Saturday, May 18, 2024

Divas Championship News & Notes

Well it seems the Divas Championship is finally gaining some steam and here’s the latest making the rounds on the Internet:

– According to one fan, the Divas Championship title was on show during the Divas match on SmackDown. So we will get out first look at the title tomorrow! The title apparently looks like the WWE Championship with pink diamonds on it. Not tacky at all… I guess I should reserve judgement till I see it!

– Elsewhere, it is expected that the title will be decided at The Great American Bash later this month. If you ask me this is a pretty good deal, given Raw’s women’s division has kind of been derailed by injuries of late. I think giving Raw and the Women’s Championship a rest from a pay per view could help. Plus they’d probably just have a Katie LeaMickie James match which we’ve already seen on pay per view, why not put the rematch on Raw and let SmackDown have a shot?

Heat Between Michelle and Natalya?

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While it seems SmackDown’s answer to Trish and Lita are destined to face off in the ring, there are rumblings that Michelle McCool and Natalya haven’t been getting along backstage. Read below:

There is said to be some legit heat between SmackDown Divas Michelle McCool and Natalya Neidhart. It’s all due to a recent incident involving the two.

McCool reportedly tried to re-teach Natalya, an 8-year wrestling veteran, on how to lock up correctly. She also wanted to show her how to work “WWE style.” Apparently, Neidhart didn’t take McCool’s attempt to teach her on her wrestling too well.

Gee, ya think?! Could you imagine a Diva Search contestant trying to teach you how to wrestle? Especially when you’re part of the Hart family?! Whatever the story is here, the part that irks me the most is “WWE style.” To translate, “WWE style” means “watered down.” As I’ve written here on the site in so many reviews, I just love watching Natalya wrestle, this girl has more ring presence than any of the other Divas and her matches are physical, intense and exciting. I don’t want to see her watered down!

Calling All Harry Potter Geeks

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Image credit courtesy of Randy-Orton.com (minus the photoshopping)

You know who you are, so I won’t do you the embarassment of publicly calling you out! As if the shame of being a Potter geek isn’t enough, you don’t need Diva Dirt on your case, right? Anyhoo, the folks at WWE Magazine made a funny in their August issue! They did a little section called “Meet The Rejects”, where they made mock-up covers for WWE Magazine and wrote that Vince personally nixed each and every one of them from appearing the cover! One such “potential” cover features the Glamazon superimposed onto a Harry Potter poster to create “Harry Potter and the Order of Beth Phoenix.” Pretty cool, pretty nerdy…

Natalya The Non-Blonde

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Future Divas Champion (well she has a 50% chance anyway), Natalya will be a sporting a new ‘do this Friday night when SmackDown airs. The above picture is a fan picture from last night’s SmackDown taping (credit: Katy and PWPix.net), highlighting Natalya’s new auburn hair colour.

Personally, I loves it! I guess homegirl decided that she didn’t want to be “just another blonde” in the so-called “WWE Universe” (they really want that to catch on, don’t they? Stop trying to make it happen. It’s not going to happen.) and it’s a wise move, considering SmackDown and ECW have blondes in abundance – Michelle McCool, Kelly Kellly, Maryse and Cherry. Thumbs up from this blogger, but what about you? Sound off in the comments section!

Melina Injury Update; Out Up to 5 Months?

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WWE.com spoke with Melina about her recent ankle injury, getting her thoughts on the setback. According to her, she may be out up to 5 months! Yikes. Let’s hope it doesn’t take that long for Melina to get back into tip-top shape:

Last week, two-time WWE Women’s Champion Melina broke her heel when she took a hard fall during an inter-promotional Divas tag team match, becoming the latest Raw Diva to have her career put on hold. Melina talked exclusively with WWE.com about her injury.
“My spirits are good. I was upset I was unable to finish the match the way I wanted to. I felt like I let Mickie down and I let the fans down,” said an contemplative Melina. “I’m sad that I’m unable to do anything at the moment. Things happen for a reason, I suppose.”

Melina and WWE Women’s Champion Mickie James were in a heated contest with SmackDown Divas Victoria and Natalya when she landed awkwardly. The two-time champion quickly grabbed her ankle and grimaced in pain. Now, the Diva will be out of action for up to five months.

Mamma Maria!

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Who’s that girl la la la la la la la, Maria‘s that girl?! I know, I know, it’s hard to believe that Maria is capable of taking such a sexy shot as the one above. I’m sure WWE’s airbrushing team played a vital part in the production of this picture, but nonetheless – doesn’t Maria just look smokin’ hot in this SummerSlam promotional picture?

The whole theme of this year’s SummerSlam is summer blockbuster movies, a fantastic concept if you ask me (or Erin) in fact, I don’t know why WWE hasn’t capitalised on it in years past! Maria looks totally believable and incredibly sexy as the token “action babe.” Me thinks she gives Angelina Jolie’s Fox in Wanted a run for her money! Here’s to hoping they have a whole photoshoot based on this, because it’s a vast improvement from the pouty fish lips they serve up at WWE.com.

I’m already lovin’ Chris Jericho as Indiana Jones in the SummerSlam promo package, hopefully they team up some Divas to play the Sex and the City cast!

What Ya Say, Cherry Darling?

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Whenever I see Cherry, I think of the time SD commentator Mick Foley starting singing Bruce Springsteen’s “Sherry Darling” modified to fit Cherry during one of her matches. So, needless to say, “You can tell her there’s a hot sun beating on the black top / She keeps talkin’ she’ll be walkin’ that last block” is running through my head right now. But enough about Springsteen – we have a photoshoot to judge! This one’s called “Bing” (yeah, I don’t get it either). Now, Cherry’s never produced the best photoshoots – her gimmick lends to more cubmersome attire (big polka-dotted tops, tennis shoes, black leggings) – but I always like to see her on WWE.com, mostly because she brings such a different look to the table.

Granted, all of her photoshoots look the same, but it’s refreshing to see a girl who’s neither making an “O” face, puckering, or sporting a ridiculous set of cleavage. Though I’d burn those black leggings, mostly due to the fact that they look like a longer version of the sliders I’d wear when I played softball – you know, what with the butt cushioning. I’ll admit that I don’t tune into SmackDown regularly, but apparently she’s been getting more active in the ring as of late, and is slowly but surely improving her in-ring work. If she can become a competent wrestler, I’ll be all aboard the Cherry fan train.

[poll=84]

Groundbreaking Ashley News!

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Now, I know that I’m only here to help with TNA and such, but I just thought I should put this news up asap. WWE Raw’s Ashley has a very big secret that she has been hiding from just about everyone. Oh, and she is also leaving the WWE “for now”. Read below for her Myspace confession:

some unfortunate news…this is the hardest decision i have ever had to make

I have some thing to tell you guys and I wanted u 2 be the first 2 hear it…I tried very hard out of the respect I have for her privacy and not wanting her 2 be exposed in any negative light but I have a 7yr old daughter and I just found out 2day that she not well and I can’t be on the road with WWE when my own flesh and blood needs me…I am a single parent trying 2 juggle taking care of my child and working my butt off for her and now at this point when she is sick and needs me home I have 2 make the decision 2 bow out of wwe for a while and take care of my daughter…I wish I could do both and that there were more ways 2 get everything done but with the severity of the situation I’m going 2 have 2 ask for an early release for now…I may be back if she gets better…please keep her in your prayers…I love the wwe…I love all the talent that works there and most of all I love all the fans…thanks for always being so supportive…so this is me taking a bow and stepping out of the lime light right now to take care of my family…stick with me guys cause I will be back somewhere some how when this is all over…thanks for all your love and support and I’m sorry 2 be the bearer of bad news…thanks and good night my punks…stick with me ill see you soon
Xoxo
Dirty Dirty

Wow. That’s about all I can say. How could anyone just hide the fact that they’ve been a parent for 7 years? Most would think “To help her career”, but is that even a good reason? I’m baffled at this point. I mean, we all knew this chick was a little weird anyway, but what the hell. That’s all I can say at this point. I’d love to hear what you all have to say about this one.

Divas Get Tanned (Like They Need It)

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As if the likes of Maria and Eve Torres don’t already use enough fake tan aren’t tanned enough, they’ll be doing it on camera this August! The Divas will appear on E!’s hit reality show “Sunset Tan”, after reading the news, this blogger decided to do a little digging of her own and found this trailer for the new season! I can clearly spot Maria but not Eve, though I think I may have seen Jillian but go figure there are a dozen of fake blondes in a show called Sunset Tan.

Sunset Tan season two kicks off in August. We’ll definitely keep you updated in future!

SmackDown Spoilers: Fourth of July

How about some SmackDown with your apple pie this Fourth of July? Well finally, we have an update on the Divas Championship situation! Find out what you’ll be seeing this Friday night by highlighting below:

Michelle McCool defeated the other Divas in another “Golden Dreams Match” to earn the right to face Natalya for the Divas Championship.

Caption This: Maryse & Cherry

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It’s time for a new feature but an old classic at the same time! The legendary game of “caption this” comes to Diva Dirt! All you have to do is think up a caption for the picture below and leave a comment with your caption! The best caption will win a fantastic, all expenses paid, super exciting prize courtesy of Diva Dirt *

* Actually, since we are poor, your prize is the gift of fresh air. Unless of course, you want Erin’s phone number.

Uh Oh, Mickie James Injured

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They are dropping like flies! I think Michelle McCool put a hex on Raw’s women’s division coz girlfriend ain’t got her Divas Championship title shot yet, one week after Melina went down to a fractured heel, Mickie James injured (as I suspected) her shoulder at Night of Champions. Poor Mickie worked last night’s Raw with a bruised and strained shoulder. I think she injured her shoulder when she went into the ring post, because I said in the live blog as it happened, her scream sounded pretty darn real to me. Thankfully, Mickie’s shoulder wasn’t seperated as WWE officials first had feared.

Hopefully Mickie’s shoulder heals up soon, because Raw can’t afford to lose it’s last remaining face Diva! Me thinks this is even more reason to introduce Layla as a face! Get well soon Mickie!

Impact Spoilers For This Week

As I reported earlier, Moose and Roxxi will be in competition this week on TNA Impact. It seems as though the match may have been a little rough. Highlight below to read the spoilers:

Moose defeated Roxxi, who was busted open around her eye during the bout.
-pwinsider.com

Impact Preview For July 3rd

The TNA Knockouts were mentioned in the preview for this Thursday’s TNA broadcast:

– Speaking of Karen Angle, “The Phenomenal” AJ Styles is livid over what happened with Karen, Kurt and The Beautiful People this past week. According to sources, AJ is coming to “iMPACT!” on a mission to put an end to the ongoing problems!

– TNA Knockouts newcomer Moose will take on Roxxi in singles action.

I’m personally a little tired of The Beautiful People attacking Karen Angle. Granted, it makes for good t.v, but I much more prefer Angelina Love and Velvet Sky in the ring.

As for Roxxi vs. Moose, I’m anxious to see how this match will turn out. After last week’s “Bimbo Brawl”, I’m not afraid to say that Moose is a scary individual. How will Roxxi fair in the ring with someone she never competed against? We’ll have to find out this Thursday (or I could just post a spoiler for those who don’t want to wait ’till then).

Diva Dirt Hires TNA Correspondent

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We have your heard your pleas and cries *cough* for more TNA and we have acted accordingly. Please welcome Doug, our new TNA Correspondent! Doug will be covering all things Knockout here at Diva Dirt as well as helping moderate all our live blogs! Please join us in welcoming Doug!

Melina Gets a Bit Darker

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Melina‘s new photoshoot, “Breaking Light”, looks eerily similar to her recent “Morning Light” shoot (look, they only changed one word in the title!). The scenery’s the same as that one, so that’s definitely a plus. However, her outfit’s different this time, with the recently injured Diva sporting a darker ensemble. I don’t know if I dig it as much as the one in her last shoot. Maybe if it were looser and less drawstringy… Is that a word? Who cares, I just made it one. So I guess, all-in-all, I like this shoot much better than most of Melina’s usual stuff, but not as much as the last shoot. Hey, perhaps they should keep her photoshoots in that little hotel room/conference room they’ve got going on there. These last two ones have been some of her best yet.

[poll=83]

Maria Puckers Up; WWE.com States the Obvious

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Looks like WWE.com finally got their photoshoot titles right! Maria‘s new photoshoot, “Puckering Up”, pretty much sums up every Maria photoshoot – it’s all about the kissy-face. To be honest, I’d rather focus on the fish lips this time around, as her outfit looks like something straight out of the juniors department of some trashy department store. What can I say – fringed gloves do nothing for me. And really, a GARTER? Yuck. But, like I say every time, Maria is gorgeous – you can definitely see that here. It’s just her irritating facial habits and bad sense of style that holds her back.

While we’re on the subject of Maria, who thinks she’ll make her SmackDown debut tonight? Fellow draftee Layla failed to appear on her new brand last night, so will Maria suffer the same fate? We shall see!

[poll=82]

Raw Redux – June 30, 2008

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This week on Raw: Mickie James continued her roll, pinning Jillian in singles action. Meanwhile, Katie Lea continues to cause trouble.

Thoughts & Reactions
With Raw more eventful and more exciting that it has ever been in the past few years, why was the women’s action so average last night?! I have been left underwhelmed for the second night in a row, after the match at Night of Champions and then the match last night on Raw. While it was nice to see Jillian get some ring time, what was the point when it’s clear what WWE thinks of her? How can the fans be interested in Jillian when WWE beats a dead horse with her gimmick and has her job 24/7? Needless to say, I don’t think there’s much point to Jillian’s career at this point in time and I don’t think WWE are at all interested in rejuvenating it. When Jillian came out, didn’t you just know Mickie was going to win this easy match? The only thing that got me through was the fact that I thought Katie might hit the ring after the match, attacking Mickie to continue to their feud. That didn’t happen either…

So what we’re left with is an average night for the Divas… again. Is it just me or has the Raw women’s division lost some of it’s steam in recent weeks? Are the Creative team focussing so much on making the rest of Raw more interesting that they’ve forgotten about the women’s division? Last night felt like just a token Divas match to fill a quota. For many weeks, the women’s division was one of the highlights of Raw but while the rest of the product improved last night, the women’s division digressed. The match itself wasn’t bad, it was just average.

Later in the evening, we did get a hint that WWE will continue the Mickie-Katie feud in a backstage segment with Katie Lea and Paul Burchill, this was well done. I really like the idea of Katie being a trouble maker and Paul can’t leave her alone for five minutes without her causing more trouble! Her character is a lot of fun, I just want to see that translate into the women’s division and not in random skits putting over other Superstars. I was pretty disappointed with the lack of Layla too, I don’t think they’ve come up with anything for her, go figure.

Miz & Morrison Prank Call Natalya

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The WWE Tag Team Champions, Miz & Morrison appeared on Tom Green’s talk show Tom Green’s House Tonight last week and even busted out their phone books pranking some of their fellow Superstars! After not getting through to Layla and SmackDown wrestler Jesse (of Jesse and Festus), they then got through to none other than Natalya. Very funny, check it out:

Lol I love Natalya’s “diva demand” at the end, “It’s not Natalie anymore, it’s Natalya and I’d rather not even have the Neidhart attached to that.” She was a great sport though! Oh an even bigger question mark, who was that answering Layla’s phone?!

Systematic Breakdown of Night of Champions

We are dusting off our monthly systematic breakdown, looking back at last night’s Night of Champions pay per view. With the Women’s Championship on the line, it was Mickie James defending against Katie Lea. This is a match I have been looking forward to, but it seems almost thrown together at the last minute – this match could definitely have benefited from a storyline behind it. Nonetheless, both Divas worked hard and delivered a decent match – if a little disappointing. This match to me, was average, it wasn’t bad but it hardly lit me alight in the same way as the iconic “I Quit” match at One Night Stand. Couple the average match with the lack of story history and again, average.

I give the girls credit, they did the best with what they had to deliver a good match and both Katie and Mickie worked hard to tell some sort of story during the match. The plot with Katie working over Mickie’s shoulder was nicely done and for a moment there I was even left thinking if Mickie was legimately injured when she was thrown into the ring post. However as I write this post 24 hours later, there’s not much that really stands out to me about this match – would it be any different on Raw? I definitely think the lack of storyline going into Night of Champions hurt this match, I wasn’t expecting a five-star classic and knew beforehand that the match would be just “okay” but I could have easily been enticed into the match with good plotting on Raw in the weeks leading to the event. Unfortunately, WWE’s schizophrenic booking leaves a lot to be desired, go figure…

As for the ring work, this match seemed a little sloppy to me, Katie didn’t look as technically sound as you’d expect an experienced wrestler to be. I think while she is a fine wrestler, she just doesn’t seem polished in the ring, meanwhile Mickie was on fine form last night. Perhaps giving Katie more matches at house shows and on Raw will help her, she’s not a bad wrestler at all but these two didn’t seem to mesh which is a shame given their red hot mixed tag team match on Raw a while back.

Fashion wise, I was feeling both of their outfits. It’s nice to see Katie in something new and that shade of blue definitely complements her. Meanwhile, Mickie looked much better than usual, I think the understated look works for her.

In all, this match was fine for what it was. Coming off the One Night Stand match earlier in the match, it is somewhat anti-climactic however. Match Rating: 5/10

YouTube Classics: Mickie Gives Trish a “Gift”

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Welcome to the YouTube Classics! This week, with Mickie James‘s big win at Night of Champions, our theme is “Hey Mickie!”, featuring some of Mickie James’s most memorable moments. Today, we have Mickie James giving Trish Stratus a “gift”, namely one Ashley Massaro in a giant box. This was one of Mickie’s most psychotic moments, making for an entertainment development in her highly personal feud with Trish Stratus.

Divas Championship Cut For Time

The Divas Championship match between Natalya and a Diva of Vickie Guerrero‘s choosing was cut from last night’s Night of Champions pay per view, due to time constraints it has been revealed. WWE didn’t want to load the card to the brim because they didn’t want to run out of time for their main events:

The SmackDown Divas title match was likely nixed from tonight’s Night of Champions pay-per-view event due to time constraints. WWE pay-per-views usually only feature seven matches, but had they added this one, it would have made for nine matches on the card, and WWE doesn’t like rushing matches on PPV. For instance, WWE had to cut the Rey Mysterio vs. Kurt Angle vs. Randy Orton Triple Threat title match at WrestleMania 22 down to nine minutes because they were running out of time and they didn’t want to cancel the heavily promoted Playboy Pillow fight match featuring Torrie Wilson vs. Candice Michelle. Because the Playboy match wasn’t being called off, and Triple H vs. Cena definitely wasn’t being shortened, Rey’s big match was forced to be cut down significantly. Anyway, the SmackDown Divas title is not really that high of a priority, and they can always push it back to another date anyway.

In any event, the title is mentioned in this week’s SmackDown preview:“Finally, what about the new Divas Championship? When will Natayla find out who she will face for the coveted new title? And when will the title finally be contested?”

Looks like we will finally find out what the sitch is this Friday (or tomorrow night if you like spoilers). There’s a vicious rumour circulating on the boards today that Maria will end up as Natalya’s opponent and even win the title. I say vicious because that would be an eyesore if I ever saw one…`

Beth vs Mickie Part 3434326459564?

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Mickie James may be in for a tough couple of nights if Joey Styles is correct! In a WWE.com exclusive interview last night after Mickie’s big win over Katie Lea, Joey told the Women’s Champion that “Beth Phoenix would be waiting for her tomorrow night.” Of course, that means tonight on Raw. Who’s up for Beth vs Mickie, once again? Not I!

In any event, join us from 8pm ET (1am UK GMT) for a Raw live blog, we will be kicking off one hour before Raw with a free for all where you can discuss anything!

Layla & Maria: The Big Idea

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Layla and Maria have found new homes in the WWE Universe, but what will Creative come up for them (if anything)? Well Diva Dirt as always, is here to lend a helping hand with our ideas for the Divas on their new shows!

Layla
When I suggested Layla move to Raw in Diva Draft three weeks ago, I feel as though I really threw it out there. This is a move that many didn’t see coming and has divided fans. Well I’m going to throw the ball even further out there with my plans for Layla on the Raw brand. With Melina injured and Mickie James as the only face Diva on Raw, this could be a great opportunity for Layla to come in as a face. Debuting on a new show really can give your character a boost and for many in the past, has been an opportunity to repackage their character. For the audience, as it’s a new brand, we are more willing to accept a face turn or a heel turn also. I think this would definitely help Raw’s women’s division which has lost Melina and Candice to injury, Maria has moved to SmackDown and Ashley is in limbo; it would also freshen up Layla’s character and give her debut some meaning rather than have her debut in a backstage segment or something. Maybe having Layla debut as Mickie’s tag team partner in a match with Katie Lea and Beth Phoenix on Raw or something. Had Melina not been injured, I wouldn’t suggest this but I think a plausible opportunity has presented itself and WWE could capitalise from it – they need more faces to work with Mickie, because she’s on her own at the moment and Layla is pretty much a “new face”, WWE could easily veer her character to be a face to coincide with her Raw debut.

How would I like to see Layla introduced to Raw? I would definitely want her to address her new change of attitude, because otherwise it would just be weird. On Raw, I would have Layla in the ring following a commercial break or something, do a dance routine (because it’s what she’s famous for) followed by getting on the microphone and saying how happy she is to be here on Raw and in front of this crowd and perform for the fans each and every week. This would be a nice contrast to her final ECW appearance, where she berated the crowd and said she wants to move to a brand where she is more appreciated. This would set up Layla as a face. But to put more momentum behind her, at this point I would have Jillian‘s music hit and her come down to the ring and tell Layla that this was supposed to be her segment because she wanted to debut her new single or something. Jillian would continue that she doesn’t know what happened (sort of a pun, i.e. the producers cut her segment because she’s a bad singer and gave it to Layla) and tells Layla something like, “I know you’re new here but there’s a pecking order here on Raw” telling Layla that she’s on top and Layla is way, way further down. Jillian would then tell Layla to hit the bricks because this is “her time” resulting in a catfight. This would push Layla as a face and set up a feud to get her started on Raw, albeit a lesser feud to the Women’s Championship feud. This segment would take up less than five minutes. The following week you could have a singles match between the two, this establishes Layla as a face and from there you could have tag team matches like Mickie and Layla versus Jillian and Katie Lea or something.

Another idea would be pairing Layla up with fellow ECW draftee, Kofi Kingston with the premise that they’re both from ECW and are sticking together. Kofi could come to Layla’s rescue in said catfight with Jillian and she could go onto manage him while being a part time wrestler and you could even go the romantic route. For some reason, I like this pairing and I think it’s logical to have the ECW stars want to stick together.

Maria after the cut:

Style Showdown: Going for the Gold

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Welcome to Diva Dirt’s Style Showdown! Last time on the Showdown, we had a rematch from the “Summertime Beach Bikini Blowout”, pitting Eve, Jillian, Layla, Lena, Maria, Maryse, and Melina against one another in their respective bikinis. With 177 votes cast, Melina came out on top with 68 votes, while second place was a three-way tie, with Layla, Maria, and Maryse each receiving 25 votes.

This week, we have a faceoff between the two Divas that will be fighting for the Women’s Championship tonight at WWE’s Night of Champions – Women’s Champ Mickie James and Katie Lea Burchill. Each diva is wearing her respective ring attire, with Mickie sporting her trademark punchy colors and flares and Katie opting for her old standby – the crimson tights she consistently wears for in-ring competition. So tell us – who has the better in-ring style? Check out the galleries below to make your decision, then cast your vote!


[poll=81]

I Am Jack’s Complete Lack of Surprise

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It looks like WWE is seeing fit to pull the old switcheroo, though unlike the cool kind in movies like Fight Club (which I was referencing in the title, if you are insane and haven’t seen it), this kind of twist is one we didn’t want to see, but kind of expected.

According to PWInsider.com, tomorrow’s Night of Champions PPV will not feature a match for SmackDown’s new Women’s Title. Despite the fact that (mentioned here by our loyal visitors) color commentator Mick Foley confirmed the match’s existence at the beginning of this past Friday’s Diva tag team match, it looks like someone decided against it. Apparently, the words that many heard on our footage of the match has been cut from subsequent broadcasts, leading one to believe that either Foley misspoke or the decision to cancel the match was made afterwards. Either way, this news sucks.

Bloody hell – of COURSE they’re cutting it. They probably needed the extra minutes for a lengthier pretentious and tacky Triple H entrance. Grr.. Screw this – I’m going to watch an Edward Norton movie. That Fight Club reference got me in the mood.