Friday, November 29, 2024

50 Sexiest Divas 2009: The Results #30-21

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50sexiestdivas2009

This is the moment we’ve all been waiting for: 50 Sexiest Divas 2009 is here! All summer long, you have been voting for your favourite Divas in a hopes of getting them featured on the list and now the results are here. Over the course of five days, we will be revealing the list as voted by you!

What is it? 50 Sexiest Divas is an alternative to similar lists voted for by readers of FHM, Maxim and Ask Men. Our list however, is dedicated entirely to celebrating the sexiest women in wrestling. The countdown is voted solely by the fans making it even more prestigious to those women featured!

THE RESULTS: #30- 21

RANK
NAME
& DESCRIPTION
LAST
YEAR
LENA YADA
In a huge leap from last year, former ECW Diva Lena Yada climbs to #30 on this year’s 50 Sexiest list. Lena has already wrestled for ChickFight and will soon be seen in Wrestlicious.
48
STACY KEIBLER
And taking a giant tumble is one of the most well remembered ex-Divas, Stacy Keibler. She falls to 29 from last year’s 11.
11
ROSA MENDES
Raw’s Rosa Mendes moves up two spots from last year, helped by her call-up in December 2008, no doubt.
30
KATIE LEA
It’s good news for Katie Lea, as the ECW Diva moves up 9 spots from last year! Has her gothic new look had something to do with it?
36
SABLE
Former legend, Sable comes in at #26 this year — down from last year’s 22. This year, she celebrates a new baby boy & her husband is king of UFC!
22
NATALYA
Moving up three spots from last year is Natalya. The SmackDown-turned-ECW-turned SmackDown-again Diva, is currently enjoying success with her boyfriend & cousin.
28
LACEY
Making a huge debut on the Sexiest list is SHIMMER’s Lacey. The 26 year old brings more SHIMMER representation to 50 Sexiest, this year.
VELVET SKY
Three spots up for the Beautiful People’s Velvet Sky. She follows in the footsteps of Madison Rayne. Can Angelina Love make the list too?
26
ALICIA FOX
A strong debut for Alicia Fox at #22. Since debuting last July, Alicia has been a member of all 3 WWE rosters in seemingly record time.
DAFFNEY
Speaking of big debuts, TNA Knockout Daffney got a renewal on her wrestling career this year. Once a huge part of WCW, it’s good to have her back. And you agree as she debuts at #21.
21

Check back tomorrow for #20-11!

How To Make Yourself Stand Out as a New Diva

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Fans know better than anyone what they want to see. And while it seems WWE and even TNA thinks it can dictate to the fans what they think we want to see, most of the time they’re wrong. Take for example, we fans at Diva Dirt, we may be just that – fans – but we’ve seen so many women pass through the doors of WWE, TNA and even the developmental territories over the years. We can tell which ones have the ‘it factor’ and which ones don’t.

In this day and age, where there seems to be an assembly line of blonde hair and big breasts or generic, blah personalities — why don’t the newer girls read websites or message boards like this and get the fan’s opinion? Sure they’re busy with training but it seems most, if not all, are web-savvy enough to open up Twitter accounts [and update endlessely throughout the day] or maintain MySpace accounts. How hard could it really be? It’s true that the wrestling industry, particularly industry leader WWE, shuns the Internet and probably advises against their stars reading ‘dirtsheets’. But in the midst of all that ‘dirt’, there are genuine gems of observation to be had. Gems that could help these young rookie Divas get over with the fans that will be watching them in years to come.

Too often, especially in the last few years, we have seen newer stars crash and burn in their first few weeks on the main roster and be unceremoniously dropped without getting any real opportunity. I can’t speak for the guys, but I think we’re qualified enough to speak for the girls. We have seen so many girls come through those doors, seemingly become jaded by the promise of fame and forget that wrestling is a craft and it should be perfected.

Every fan, especially our readers at Diva Dirt, has an opinion and I think most of it is valuable and could be extremely valuable to young upstart Divas such as those down in FCW or those just trying to break it on the indies. At the end of the day, we share a common goal — we want to see talented girls make it to the big time & these girls want to make it. But it’s so important not to mould yourself on someone that has been there and done that before you [Kelly Kelly] or come across as a bland, predictable face [countless girls]. Making yourself stand out is everything from the attitude you carry to the look you have — as for the wrestling skills, we aren’t exactly qualified to judge but it would help if you weren’t epic fail. But even if you are, some of the worst wrestlers can get over on their looks and charisma alone.

Some advice:

1. Don’t be just another blonde. They are a dime a dozen in this industry and if you can help it, don’t become another one — especially if you’re looking to get into WWE. Dye your hair to a colour that other girls in the company aren’t rocking right now. Trust me, I realise how precious hair is to a girl but speaking from a fan standpoint, most if not all of us roll our eyes when we see yet another blonde. Dying your hair gives you some sort of edge. It’s immediately eye-catching. I know there’s one blonde in developmental right now who I was hoping would be sporting her previous red hair.

If you’re really conscious, why not put in some streaks a la Natalya or MsChif? I think those are two great examples of an industry standard with a twist.

2. Charisma can’t be taught. It is inside each of us but it needs to be exerted. You have to concentrate all of your energy and exert it into coming across well to the audience and to those watching at home. Whether you’re wrestling or just making an appearance, there is always a way to show your personality and high energy. A great example of this is Christy Hemme. I may not like her, but there’s no denying as soon as you see her she ‘pops’ as having a great charismatic personality in comparison to some of her fellow Diva Search contestants i.e. Maria, Eve Torres and Tiffany. It helps off-set her so-so wrestling.

3. Try not to be a generic babyface or generic heel, please! This one is hard because in WWE the scripting just isn’t there for the Divas, so most of the girls do come across as bland babyfaces or bland heels because they aren’t scripted in a manner that shows personality. But to argue that point suggests you’re just resting on your laurels. Use your charisma [as listed above] and go against the typecast. Most of the girls in WWE have to fend for themselves, for the most part they are overlooked by the writers and have to enhance their own storylines or find a way to incorporate their personality. Flashing your pearly whites is all well and good to show you’re a face or narrowing your eyes to show you’re a heel; but that’s what all the other girls are doing. Maryse has the exact same crappy writing as other heel Divas like McCool or Beth Phoenix — so why is it that she comes across as an uber-heel while the other two don’t? It’s certainly nothing to do with the writers. The same can be said for girls like Trish Stratus, sure she may have gotten better writing than they have now but she also exuded personality and a warmth that made the fans love her. You can, if you put your mind to it, do more than just what WWE scripts you to do. It seems like some of the Divas are too afraid to go against the grain.

There are so many bland girls today that do the little smile and finger point as they come down to the ring and trust me, even little things like that are scrutinized.

The moral of the story is to put yourself out there and not be afraid to take risks. For most, they want to be a WWE Diva and you have to realise that WWE is not exactly the most respective company of woman’s wrestling. Even the best wrestler can be bland in the character department [for example Gail Kim in her current run] and it’s quick and easy to blame WWE for their booking. But if they really wanted [like some of them do], the girls could take it upon themselves to add to their own persona like  the Diva/Knockout we spoke to who inspired this post.

Introducing Women of Wrestling Podcast: Episode 1 with Allison Danger

womenofwrestling

We are extremely pleased to announce that Diva Dirt has acquired the distribution of a fabulous new women’s wrestling audio show, the Women of Wrestling Podcast. Hosted by the wonderful Stew Allen and Lee Burton, the show features a special guest from the world of women’s wrestling in each episode with lengthy discussion into their career and lots of witty banter too.

In the first episode, Stew and Lee are joined by SHIMMER co-founder, Allison Danger as she discusses things ranging from her role in SHIMMER as both wrestler and management, as well as her various injuries. There’s also a cameo from Allison’s daughter, Kendall to listen out for! Plus some hilarious Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts stories.

The Women of Wrestling Podcast is a must for all of our readers, I listened to this last week and was really entertained, enough so to want to bring it to Diva Dirt. We are extremely excited to have the podcast as part of the site and equally excited to have Stew and Lee join us as an extended part of our team!

Hopefully for future episodes, we’ll try and make posts where you can submit your questions for the guests that Stew and Lee will have lined up.

We’re also still working on the iTunes podcast feed, so that will launch a little later. But for now, you can stream the episode or download it below.

[gplayer href=”http://diva-dirt.com/download/womenofwrestling/episode1.mp3″][/gplayer]
[Download (right click & ‘Save Target As’) | File Size: 22.7mb]

Please Note: The ‘Women of Wrestling Podcast’ is the proprietary content of Stew Allen and Lee Burton.

– Official Women of Wrestling Podcast page
– Download Allison Danger matches on ClickWrestle

FCW Diva Wesley Holiday Debuts on ECW

If you were watching ECW tonight, you might have noticed a bright young face interviewing folks backstage, going by the name of Courtney Taylor. She would be Beverly Mullins, better known to FCW fans as Wesley Holiday. Phew, did I list out enough aliases for you?

A former Hooters model (Oh dear..), Courtney had been training in FCW for some time, being used largely in a managerial role for Superstar Alex Riley. The pair had participated in dark matches in the past few television tapings. We’ll see if this interviewer role sticks, or if she’ll actually spawn into an official ECW Diva. Personally, I can’t say I see much of a promising future in interviewing ECW Superstars week in, week out. Though I must admit, it’s always exciting to see new Divas being born.

Random observation (blatantly stealing from Melanie here): Does she look a bit like Melissa Joan Hart to you? I’m getting Sabrina the Teenage Witch vibes.

EDIT: Watch Courtney’s debut below:

SmackDown Spoilers: August 21st, 2009

Spoilers for this Friday’s SmackDown are up. Click the ‘+’ sign to view:

SmackDown - August 21st, 2009
– Maria and Melina vs. Layla and Natalya is next. Melina pins Natalya with a sunset flip. (Source: NoDQ.com)

– According to fans at the event, Michelle made an appearance at ringside during the match:
“Michelle joined the commentary team for the match of Melina and Maria vs. Layla and Natalya. She appeared to be walking with a bit of a limp. Midway through the match, Michelle stood up and held up her title.”

Thoughts after the cut:

Impact Spoilers Including Hamada’s Debut: August 27th, 2009

Spoilers for next week’s show are now out, including the debut of Hamada. Show airs 8/27 on Spike. Click the ‘+’ to read:

Impact - August 27th, 2009
– TNA announced a tag team tournament amongst the Knockouts. Awesome Kong & Raisha Saeed def. Traci Brooks & Sharmell. Saeed tags herself in and gets the pin, after Kong does the groundwork. Kong looks pissed at Raisha afterwards.

– Hamada def. Daffney in a no disqualification match. Hamada hit a moonsault to the outside of the ring on Daffney, through a table. Won with a sitout piledriver.

Thoughts after the cut:

Report: Heat on Mickie for ‘Unprofessional Reaction’ Last Night

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mickie1

Rumours around the ‘net are coming in thick and fast, with one suggesting that Mickie James was chewed out last night at Raw for reacting unprofessionally following her match last night — an obvious reference to the sour look on the Divas Champ’s face.

But that’s not all, apparently the higher-ups were not too happy with Mickie’s obviously improvised finish, in which she ended the bout with a forearm and felt she should have ‘handled it better’, which is a fair assessment in my opinion.

As for Gail Kim, she was knocked for six but didn’t suffer a concussion thankfully as was speculated earlier today.

It should be stressed that all of this is just rumour at this point. There don’t seem to be any reports from the major players, right now. I expect any ‘news’ regarding last night will be of interesting discussion, hence why I opted to post this.

I wanted to make this week’s Redux as diplomatic as possible, because I do feel last night was an unfortunate incident and is best left to lie. So I did try to hold back more of my personal opinions as to Mickie’s death-scowl last night. I guess I’ll let loose on Thursday’s Roundtable, but if what is written above is truthful, I can’t disagree with any of it.

50 Sexiest Divas 2009: The Results #40-31

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50sexiestdivas2009

This is the moment we’ve all been waiting for: 50 Sexiest Divas 2009 is here! All summer long, you have been voting for your favourite Divas in a hopes of getting them featured on the list and now the results are here. Over the course of five days, we will be revealing the list as voted by you!

What is it? 50 Sexiest Divas is an alternative to similar lists voted for by readers of FHM, Maxim and Ask Men. Our list however, is dedicated entirely to celebrating the sexiest women in wrestling. The countdown is voted solely by the fans making it even more prestigious to those women featured!

THE RESULTS: #40 – 31

RANK
NAME
& DESCRIPTION
LAST
YEAR
TAYLOR WILDE
Making her 50 Sexiest debut is former Knockouts Champion, Taylor Wilde. Wilde became TNA’s own blonde sensation last year but pushed the envelope compared to other blonde bombshells. Thumbtacks anyone?
NIKKI BELLA
Interestingly, only one Bella makes the 50 Sexiest Divas list: Nikki. Yeah, I guess Nikki is the sexier Bella, judging by your votes? Nikki makes her debut at #39.
KRISTAL MARSHALL
Despite being released two years ago, Kristal is still looking every bit the Diva, turning heads in the fitness industry — and all this post-baby! No wonder she’s moved up the Sexiest list this year!
41
LILIAN GARCIA
Outgoing Raw ring announcer, Lilian Garcia has already fallen 17 spots down from last year and she’s not even gone yet. We’ll miss that set of lungs…
20
MADISON RAYNE
One of the rookie Knockouts on the TNA roster, Madison Rayne makes her 50 Sexiest debut this year. And as part of the Beautiful People, we expected nothing less!
JENNIFER BLAKE
It’s a surprising debut for SHIMMER’s Jennifer Blake. The young Canadian, known for her platinum blonde hair is ‘Girl Dynamite’ indeed!
CHRISTY HEMME
Recently returned Knockout, Christy Hemme drops 20 spots on this year’s list. Has Christy lost her sexy?
14
SHELLY MARTINEZ
She’s a former Diva and former Knockout but it looks like being away from the industry has hurt her. Shelly Martinez drops to #33 from last year’s 19.
19
ANGELA FONG
Making her Sexiest list debut is the trail-blazing FCW Diva, Angela Fong. Never has there been such a buzz about a developmental Diva & that translates to a good debut for a girl that has yet to get national exposure.
STEPHANIE MCMAHON
Holding onto her spot from last year, Stephanie McMahon is still #31 on the 50 Sexiest list. Sure she’s a backstage face these days, but you voters seem to remember her!
31

Check back tomorrow for #30-21!

Raw Redux (August 17, 2009) – Where Did It All Go Wrong?

26

A much anticipated match ended with a death stare. Caused riot on the Internet. And possibly had the worst botched finish for any match featuring women of this caliber. Rivalling the horrible finish to the Mickie JamesTrish Stratus match at WrestleMania 22, they can’t just edit this one off the DVD and act like it never happened, because there won’t be a DVD. And try as they already have to eliminate the evidence [click here], we all know what went down last night and there is no way to spin it — the ending was horrible. Watch what will soon become ‘the infamous’ Gail Kim vs Mickie James match below:

Honestly, as some may expect me to do, I don’t want to blame anyone for what happened. Yes, the finish was awful but I actually enjoyed the match until that point. In fact, I told Erin right after it happened: “Just watch, after that finish no one will remember the match or talk about the match, it’ll be all about the finish.” And lo-and-behold, I do believe I was right. The whole match, I feel, is getting painted with the same brush stroke as the finish. Whether you enjoyed the match is down to your own personal opinion but I was liking where it was going.

I don’t want to scrutinize either Diva or suggest it was either of their fault. The finish was horrible but it was a freak accident & shouldn’t be a reflection on either of their in-ring ability. It definitely looked as though Gail hit her head and was out of it following the crossbody and as one can expect, was in no fit state to continue the match. She was out of it. For that, I applaud her for finishing the match and I applaud Mickie for attempting to improvise the finish.

This Week’s Roundtable Discussion: Mickie James & ODB

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This week on an all new Roundtable, the Diva Dirt team will be discussing WWE, TNA and a lot more! Join us as usual, on Thursday. But in the meantime, have your say on your topics:

Please try to keep them short and sweet — just one sentence, so we can read out as many comments as possible.

WWE Topic:Mickie James has met criticism for some time now from both fans and critics, with the suggestion that she has become complacent in the ring and in her spot in WWE. Has Mickie taken her eye off the ball?”

TNA Topic:ODB became the new Knockouts Champion at Hard Justice, despite having middling success and TV time in recent months compared to other Knockouts. Was it the right call to put the strap on her?”

We are also going to do a segment where we answer your questions about anything and everything, from wrestling to random stuff! If you have a question for Melanie, Erin, Steven or Tiffany, just leave it in a comment and make sure you state who your question is for! Whether it be an opinion on a certain Diva or if you just want to know what their favourite sandwich filling is!

Remember: Keep your comments brief, one sentence is best. I’m being serious about this, every week we get huge paragraphs from some of you and bear in mind, I have to read this out and it gets tongue-twistery. I know it’s hard to say what you want to say in a line or two, but it’s important to keep your comments brief so we can read them out.

Please copy and paste and the form below into the comments box, to best help us! Feel free to leave any field blank if you don’t want to answer:

Your name (required):
Comment on this week’s WWE topic:
Comment on this week’s TNA topic:
Question for Melanie/Steven/Erin/Tiffany (delete as applicable):

Don’t forget to join us on Thursday for the Roundtable!

– Catch up on past Roundtable episodes on iTunes

Random Observations from Raw [August 17th, 2009]

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randomraw2

So because I like to indulge myself in time-wasting, I thought I would do another round of random observations from last night’s Raw:

– Did we transport to WrestleMania 22?
– And if we did, they can’t edit that out on the DVD because there won’t be one!
– But they did try and edit it out of the Raw photos on WWE.com. No Mick Kick or DDT pictures. You can take away the evidence but you can’t take away our memories!
– Yes forever and a day, people will be able to relive ~that night~ on YouTube or just download the whole episode and keep it safe forever.
– One day, the world will be asking ~”Where were you on that night?”~
– Mickie’s face post-match looks like Charlize Theron in Monster.
– Oh what I’d pay to see the atmosphere backstage afterwards. I’m sure it would be even better than the main event.
– Something tells me this wasn’t what Judy Garland had in mind when she said, “Meet me in St. Louis.”

The Tiffany Guide to Hard Justice: Hardly Any Justice

codydeanerftw

Warning: the following article might induce this reaction.

Last night, the 5th annual installment Hard Justice, marked a monumental moment in Knockouts history.  As you all already know, a new Knockouts champion has been crowned.  The reception surrounding this decision has been rather…controversial, to say the least.  An outrage has been ignited, and with good measure.  There are certain moments in professional wrestling that feeds the hand of those neither deserving nor rightful.  In this particular instance, the sole-victor and luminary of this contest was deprived of the proper acknowledgment that is only fit for a suitable champion, exposing an underlying selfishness and intolerance that still plagues the wrestling world.  An unfortunate event by which one Cody Deaner has fallen victim.  However, with every cloud comes a silver lining, and with good grace, I have every faith that this affliction will one day be eradicated.  Sure, the outcome may not have been what some of us would have hoped, but with time and patience, Cody Deaner shall overcome.  We shall overcome. For now, we must accept.

Cody Deaner may have walked out of the Impact Zone with the title, but unfortunately this is not so.  It has come to our attention that TNA has chosen to acknowledge otherwise.  There are no words to adequately the describe the amount of outrage expressed by Deanermaniacs worldwide at the result of a such a dishonorable conclusion.  Cody Deaner, the underestimated underdog from the meager upbringings of  the Alabama backwoods overcame the odds last Sunday by scoring the 1-2-3 victory in a hard-fought battle for the coveted Knockouts championship.  A contest that would surely go down in wrestling infamy was soiled by an injustice so present in today’s world of sports entertainment.  In a perfect world, the rightful champion would have been declared.  However, such stipulations have conveyed otherwise.  Thus, Cody Deaner fails to stand today as the TNA Knockouts champion.  What some would even liken to the “Montreal Screwjob,” thankfully, the remainder of the match was not nearly as unfortunate as the outcome.

Certainly a match-of-the-year contender, this now ironically titled event has gifted us with a wrestling clinic not seen since the days of Bret Hart.  Thus, you can imagine my enthusiasm in dissecting and analyzing each and every aspect of ODB and Cody Deaner vs. Angelina Love and Velvet Sky.  PWI, here I come.

Watch the match and more after the cut:

Raw Response: August 17th, 2009

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Another Monday night, another Raw discussion post! Discuss tonight’s Divas action right after it happens! This your unfiltered free-for-all for all things Raw!

Announced for tonight, Mickie James defends her Divas Championship [against Gail Kim, assumes Melanie].

Impact Spoilers For Thursday Night: August 20th, 2009

You know the score, highlight to read the spoilers. Show airs Thursday at 9pm on Spike:

* Madison Rayne was attacked by Angelina Love when she was on her way to the ring for a match. Love beat Rayne down, put her in the ring and pinned her. Velvet Sky came down to put a bag over Madison’s head but Tara and Christy Hemme came out to make the save.

* Sarita w/Taylor Wilde vs. Traci Brooks w/Sharmell vs. Awesome Kong w/Raisha Saeed vs. Christy Hemme w/Tara is up next. Traci pinned Sarita to win the match after Kong gave Sarita a butterfly facebuster. Kong went to the top for more offense when Traci stole the win. [Source: NoDQ]

Webmatch: ODB def. Alissa Flash

Superstars Spoilers For Thursday

Even more Divas action on Superstars this Thursday night! Show airs at 8pm ET on WGN. Highlight to read:

Beth Pheonix def. Kelly Kelly

TNAwrestling.com Profiles New Knockout, Hamada

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hamadaTNA is doing a great job of creating buzz around it’s newly signed Knockout, Ayako Hamada, who it seems will be going by just her last name. They’ve put up a nice piece on their site including quotes from one Awesome Kong [even though she can’t string a sentence together on TV].

With TNA’s biggest, baddest heel putting Hamada over, it would be absolutely ridiculous not to strap the rocket on her from the get-go. Her debut could instantly gain more traction than Tara, Sarita or Alissa’s. Read below:

She’s 28 with 10 years of in-ring experience, and a lifetime of pro wrestling knowledge truly at her front door.

The newest TNA Knockout, Hamada, was recently signed to a contract and arrives from Japan, best known as the daughter of wrestling sensation Gran Hamada, 59, himself a wrestler of 35 years.

Expect great things from this Orient import.

“I would compare Hamada with AJ Styles, because she’s simply phenomenal,” TNA’s Awesome Kong said in a rare interview (Kong has also dominated the Japanese wrestling scene). “She’s a triple threat. She’s mastered the Japanese style of wrestling, along with the Mexican lucha libre, and I can see it in her eyes that she wants to be a great American wrestler.”

More after the cut:

50 Sexiest Divas 2009: The Results #50-41

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50sexiestdivas2009

This is the moment we’ve all been waiting for: 50 Sexiest Divas 2009 is here! All summer long, you have been voting for your favourite Divas in a hopes of getting them featured on the list and now the results are here. Over the course of five days, we will be revealing the list as voted by you!

What is it? 50 Sexiest Divas is an alternative to similar lists voted for by readers of FHM, Maxim and Ask Men. Our list however, is dedicated entirely to celebrating the sexiest women in wrestling. The countdown is voted solely by the fans making it even more prestigious to those women featured!

THE RESULTS: #50 – 41

RANK
NAME
& DESCRIPTION
LAST
YEAR
JACQUELINE
Recently departed veteran, Jacqueline may have been cut by TNA this year but the fans show that they still remember the former two time Women’s Champion. She makes this year’s #50, down three spots from last year.
47
JACKIE GAYDA
It’s a twenty spot drop for former WWE Diva and TNA Knockout, Jackie Gayda. Despite having two kids, Gayda showed fans she’s still a bombshell when she appeared at WrestleMania 25.
27
TRACI BROOKS
TNA’s first ever Playboy covergirl, Traci may be getting it all out for the magazine but fans have shown they’re not as interested as they were last year. Traci drops from 33 to 48 this year.
33
TIFFANY
The first new entry on this year’s 50 Sexiest Divas list comes in the form of ECW GM, Tiffany. Could her office chic look have something to do with it?
KAREN ANGLE
It hasn’t been a great year for Karen Angle and adding to it, last year’s #23 falls 23 places this year. Lack of exposure after being axed by TNA may have had a helping hand.
23
DAWN MARIE
Former WWE Diva and ECW original, Dawn Marie takes a bump on this year’s list too — but not as steep as others. She charts at 45 down from last year’s 39.
39
CHYNA
She may have been away from wrestling for several years, but our readers seem to think Chyna is still sexy. She falls from 34 last year however.
34
LACEY VON ERICH
Young upstart Lacey Von Erich is set to be a big star for Wrestlicious & makes her 50 Sexiest debut also, charting at #43.
NIDIA
Former Tough Enough champion, Nidia is back for a second year and surprisingly moves up three spots on the 50 Sexiest countdown.
45
MOLLY HOLLY
One of the most warmly remembered ex-Divas, Molly Holly, returned for a brief stint at WrestleMania this year but that didn’t help, as she doesn’t quite match her spot last year.
35

Check back tomorrow for #40-31!

Another Fatal Four-Way on Impact

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This week’s Impact will see yet another fatal four-way match, this time featuring Awesome Kong, Christy Hemme, Sarita and Traci Brooks. An eclectic mix of Knockouts there.

Also, Angelina Love will speak out on losing the Knockouts Championship as well as address the in-fighting among the Beautiful People.

We should have spoilers tonight.

Making Sense of “Hard Justice-Gate”

For a company with a female president, TNA sure proved that wrestling is still a man’s sport. Despite boasting the most progressive women’s division on national television, TNA’s Knockouts division was not, this time, exempt from TNA’s recurrent reckless booking. Having already shot themselves in the foot several times with stale and lousy booking for its men, the women seemingly had it better. And while ODB is technically the Knockouts Champion, the ‘comedy’ booking which sees Cody Deaner claim the belt as his own, not only shoots TNA in it’s own foot — but they may as well amputate.

If we seriously look at it, I’m sure they have a plan and all will be made right eventually, but in an industry where women are 10:1 to men, fans were rooting for this Knockouts division. Rooting for the talented women in it & rooting for a major company to finally do right by it’s women. TNA has delivered us great women’s wrestling in the past two years, they have given us some interesting feuds — what they haven’t subjected us to is the same brand of immature, exhibitionist and often, exploitative booking we have seen in WWE. The Knockouts division was meant to be a televised alternative, TNA even aggressively marketed itself as such.

But with the most recent swerve of having a man take posession of the women’s belt, a bitter taste and a sense of betrayal has been felt by fans, including Diva Dirt. The Knockouts division seemed an important part of the product, the one thing that continuously delivered when the rest of the product was met with moans & groans, yet this time it was just as susceptible as the half-baked booking that goes into the men’s storylines. Cheap tactics to draw a few laughs & get the crowd to pop — but beyond the surface, this is a division that was built upon serious women’s wrestling and should have been better protected from the cheap, slapstick booking that we saw at Hard Justice and even prior.

There were several indicators that this pay per view match wouldn’t be up to the Knockouts’ usual standards. Despite being the title feud for the division, it was ultimately an afterthought for the weeks leading to the event, with Awesome Kong & Tara and even Traci Brooks‘ return getting more attention. The storyline here seems to have been built on everything but wrestling; slapstick comedy sketches backstage, Cody Deaner kissing the Knockouts… riveting. With such strong effort in the booking, there was little to anticipate going into the match — post-match, the already low expectations hit Titanic-like depths.

Deaner taking posession of the Knockouts Title may provide some ‘entertainment’ for the 5-and-under crowd, but for the mature viewer that tunes into a godforsaken episode of Impact to watch women’s wrestling, what can we expect? Trailer park skits? Jerry Springer-esque fighting between he and ODB? Him ‘defending’ the title against the Knockouts? No doubt, gleaming with pride, despite being creatively castrated [as he already was with the commentators noting how ‘proud’ he was of his accomplishments with scorn]. Gender-bending skits may be funny for some, but in my estimation, it just shows why people look down on wrestling and it’s fans as being ‘lowbrow’.

To come back to my earlier point, I have no doubt that in due course TNA will ‘do the right thing’, returning the belt to one of the girls and ‘restoring order’. But no matter how soon that is, the damage will have already been done. No matter how pretty the bow they attempt to tie on the belt and division beyond this, there will always be those ‘Deaner skits’ that are inevitably to come.

And even exceeding the bounds of the title situation, the old age misogynist booking of this match further negates the great work these women have put into the division. As a woman, I felt extremely uncomfortable watching Deaner force himself upon all three of the Beautiful People, not to mention spanking Velvet Sky‘s ass till it was red-raw. I realise it’s acting, but that kind of stuff may have been acceptable in another time and place, however when you market your women’s division as ‘serious’ and then conform to the same ploys used elsewhere, it again negates the work that those girls put in the ring [not to mention violates the women’s movement].

One of our commenters said it best when they point out that a day removed from serious allegations being made against their top superstar, they have “Cody essentially violate three of their women on live TV.”

Booking to be proud of? With Vince Russo at the helm, many smarter journalists than I assumed there’d be less emphasis on wrestling & more on what we saw at Hard Justice. However it fails my comprehension how a female president of a wrestling company can sign off on this and sit back and watch it. The same woman who, one month ago, made the following comment: “I’m very proud of the Knockouts. As a woman, it’s important to me that these ladies be represented properly.”

I applaud those of you who still have faith in the Knockouts division, because mine has waned. I have the utmost respect for the women in the division and know some of them are aware of this site & may be reading, however I cannot endorse a product like this. If the Knockouts were ‘represented properly’ at Hard Justice, I ask Dixie Carter, what crack pipe is she smoking and may I have a puff?

Hard Justice: ODB Wins Knockouts Title, But Wait There’s More…

25

Moments ago at Hard Justice, ODB and Cody Deaner defeated Angelina Love and Velvet Sky to take the Knockouts Championship. Deaner rolled up Velvet after a botched attempt to spray him in the eyes by Madison Rayne on the outside, she instead accidentally sprayed Velvet allowing Deaner to win.

Afterwards, ODB was announced as the new Knockouts Champion but Deaner snatched it out of her hands taking it for himself.

Yes folks, a man has posession of the Knockouts Championship — something even WWE wasn’t silly enough to pull the trigger on. Does this negate all the hard work these talented women have put into the division? I would say yes and if I were one of the Kongs, Taras, Saritas etc., I would be pissed. With ‘unfiltered Vince Russo’, some wrestling journos smarter than I expected something like this might happen. The Knockouts Title becomes but a prop in TNA’s idea of ‘comedy’.

And even if we look beyond the fact that a man has posession of the title, all the abrupt title changes are aggravating. It’s like they’re passing around the belt like candy.

On a brighter note, I felt the tension between Ang/Velvet and Madison was nicely done, post-match.

Unwrapped: Eye Candy for the Week Ending August 15th, 2009

4

In order to consolidate our Eye Candy coverage, we’ve developed a brand new feature: Unwrapped! We’ll take all the new photoshoots from the week and grade (or “brand”) each based on the following criteria:

Appearance (hair, clothes, makeup.. you get the drift)
Poses (are they versatile or just glorified statues?)
Uniqueness (have we seen this photoshoot a billion times before?)
Grading scale: Sweet (Great)/Bland (Iffy)/Sour (Awful)

Brie Bella‘s Flower Power
Appearance: Apparently, Brie’s celebrating the 40th anniversary of Woodstock, as she’s wearing a t-shirt of the poster for the famous musical festival. And, I guess to supplement that, she hippy-fied the rest of her look. Well, the shallow version of “hippy”, anyways. She’s wearing moccasin-like shoes, a tie-dye headband, and a shredded denim skirt. It’s a lot of things competing for attention, and it looks a little too costume-y. It’s like she took one person’s idea of what the 60’s were and threw it together for one outfit. I’m surprised she wasn’t wearing peace sign earrings or something. The pink is a pretty color, though–it’s the first thing that I noticed about this shoot, and as much of a mish-mash this look is, the pink makes it a little more pleasing to the eye.
Poses: It’s all peace signs and sweet smiles from Brie, all while lounging on an equipment trunk. It’s pretty dull, and can’t say I really understand the significance of the trunk–if anything, it exposes a stark contrast between the “buck-the-system” mentality of Woodstock and the “corporate stiff” status of the WWE. It just shows the shallowness behind the concept of the shoot. Not very well thought out..
Uniqueness: A silly, contrived WWE photoshoot? Come on, we see those things all the time.
Grade: Sour. It’s just another WWE mish-mash of a photoshoot–concept and execution don’t really meet. I know it’s ridiculous to even fathom a politically-charged photoshoot, but something like this is just silly and shallow. It’s akin to Miley Cyrus throwing around the peace sign just because it looks cute.
Click to see the rest of the photoshoot.

Follow the cut to see the rest of this week’s photoshoots.

TNA Hard Justice Prediction Post

3

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TNA delivers some Hard Justice tonight on pay per view, as Angelina Love defends the Knockouts Championship against ODB. Though it seems the exact details of the match are ambiguous; TNA has teased that Angelina will team with Velvet Sky and ODB with Cody Deaner while the latest lineup on TNAwrestling.com suggests a singles bout. It goes to show how much effort TNA has put in.

But in any case, here are our picks:

Erin: I just don’t see them handing the title over to ODB at this point, when really all she is is a punchline. Sure, she may kick the Beautiful People’s asses and show dominance, but at the end of the day, she and Deaner are just something to laugh at. Now, I can see them making a whole story out of them doing silly, trashy stuff with the Knockouts Title, but I don’t see much longevity in that. Though, TNA does like taking the title off of Angelina Love for a few weeks for strange reasons, so who knows what they’ve got up their sleeve. Still, I get the feeling that Angelina will retain her title, but only after some hi-larious shenanigans during the match involving Deaner. Maybe even use it re-plant the seeds for the Beautiful People tension that was teased a while back then uncerimoniously dropped? Maybe, maybe…

Melanie: This match is incredibly underwhelming considering the other things going on in the division right now, it’s not a pay per view caliber match to me and the only reason it’s on the card is because it’s a title match. ODB has become a Jillian for the Knockouts division — a comedy act that has lost it’s credibility. She is a great talent but that is lost considering the shtick she’s been doing with Deaner & the way they have booked this feud on everything but wrestling. ODB has lost any credibility as a serious title contender that she may have once had, I think it would harm the division to put the title on her, quite honestly. Considering that Angelina has only just won the title back, I don’t think it would be wise for her to drop it just yet & hopefully someone in TNA realises that. To be honest, I wouldn’t be completely shocked to see ODB and Deaner get the title to make it a prop in their comedy sketches, especially with ‘unfiltered Vince Russo’ as some wrestling journos are putting it. I don’t have a prediction, I think it could go either way. But for the sake of the division let’s hope Angelina retains.

Steven: I have seen this feud as a comedy since it started. It’s served no purpose in showcasing these girl’s talent, but has acted as a vehicle to get Cody Deaner over with the TNA audience. That said, I see Angelina keeping her title this Sunday, and feuding with Tara or Awesome Kong (again) after their feud concludes. However, I would love to see OBD take the belt, as she has deserved it for a long time. I fear, due to the nature of this match, ODB would have to be co-champion with The Deaner. A sad day in Knockouts history, indeed.

Tiffany: I predict that Angelina will prevail at Hard Justice. There hasn’t been much build-up toward ODB winning the title, and I’ve felt like her brief feud with Angelina was a way to keep the champion busy during Victoria‘s feud with Kong. Until that boils over, I think that ODB will be in cahoots with the Beautiful People just a little longer. I’m not convinced she’ll be winning the championship just yet.

Mickie James on Divas Roster, Trish, False Starts in WWE & More

11

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Divas Champion, Mickie James has given a fantastic interview with NZPWI, talking indepth about the current Divas roster as well as her classic feud with Trish and much more. Highlights below:

When asked about the current focus on actual wrestling matches amongst the Divas, it seems as though Mickie shares much of the same opinion as we fans as well as other women in the industry today:

I think that it’s like… huh… the thing is, the worst thing in the world is to watch bad wrestling. You know? So they can be the most beautiful women in the world, but if they can’t wrestle then it means nothing. They go out there, and it’s just like… ugh. Like, it’ll turn the biggest wrestling fan away, it’ll make them change the channel. So it’s important, I think… that’s why we’ve really worked hard with the girls to be the best that they can be. You don’t have to be the best in the world, just be the best that you can be. And everybody’s stepped up their game, and everybody’s working hard and everybody’s continuously trying to get better and better. Until, you know… and that’s important, because if you truly love what you do, you would want to be the best that you can be. And I think that’s important, and I think that’s what we’re really looking for now, it’s not just the pretty face. Like, those are a dime a dozen. We can have a million pretty faces but if you don’t have a genuine love and a genuine passion for what you do, then it shows, it shines through, and the people see it, it shines through on camera, it shines through in your work and everything, so I think that that’s what’s changing. People that have come in, now, like you always know the people that truly love what they do, and people that are just there… because. I think that even the casual fan can see that on TV. And that’s what we’re trying to really get rid of, because everybody goes out there and they work and they pour their heart and soul, and there’s nothing worse than someone that doesn’t care.

I thought this was a really interesting quote from arguably the top Diva in WWE right now. Considering that in just the last week we’ve heard the same thing from JR & off the record, one of the ex-Divas we speak to regularly, echoed both of their sentiments. Steven also argued similar points in yesterday’s Saturday Supplement. I think it goes to show that the feeling is unanimous amongst the girls themselves, people in the industry like JR and the fans. It’s time that WWE looked beyond pretty faces and put more effort into highlighting their talents. To be utterly fair to them, right now we have Gail Kim and Melina making good progress on their respective shows. Let’s keep it up!

You can read the whole interview or even listen to the audio of it, by clicking here.

After the cut, some quotes on Trish and more:

SHIMMER Spotlight: Madison Eagles

4

MadisonEagles

You know what time it is people! Really? You don’t? Well I’ll clue you in. It’s time for another dose of SHIMMER goodness. SHIMMER Spotlight is back, bringing you profiles on the hard hitting ladies of SHIMMER. Everyone from the major players like MsChif to the up and coming rookies like Ashley Lane and Portia Perez. This week’s Spotlight is on Australian wrestler and SHIMMER up and comer, Madison Eagles:

Name: Madison Eagles
Aliases:
None
Age:
25
Entrance Theme:
Unknown
Finisher(s):
The Soaring Eagle (Springboard moonsault); Hell Bound (Death Valley Driver onto the knee) ; Sit-out Powerbomb
Years Pro: 8
Associates: Jessie McKay; Ryan Eagles; Robbie Eagles
Accomplishments: One half of ‘The Pink Ladies’. Made her SHIMMER debut on Vol. 21 in a six-team gauntlet match

If you ask anyone who has been keeping up with SHIMMER lately who’s the one to watch, you’ll most likely hear this name: Madison Eagles, and for good reason.

Hailing from Sydney, Australia, this beauty from down under stands at 6′ 1″ and boasts quite an impressive move set. Madison made a name for herself in her home promotion, PWA, against the likes of Penni Lane, Sway and fellow SHIMMER rookie Kellie Skater in singles competition. A former dancer, Madison’s is known for her flexibility as well as her hard-hitting style. While Madison has never held a singles title, she has seen success as a tag team with former PWWA Women’s Champion, Jessie McKay, collectively known as ‘The Pink Ladies’.

In October 2008, The Pink Ladies caught the attention of SHIMMER, who booked them in a six team gauntlet match  on Volume 21 to determine the first ever SHIMMER Tag Team Champions. While they were the first team eliminated, The Pink Ladies made an great impression in their U.S. debut. Volume 22 saw Madison and Jessie take on SHIMMER originals and all-around veterans, The Experience (Malia Hosaka and Lexie Fyfe). Once again, Eagles picked up a loss, but got a standing ovation from the SHIMMER audience who chanted, “Please come back” as the team exited the ring.

More after the cut:

Diva Dirt Fantasy League Table: Week 2

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In the second week of the Fantasy League, there were more opportunities to wins points than last week — with more Divas and Knockouts featured! Check out the table below to see where you ranked.

A breakdown of points awarded are after the cut too.

EDIT: Table has been recalculated after an error with those who chose Natalya.

#
NAME
RAW
DIVA (POINTS)
SD/ECW
DIVA (PTS)
TNA
KNOCKOUT (PTS)
TOTAL
GRAND
TOTAL
1
Eric
2
3
0
5
13
2
mariosthemaster
2
3
2
7
12
3
Mike
3
3
3
9
12
4
William
2
3
0
5
12
5
WWEFanGurl
2
3
2
7
12
6
Divafanjill
2
3
1
6
11
7
gfuk07
3
3
1
7
11
8
Kevin
3
3
0
6
11
9
KiKi
2
3
1
6
11
10
Knockout12
2
3
1
6
11
11
Miss Bella
3
3
1
7
11
12
pukimonster
3
3
1
7
11
13
Redsoul
2
3
1
6
11
14
Tanzie
2
3
1
6
11
15
Tom
3
3
0
6
11
16
xcc77
3
3
2
8
11
17
Al
2
3
1
6
10
18
Chris
2
3
1
6
10
19
Dom
3
3
1
7
10
20
Kris Style
2
3
0
5
10
21
Alexandre
1
3
0
4
9
22
Antonio Luckett
1
3
2
6
9
23
Brandon
1
3
2
6
9
24
Laurmarz
2
0
3
5
9
25
Russell
3
0
3
6
9
26
Stratusboi
1
3
0
4
9
27
Thannya
3
2
0
5
9
28
Thrillseeker
2
2
2
6
9
29
Carly
3
0
1
4
8
30
Daniel
2
0
1
3
8
31
ddrok
2
2
1
5
8
32
Kathy
2
0
1
3
8
33
Lee
1
3
1
5
8
34
Lita-Sault-666
2
0
2
4
8
35
Nala310
2
0
1
3
8
36
Rico
3
0
2
5
8
37
Roger
3
1
3
7
8
38
Steven_D
2
0
1
3
8
39
StevoParadiso
2
2
1
5
8
40
xodaniellexo
2
1
2
5
8
41
Carlos
1
3
1
5
7
42
Extreme
2
1
0
3
7
43
Jenny
3
1
1
5
7
44
Paul
2
1
1
4
7
45
Pedro Pedroso
1
3
1
4
7
46
Sophie
2
0
1
3
7
47
TheWWEUberfan
3
1
2
6
7
48
Weirddork
2
1
2
5
7
49
Ksmith
1
2
1
4
6
50
Spiffy
1
0
2
3
6

Breakdown of points & the staff league table after the cut:

Saturday Supplement: Formula for the ‘Perfect Diva’

21

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In the Saturday Supplement, the Diva Dirt team will aim to discuss a news story, a televised event or other relevant and current topics. The objective, like the average weekend newspaper, is to offer more indepth and lengthy discussion.

ss5-melinaWe’re in a era of women’s wrestling where it’s not only possible, but likely for former porn stars and models to get title shots, while professional wrestlers with years of experience get put on the backburner. With that said, I ask the question: What are the components for the ‘perfect Diva’? And even if you have the total package, will you still be marketable to the WWE Universe?

The first ingredient to the ‘Perfect Diva’ recipe is skill. An extremely valuable asset to any Diva (though you wouldn’t know it judging by some of the girls in recent years) should be in-ring skill. A pretty smile and a great rack can only get you but so far in the wrestling world. If you want to be taken seriously by a wrestling promotion and their audience, you should at least be able to take a decent bump.

The next component is sass. While in-ring skills are extremely important, personality is just as vital. It doesn’t matter if you’re the best wrestler to ever step foot in a wrestling ring; no one is going to care if you have the personality of a brick wall. The biggest offender of this rule is current Women’s Champion, Michelle McCool. While McCool has come leaps and bounds since her debut, in regards to her wrestling ability, her lack of charisma has been her downfall. The fans just can’t seem to get behind (or against) Michelle and some might attribute this to absence of spunk outside of the ring.

As shallow as it may sound, another important aspect of women’s wrestling is beauty. Professional wrestling for women, especially in this day and age, is based mostly on aesthetics. If you don’t have the so-called ‘look’, chances are you won’t make it very far in a mainstream promotion. That said, in the last few years, wrestlers such as Awesome Kong, ODB and Beth Phoenix, who may not be considered ‘beautiful’ in a conventional sense, are breaking the mould of the typical Diva. They are prime examples that a female wrestler doesn’t have to look a certain way to get noticed.

Last but probably the most important part of this formula is passion. While passion is probably one of the most important tools for a wrestler, male or female, a lot of women’s wrestlers in a certain mainstream promotion seem to be lacking. It’s not surprising given how girls are recruited these days. Talent scouts seem to be looking for models they can turn into wrestlers, as opposed to actual wrestlers.

Most Divas possess some of these qualities that I have listed but a select few have the ‘total package’. There is an elite group of girls, who are able to captivate audiences with their skills, attitude and beauty. Only a minuscule percentage of ladies who have dedicated their lives to learning every subtlety and nuance of pro-wrestling. Unfortunately, these Divas never get the push.