Thursday, December 11, 2025
Submit News

AJ Brooks

NXT Redux (September 7th, 2010): Naomi’s Night of Dominance

by

On the heels of last week’s shock announcement that season three would consist of nothing but rookie Divas, controversy has reigned supreme. From the internet backlash and scrutiny, to the firing of the six foot nine woman beast known as Aloisia, season three hasn’t been given much of a chance to succeed. It debut last night and instead of an epic failure of a program, we were treated to two fun challenges, some comedy, great ring debuts from the two season favorites, and the reveal of Vickie Guerrero‘s new rookie. The show was campy, a tad ridiculous, and yes, it was messy in a few spots. But above all else, the show was entertaining and has given us a lot to hopefully look forward too.

Here we go!

NXT kicks off in grand fashion with a hot entrance video for all the rookie girls and their pros, as well as a pyro, and to my delight, a lot of pink. The fans seem really excited for the all Diva show and that in turn, makes me excited! Josh Mathews and Michael Cole introduce themselves and talk about how excited they are for this special NXT season. They shoot it to Matt Striker, who looks so damn delicious I wanna take him home with me, and he says it’s time to meet the pros! Kelly Kelly walks out first and she officially introduces us to Naomi Night. She calls her rookie sassy, fun, and feisty! The Bellas come out next, and Brie Bella says that last season we watched their rookie do her thing on the mic. Nikki Bella takes over and says that this season, their rookie is going to do her thing in the ring. Why are they using their sex voices?! Jamie Keyes walks out after Nikki talks about how tight her (Jamie’s) body is. Oh Lordy.

Primo has to follow that and he gets no reaction what so ever. Maybe it’s because everyone is disgusted over his awful entrance music. No one should ever walk out to something that could be played during a ballroom dancing competition. Primo says that is rookie like a firecracker; she’s small but she will light you up. He brings out AJ Lee and wow, she’s peppy. Alicia Fox struts out to the stage after AJ and Primo, and she introduces her rookie as the meanest of the mean. Maxine walks out and immediately my eyes start to bleed. Homegirl clearly got dressed in the dark today. Yikes. Thankfully GOLDUST comes out and gets a nice pop from the crowd. He says he is going to premiere the next breakout star and he breathes Aksana‘s name out in a real creep voice. I love it so much. Aksana walks out in a hot ass gold dress and she just looks perfect next to the Golden One.

Read more

Southern Belle Smack: The NXT Season Three Debate… Is it Doomed to Fail?

by

Season three of NXT is no doubt the most talked about season so far in the show’s history. Last week, during the finale of season two, Josh Mathews and Michael Cole made a historic announcement by telling us that season three is going to be comprised entirely of Diva rookies. When the average wrestling fan hears the term ‘Diva’, he automatically assumes that a hot girl with a nice set of puppies will walk out to the ring. Or what’s worse, is average fan may believe Diva time is really bathroom time. The majority of average wrestling fans are ignoramuses, but the point remains the same. What the term ‘Diva’ actually stands for is overcoming the odds in WWE land. That’s exactly what six rookie Divas have a chance to accomplish starting this week on NXT.

The decision to make NXT 3 about the Divas was met with a lot of well documented controversy. Fans, pro wrestling media personnel, and “writerz” took to their Twitters, Facebooks, MySpaces, etc. to make their feelings known about this upcoming all Diva show. A nice chunk of these people took one look at the pros and decided not to watch. Some people decided to just talk a lot of smack and back up their verbal BS with weak arguments and ridiculous ‘facts’. The saving grace in all of this were the real Diva fans. They chose to remain open-minded and optimistic.

The all Diva season of NXT could go one of these two ways: it could either be a success and the WWE could find their next breakout Diva or it could go the opposite way and be an epic failure.

Read more

NXT Rookie Spotlight: AJ Lee

by

NXT season three kicks off next Tuesday night, but before that, we’re helping you get acquainted with the cast of NXT 3! Today, we look at AJ Lee, who will be paired up with WWE Superstar, Primo.

Profile
23-year old AJ, real name April Jeanette, was signed by WWE last spring. Prior to WWE, she had been working on the independent circuit as Miss April. AJ primarily worked in the New Jersey area for Women Superstars Uncensored where she was one half of the WSU Tag Team Champions at the time of her signing. Since joining WWE developmental, she had been going by the name AJ Lee and is the current Queen of FCW after defeating Serena for the crown on an episode of FCW TV.

Check out some of her work below:

AJ Lee vs Natalya

Defeating five other rookies should be no problem for AJ, as here she is hanging in there move-for-move with perhaps the most talented female wrestler in WWE, Natalya. Yeah, baby!

More after the cut:

Read more

NXT Lay-Kav-Ool Watch (August 31st, 2010): Kaval Wins!

by

After thirteen weeks of straight up drama, season two of NXT finally reached it’s conclusion last night. The show delivered in every aspect you could think of, and for us Diva fans, Christmas certainly came early this year! The amazing finale had surprises, unexpected announcements that kept us on our toes the entire night, tears, beatdowns, and one winner who probably deserved it more than the others. So how exactly did last night’s show pan out? Well read on and find out for yourself!

Ashley Valence, who is more often than not missing in action, is in the ring tonight and she starts us off by introducing the pros. MVP, Zach Ryder, John Morrison, Mark Henry, and Cody Rhodes walk out and take their seats. Following that, The Miz struts out and announces his rookie, Alex Riley. Michelle McCool and Layla are up next and they announce Kaval. Kaval walks out and holds his arms out, which the girls gladly take and kiss him on the cheek. Finally, Kofi Kingston walks out. He announces Michael McGillicutty. All the finalists are in the ring and Matt Striker is in a freakin’s suit! Talk about sexy!

Striker motions to the front row where the eliminated rookies are sitting. Titus O’Neil, Eli Cottonwood, Lucky Cannon, Percy Watson, and Husky Harris are all introduced to the crowd. Striker reminds us all that the winner will not only be the next breakout star, but they’ll also earn a championship match on pay-per-view. Striker teases us some more and tells the three rookies that they will all be in action tonight; in a triple threat match against one another! Things start breaking down with Kaval shoving The Miz. Alex and Michael start going at one another, with Kofi jumping into the fray and clotheslining Miz over the top rope. Alex ends up out of the ring as well and Kaval spites Miz by holding up the United States Championship.

The cameras go to Josh Mathews and Michael Cole who launch into a discussion about Season Three beginning next week. And guess what diva fans, Season Three is going to consist of nothing but diva rookies!

Read more

NXT Season 3 Cast Revealed

by

The NXT cast for season three has been revealed! A picture leaked (see above) before tonight’s NXT broadcast could even end shows that the cast will consist of six Divas: AJ Lee, Aksana, Aloisia, Jamie Keyes, Maxine and Naomi.

Profiles on all six rookies below:

* AJ Lee: 23-year old AJ, real name April Jeanette, was signed by WWE last spring. Prior to WWE, she had been working on the independent circuit as Miss April. AJ primarily worked in the New Jersey area for Women Superstars Uncensored where she was one half of the WSU Tag Team Champions at the time of her signing. Since joining WWE developmental, she had been going by the name AJ Lee and is the current Queen of FCW after defeating Serena for the crown on an episode of FCW TV.
Pro: Former WWE Tag Team Champion, Primo.

* Aksana: 28-year old Aksana, real name Zivile Raudoniene, is a familiar face on the bodybuilding and fitness modeling circuit. The Lithuanian was signed by WWE sometime last year and has recently been hosting ‘The Aksana Show’ on FCW television.
Pro: Veteran WWE Superstar, Goldust.

* Aloisia: 23-year old Aloisia is independent wrestler, Isis the Amazon, whose signing Diva Dirt first broke last Friday. In a huge turnaround, she has already been thrown into the national television spotlight as the sixth and final rookie on NXT. She is 6’9″ tall and stands as tall as The Big Show and The Great Khali.
Pro: SmackDown’s official consultant, Vickie Guerrero.

Read more

FCW Watch (August 29th, 2010): AJ Lee vs Naomi Night

by

At long last, the FCW Watch has finally returned. With all the action going on in WWE’s farm territory as of late, we decided it was only fitting to get back on the ball when it comes to Florida Championship Wrestling. And what a week to do so! This weekend, FCW’s alpha females, AJ Lee and Naomi Night face off in a crown/titleunification match with the entire Diva roster at ringside. Check out the match below:

First out are the FCW Divas, all decked out in their Sunday best. This is also our first look at new Divas Celeste (now known as Ricki Vaughn) and Christina Crawford (Alicia Fox’s sister). Also at ringside, Aksana, Liviana and Raw Diva Tamina.

Next out is the Queen of FCW, AJ Lee followed by the FCW Divas Champion, Naomi Night (HEEEEEEYYY!!!). The top Divas shoot each other a few glares before the bell rings and the match gets underway. The ladies lock up, but AJ quickly gets the upperhand with a side headlock. Naomi manages to whip AJ Lee off and into the ropes, but is laid out with a shoulder block. AJ hits the ropes, looking to capitalize, but Naomi kips up and counters with her patented Booty Call butt bump for a near fall.

The champ tries to keep the heat on but AJ reverses into a school boy pin with the help of a handful of hair. Not to be outdone, Naomi executes a split-legged backslide followed by a few armdrags for another two count. Naomi tries to follow up with a scoopslam, but AJ wiggles out and into a waistlock, which is quickly reversed by Naomi. The champ tries to roll the queen up, but AJ holds onto the ropes sending Naomi rolling across the ring. Before Naomi can get her wits about her, AJ comes charging and hits a vicious Shining Wizard, but only gets a two count.

Read more

Report, Pictures & Video from FCW in Fort Myers (August 27th, 2010)

by

Big FCW post for you… we’ve got a fan report, pictures and video footage from Friday’s FCW live event in Fort Myers. Diva Dirt reader Bobby Lea Burchill sent us the following:

Before the show, I got to meet Christina Crawford, Isis the Amazon and Ricki Vaughn (formerly known as Celeste). All three were very nice and friendly, Christina especially. As reported earlier, Isis asked if it was alright before she took pics with fans, but she was nice about it. Ricki looks really good, and she shared the ring announcing duties for the night, not doing a bad job at all. Christina looks almost identical to Alicia, just with a darker color to her hair.

Onto the show, the Divas match was the third match of the show, and it was announced as a tag match. When Ricki introduced the team of Naomi Night & Aksana, I thought they were gonna run around the ring and slap hands, etc… but they came out in full on heel mode. They scowled at fans, refused to slap hands, and posed as they walked around the ring. Not only that, but Night ditched her braids and had purple bangs. And then out came Liviana and AJ Lee, to new music (no more Trinity theme), who were faces. This had me wondering if they really are being groomed for NXT, because AJ has been changed back to a face for the show, and more boldly, Naomi didn’t have her braids, but changed it to a normal hairstyle for Divas.

More after the cut:

Read more

Which Divas Could Be on NXT Season 3? We’ve Got Clues…

by

With the finale of NXT season two on Tuesday (vote Kaval!), attention turns to season three, which if last season is any indication, should begin the very next week. And like the first season, we can probably expect the season three rookies to be announced on the second season finale on Tuesday.

Speculation has been mounting since earlier this month that next season will include Diva rookies for the first time ever. According to a report by the Figure Four Weekly newsletter, season three will feature four male rookies and four female rookies. Well, using our super-sleuthing and powers of deduction, we think we may know who is set to be part of the next season. Our clues below…

Syfy cameras at FCW taping: Reported by PWInsider, Syfy had its cameras at the FCW taping on Thursday night, which pretty much confirms that season three is a go. (I’m assuming that Syfy’s cameras were there to film footage for the little introductory video packages that they show.) On that night, AJ Lee, Aksana, Liviana and Naomi Night were part of the taping, as well as Jamie Keyes who already has an announcing spot on NXT.

Friday in Fort Myers: FCW held a show yesterday in Fort Myers which was attended by our friend, Bobby Lea Burchill, who offers up some more clues. At that show, once again, there was a camera crew filming the whole event including a Divas tag team match. Who was part of that match? The same suspects as above. AJ, Aksana, Liviana and Naomi Night.

But there’s more…

Read more

AJ Lee Works SmackDown House Show

by

Developmental Diva AJ Lee worked Sunday’s SmackDown brand house show in Odessa, Texas against Women’s Champion, Layla. The FCW talent worked as a babyface in the match. Report below via AdamBombOi: First things first, I have to say that Layla is EASILY the most beautiful and gorgeous woman I have ever seen in my life. … Read more

FCW’s AJ Lee and Aksana Compete at Raw House Show *FALSE*

by

Two developmental Divas, AJ Lee and Aksana competed at last night’s Raw brand house show in Fort Myers, FL. AJ Lee worked as a babyface, teaming with Eve Torres to defeat Divas Champion Alicia Fox and Aksana, according to PWInsider. Lee is expected to be called up to the SmackDown brand soon. EDIT: This report … Read more

New Diva Coming to SmackDown

by

Rumours began circulating a couple of weeks ago that a new Diva was being brought up to SmackDown after a ‘coming soon’ vignette aired at a taping. The vignette was not shown on television however and I was skeptical about whether it was true or not. According to the Wrestling Observer, there is indeed a … Read more

AJ Lee Travelling with Raw Brand

by

FCW Diva, AJ Lee was on the road with the Raw brand this past weekend working in the role of hostess. Diva Dirt reader, Andrew sent in the picture above and writes: She was in Erie, Pa on Friday June 25th with the Raw crew at the live event I attended. She was the guest … Read more

Diva NXT Week 2: Who Should Be WWE’s Next Breakout Diva?

by

Welcome to Diva NXT, our very own virtual competition to find out which FCW girl you’d like to see breakout and become the next WWE Diva. We have considered all of the girls on the current FCW roster that aren’t already on WWE television and every week, you will have the opportunity to vote for the girl you think should advance to the next week. Each week, we’ll reveal the rankings [similar to the Pros’ Poll] and the person who polls last each week will be cut. We will continue until just one girl is left standing — the girl you believe should be WWE’s next Diva.

Votes cast: 1,433

WEEK 1 RANKINGS
1. AJ Lee
2. Courtney Taylor
3. Naomi Night
4. Jemma Palmer
5. Aksana
6. Tamina
7. Jamie Keyes
8. Liviana

As a result of polling last in Week 1, Liviana has been cut from the competition. Also, due to Courtney Taylor’s release, she has also been cut. That means we are down to just six girls — who will be cut next week? Vote now!

For a breakdown of all the Divas follow the cut:

Read more

Diva NXT Week 1: Who Should Be WWE’s Next Breakout Diva?

by

We’re starting out very own virtual NXT competition to find out which FCW girl you’d like to see breakout and become the next WWE Diva. We have considered all of the girls on the current FCW roster that aren’t already on WWE television and every week, you will have the opportunity to vote for the girl you think should advance to the next week.

Each week, we’ll reveal the rankings [similar to the Pros’ Poll] and the person who polls last each week will be cut. We will continue until just one girl is left standing — the girl you believe should be WWE’s next Diva.

Sounds simple enough, right? Vote below for Week 1:

For a breakdown of all the Divas follow the cut:

Read more

FCW Double Dip: February 21 & 28, 2010

by

Okay, so I admit I’ve been a little lax with my FCW coverage as of late. My bad. Fortunately, I have not one but two FCW Diva matches for your enjoyment this week! First up, Aksana takes on Naomi Night in her FCW in-ring debut. Watch the match below:

First out is Naomi, who is sporting some very unique in-ring attire. Hell, who am I kidding? What the hell is she wearing? I’m all for being creative and unique, but that outfit is just kicking my ass! Maybe it’s the neon green leggings or the purple zebra print bra or maybe even those 1990 Poetic Justice braids, but Naomi’s look is doing nothing for me. WWE, it’s time for a makeover. Aksana comes next and is as perky as can be, which get a laugh-worthy look of disgust from her opponent.

The ladies lock up and exhibit some decent chain wrestling, but the momentum is cut short when Aksana comes in a little late on a dropkick. Naomi uses this to her advantage, immediately going for a clothesline for a two count. Naomi goes straight into a headlock, keeping Aksana grounded, but gets distracted by the ref, which allows Aksana to get back to a vertical base.

Read more

NXTeams: Diva & Rookie Duos for WWE NXT

by

WWE has announced the pro and rookie duos for it’s new series, WWE NXT to debut next Tuesday but quite unsurprisingly, it doesn’t seem this ‘season’ will feature any Divas. Boo! The  show will feature ‘WWE Pros’ teaming up with ‘Rookies’ as their mentors throughout the series. So we decided to come up with our own pro/rookie team suggestions for NXT. WWE, please feel free to steal and put them into practice.

AJ Lee & Melina

Pro: Melina. Three-time Women’s Champion, one time Divas Champion, Diva of the Year 2009 in Diva Dirt Year-End Awards.
Rookie: AJ Lee. Queen of FCW, former WSU Tag Team Champion.
Perhaps the most obvious pairing for WWE NXT would be to put FCW’s ‘Pocket Rocket’, the young and talented AJ Lee with Melina. Lee has long been a fan of Melina and looks up to the former Women’s Champ so it’d a dream come true for her to one day be on the same roster as the A-List Diva. But how about going one step further and having Melina mentor AJ on NXT? Melina is known for her fire and passion which comes through in the ring, but outside of the ring she’s just as easily able to play the smiley babyface and the bitchy heel. No doubt, she’d have some invaluable lessons to share with Lee who is already well on her way to one day becoming a WWE Women’s Champion! She’s already the Queen of FCW and the standout female wrestler there with Serena now called up. Melina is sweet and good-natured and would be a positive role model to Lee who I think should play a babyface. She has a great likable quality to her just like Melina.

Aksana & Maryse

Pro: Maryse. Former Divas Champion. Best Heel in Diva Dirt Year-End Awards.
Rookie: Aksana. Former world renowned fitness model.
Aksana — known in the fitness world by her real name of Zivile Raudoniene — it seems was hired following the success of Maryse in the Divas division. Both are voluptuous blondes and both have a foreign sexiness to them. Aksana could play the bitchy heel role like her mentor, Maryse in NXT — trying to psych out the other girls and make sure that she stops at nothing for success. With Maryse’s help, Aksana could be the ‘villain’ of the reality-like show. But then again, Maryse being the attention-loving Diva that she is, why would she want more competition on the main roster? This could be an interesting dynamic with Maryse sabotaging Aksana along the way and the pair clashing would make for great drama.

More after the cut:

Read more

FCW Watch: AJ Lee vs Serena Mancini (Queen of FCW Match)

by


Welcome to this week’s edition of FCW Watch. In the last month or so, rookie sensation AJ Lee has taken on all comers and shot to the top of the FCW Diva totem pole. However, she has one last obstacle to overcome: Queen of FCW and Smackdown Diva, Serena Mancini. The last time these two met in singles action the result was less than impressive. Can they put on a decent match this time around? Watch below as the ‘Pocket Rocket’ takes on the First Lady of The Straight Edge Society for the crown:

First out is the challenger AJ Lee, who is perky as always. AJ’s ability to get the crowd behind her is a great quality to have and will definitely benefit her when she makes the jump to the main roster. Out next is the Champion Serena, sporting some new gear (Finally!). The newly converted Serena removes her trademark Fedora to revealed that freshly shaven head we’ve all come to love (or hate) in the past month on Smackdown.

Read more

FCW Watch: AJ Lee and Eve vs Naomi Night and Liviana

by

Welcome to FCW watch, where we take a look at our future Divas down in Florida Championship Wrestling. On the last edition of FCW Watch, we saw an impressive singles debut from former Orlando Magic dancer, Naomi Night. This week we get yet another debut from Abraham Washington’s better half, Liviana, as she teams up with Naomi Night to face AJ Lee and Raw Diva, Eve. Will Liviana impress us as much as her partner did in her match? Watch the match below and be the judge:

AJ Lee and Eve vs Naomi Night and Liviana

Naomi and Liviana make their way to the ring first, to the tune of a generic Gwen Stefani rip-off. Next out is future Queen of FCW candidate, AJ Lee who introduces her partner Eve.

Eve is set to start things off with Naomi, but Naomi wants a piece of AJ, perhaps to avenge her loss last week. The two lock up and show some of their basic wrestling skills until AJ gets the upper hand, laying Naomi out with a stiff dropkick. AJ Lee stays on the offense, throwing some forearms but Naomi takes control, tossing AJ into the middle rope.

