions didn’t have the best working relationship when they were put in a feud on SmackDown in 2010, pitting Layla and Michelle against the Glamazon.
She said: “It was definitely bumpy, to say the least. It was never easy. I understand that it can’t be easy on the other side of the LayCool gimmick, no matter how tough the exterior is. It was just definitely a struggle. Being a Diva in a man’s world, you’re constantly in an uphill battle; pitching ideas, trying to get TV time, trying to get in-ring time, the whole nine yards.
“It seemed like we were on the same page — pitching stuff, throwing ideas off one another in the locker room, but then come to find out… that wasn’t the case behind-the-scenes. We didn’t understand why stuff would keep getting shot down. Steph, agents and writers would come to us and say: ‘We’re no longer doing this’, or, ‘This hits too close to home’. Whatever. There was definitely some stuff being said on the other end and that made it a struggle. She could have just been at a different place in her life, we all go through tough times or confusing times — I just don’t really know what her case was. I’m sure people will start hating me for my own opinion, but that wasn’t a fun LayCool storyline for us. We had some good matches and I’m always going to do business, but I think I had a different experience with her than most people who wrestle with her or against her.”
Listen to Michelle talk about Beth Phoenix below:
