Wrestler of the Week: Beth Phoenix
RondaRousey.com’s Wrestler of the Week series profiles significant wrestlers from the past and present.
Beth Phoenix was a wrestler ahead of her time. When women’s wrestling was not a priority for the WWE and modelesque looks were the most-desired quality for their Divas, her physical power, technical wrestling skills, and impressive physique set her apart. This week, we’re taking a look at the trailblazing in-ring career of the Glamazon, and how she still plays a role in WWE today.
Looking to Go Pro
Beth Phoenix was a pro wrestling fan as a kid and especially loved Bret Hart, Owen Hart, and Ted DiBiase. A lifelong athlete, she was the first female student to make her high school’s varsity amateur wrestling team.
After graduating college, Phoenix trained as a pro wrestler, and her combination of shoot grappling skill, physical strength, and charisma soon made her one of the best female wrestlers in the business and scored her work for a variety of independent promotions. WWE soon came knocking, and Phoenix debuted on RAW in 2006.
The Glamazon
Beth Phoenix’s journey stalled just a month into her WWE TV career when her jaw was broken in a match with Victoria. But when she returned to RAW in July 2007, she was even more dominant and had adopted the persona of the Glamazon, “the ultimate combination of strength and beauty.” She entertained audiences with her feats of strength and devastated opponents with her high-impact finisher, the Glam Slam.
Phoenix’s unique accomplishments matched her unique ability. She won her first of three WWE Women’s Championships at No Mercy that October and held the WWE Divas Championship once from 2011-2012. She defeated Melina at the One Night Stand PPV in 2007 in the first women’s “I Quit” match in WWE.
In January 2010, she became the second-ever woman to compete in a Royal Rumble match when she surprisingly entered the battle royal and eliminated the Great Khali.
After teaming up with Natalya, the pair entered into a feud with LayCool (Layla and Michelle McCool) that included the first women’s tag team tables match in WWE history (at TLC 2010). The two would later reform their alliance—however, as villains—as the Divas of Doom, feuding with Kelly Kelly and Eve Torres on RAW and the Chickbusters (AJ Lee and Kaitlyn) on SmackDown.
However, Phoenix’s wrestling career wasn’t all dominance and making history. She had a memorable comedic romance storyline with Santino Marella (couple/tag team name: Glamarella). Phoenix defeated Marella when he issued an open challenge and sparks flew. Their biggest accomplishment was at SummerSlam 2008 when Phoenix pinned Mickie James to win an intergender tag match (Glamarella vs. James and Kofi Kingston) for the Women’s Championship and Intercontinental Championship. The pair split when Marella dressed in drag and pretended to be his own twin sister at WrestleMania XXV to win the Miss WrestleMania battle royal… and won by eliminating Phoenix.
A Legacy of Strength
Beth Phoenix retired from wrestling in 2012 and became the youngest inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2017. She works as a part-time color commentator for the company and currently mans the announce table for the second Mae Young Classic with Michael Cole and Renee Young.
Phoenix briefly returned to the ring for the first Women’s Royal Rumble match in 2018 and said in an episode of Table for Three that that and her appearance in the 2010 Rumble are her two favorite moments of her career. So far, she is the only WWE Superstar to compete in both a men’s and a women’s Royal Rumble match.
In an interview with WWE.com, Phoenix talked about the importance of that historic match, emphasizing that it didn’t come about overnight. “This has been a movement for women for decades. The Royal Rumble Match is a vindication for all the women who have worked so hard over the years and really, truly believed in themselves and the quality that they could produce. I feel like everybody’s contribution built to this moment.”
Phoenix’s own contributions in the ring are sure to be remembered, and it’ll be exciting to see how she continues to play a role in the evolution of women’s wrestling behind the scenes in WWE.