Read more

FCW Watch: AJ Lee vs. Naomi Night

by

Welcome to another edition of our FCW Watch, where we take a look at matches taking place in the WWE’s top developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling. Today, we have a match from the January 31st show: AJ Lee vs. Naomi Night. Watch the match below:

Before either of those Divas can make their entrances, the Queen of FCW Mia Mancini makes her way to the ring, wearing a pretty unconvincing wig a beautiful 100% real head of hair. She is here, as always, to survey the competition for her crown. Naomi Night is up next, making her singles debut (you may remember her being signed in August of last year). AJ Lee is out next, and the match begins.

The two Divas face off in the middle of the ring, and Naomi uses her hair as a unique alternative to the “talk to the hand” move, whipping it in AJ’s face. AJ takes her down in response, pounding on her before being pulled off by the referee. AJ remains dominant through most of the beginning of the match, using her acrobatic moves to get in a few pin attempts on Naomi. One in particular I liked was the arm drag counter into the rolling pin. For a newcomer to the ring, Naomi can take the moves–which require a lot of capability on her part–pretty well.

AJ attempts a hurricanrana from the corner, but Naomi tosses her to the apron, knocking her head against the exposed ring post. Following that, her offense mainly consists of a few kicks and a sit-down maneuver onto AJ’s back. She goes for an unsuccessful pin attempt and then locks AJ into a submission, a knee in her back and her arms stretched backwards. AJ fights free and goes to attack Naomi off the ropes, but Naomi slides under her and between her legs, showing some impressive athleticism–think her background as an Orlando Magic dancer has something to do with it?

Read more

FCW Watch: AJ Lee and Courtney Taylor vs Rosa Mendes and Naomi Night

by

The first FCW Diva match of  2010 has found it’s way onto Youtube.  This match features rookie sensation AJ Lee teaming up with Courtney Taylor to take on the team of ECW Diva Rosa Mendes and the debuting Naomi Night. Check out  the action below: skip to 3:30 I have to admit when I saw … Read more

Year-End Awards 2009: Best Diva in Training

by

2009 is now over and we are celebrating with our second annual Year-End Awards. This year, we have had thousands of votes as you have voted for the top Divas, Knockouts, matches and moments of 2009!And now it’s time to reveal the winners.

BEST DIVA IN TRAINING

The nominees are:

* AJ Lee
* Aksana
* Courtney Taylor
* Mia Mancini
* Naomi Night

Continue for the result:

Read more

FCW Watch: Courtney Taylor vs. AJ Lee; Aksana Debuts

by

The latest bits of FCW to hit YouTube have surfaced, originating from the November 28th show. First, we have a match featuring the former WWE Diva (for all of 3 weeks) Courtney Taylor and AJ Lee. “Queen of FCW” Mia Mancini is at ringside to survey the match:

I have to say, starting a match with a rest hold doesn’t exactly allow one to hold much promise for an exciting match. Overall, it looks as though both girls were stuck in slow-mo–even the arm drags were slow. Courtney’s definitely giving me a Kelly Kelly vibe, especially with the ginger ring movements and flashy moves (what exactly was that handstand move in the corner, by the way?). AJ and Courtney just didn’t seem to have much chemistry, with mis-timed exchanges scattered throughout the match. They never got out of the starting gate and seemed preoccupied with slowing the match down to avoid any mishaps. The only excitement I got out of the whole match was AJ’s finisher, and even that was set up awkwardly.

So the match wasn’t much at all, but why did it fall so short? AJ looks to have a lot of potential, but Courtney seems to be a little uncomfortable in the ring so far, and that severely limited the match as a whole. Hopefully she can improve her ring presence and buck the inevitable Kelly Kelly comparisons (like the one I made above.. oops).

Read more

DIVA DIRT

The Home of Women’s Wrestling News

A CHANNEL 70 PROPERTY

Navigation

Advertise

Copyright

Contact Us / Submissions

Privacy Policy

Commenting Policy

Terms of Use

popular topics

WWE

AEW

TNA