With one Divas match officially booked for WrestleMania 32, there’s another shaping up for a possible spot on the card. The exact form that match would take is unknown, but this week’s Main Event seems to be pointing us in a general direction.
In a Six-Diva Tag Team match, Brie Bella, Natalya and Paige take on Naomi, Tamina and Summer Rae. An unexpected visitor adds further intrigue to the battle and provides the hook for the aforementioned second Mania match. Let’s watch it all go down:
The babyfaces enter first (Paige, then Natalya, then Brie), followed by the heels (Summer Raw, then Naomi and Tamina). Paige and Tamina start the match for their teams, Paige ducking the tie-up and catching Tamina in a waistlock. Tamina elbows her way free and sends Paige into her corner, where she drives her shoulder into her midsection repeatedly. Summer takes this opportunity to tag herself in, but after getting in a few licks, she’s taken down into a roll-up pin attempt by Paige. Summer kicks out.
Paige decks Summer with a running knee and goes for another pin, prompting Summer to kick out again. Paige tags in Natalya and does a tandem takedown of Summer, allowing Natalya to hit the ropes, step over Summer and hit her with a low dropkick. Natalya grabs Summer by the arm and tags in Brie, who enters via the second rope, hitting Summer with a double axe handle. She wrenches Summer’s arm and slams it down against her own shoulder before sending her into the ropes. Summer reverses the whip and hits Brie with a spinning heel kick on the return. Summer goes for the pin, but Brie kicks out. We head to a commercial as Brie gets some distance between herself and Summer.
When we return, Brie and Summer are battling for control, Summer winning the exchange by charging Brie into the corner. Brie thwarts Summer’s follow-up attack, though, and comes charging at her, resulting in a double takedown that leaves both women lying. As Brie starts to get to her feet, Lana makes a grand entrance, walking down the ramp and taking up a post at ringside. This distracts Brie, but she’s able to grab hold of Summer and tag in Natalya. The tow Divas hit a double suplex on Summer, but before Natalya can go for the cover, Summer rolls to her corner and tags in Tamina.
Tamina takes control in the corner, delivering right hands to Natalya before sending her into the opposite corner. Natalya fights her off, though, and thwarts Summer’s attempt at interference, only to walk straight into a superkick from Tamina. Tamina goes for the cover, but Natalya kicks out.
Tamina hits Natalya with a bodyslam before tagging in Naomi. Naomi hits a dropkick and goes for a cocky pin, but Natalya kicks out. Lana observes all of this perched atop the announce table. Naomi grabs hold of Natalya and fends off her attempts to fight back with a flurry of kicks that eventually send her to the mat. Naomi tags in Summer, who kicks Natalya square in the stomach before locking in a headlock. Natalya starts to fight back quickly, but Summer sends her back to the mat swiftly. She drags Natalya to her corner and tags Naomi back in.
Naomi toys with Natalya, slapping her. She sets Natalya up for her corner bulldog, but is shoved into the turnbuckle instead, landing hard on the mat. Natalya tags in Brie, who fends off Naomi’s quick attack and hits her with a missile dropkick, following by a series of kicks to the chest. She runs the ropes and hits Naomi with a dropkick, then takes out Tamina and Summer for good measure. Naomi sits up against the bottom rope, positioning herself for Brie’s running knee strike, which she hits. Brie goes for the cover, but Tamian breaks it up. This brings in Paige, who takes out Tamina with a kick. Summer answers that with a spinning heel kick, and Natalya responds to that with a discus clothesline.
Naomi gets the final say by taking Natalya out with the Rear View and charges toward Brie in the corner. Brie launches her over the ropes, but is nailed with a kick to the head. Naomi climbs to the top rope and hits a crossbody, but Brie rolls through it, locking in the Yes Lock! Naomi taps out!
Paige and Natalya celebrate their win by lifting Brie onto their shoulders while Lana offers some sarcastic congratulations.
Thoughts: This was so fun, which is no easy feat for a multi-Diva tag match. It had fast-paced action, provided several fresh Diva combinations and told a story that felt much deeper than the usual straight “babyface vs. heel” thing, thanks mostly to Lana’s presence.
It was unique to see the tables turned a bit, the babyfaces doing most of the isolating with their domination over Summer. Everyone here looked pretty strong, and though the ending provided the usual “every hits their signature move” set-up, I loved how Brie rolled Naomi’s crossbody into a Yes Lock. Brie hasn’t used that move very often, so it’s almost a surprise to see her bust it out, especially in such an “out of nowhere” way. It displayed a level of skill Brie hasn’t been given the opportunity to show lately.
This story, clearly, centers on Brie and Lana, so it makes sense for her to pick up the win. Paige and Natalya didn’t do all the much – Natalya moreso than Paige – but they each add their own flavor to the trio. Naomi, Tamina and Summer are definitely a unique combination, but Summer’s off-kilter nature kind of makes it work, as if she’d think she’s a perfect fit even if she’s far from it. I can totally buy Naomi and Tamina allowing her to take the licks and happily enter the match when they deem it necessary.
As for where this is headed, I’m assuming this will result in another multi-Diva tag match at WrestleMania, Lana joining the heel side to make her in-ring debut. Alicia Fox is the obvious choice to join the babyfaces, which I’m happy with. I just hope she doesn’t lose much of her “charm” in aligning with the good guys. Still, this isn’t her story; it’s likely Brie’s final (or next-to-final) chapter, so she deserves to drive it, and she will. The only question is how she’ll bait Lana into finally entering the ring. Now that should be fun to watch.
