G.L.O.W (Glorious ladies of wrestling)

The original Diva – SunnyWrestling is no longer considered a male sport. While the main events might be monopolised by male wrestlers, the glitz and glamour offered by their female counterparts has become an essential part of the business.While Mae Young and the Fabulous Moolah were the early matriarchs of women's’ wrestling, it wasn’t until the arrival of Sunny – termed the ‘Original Diva’ that the ladies in the business began to entice crowds with their sexuality.The three are honourable mentions in this list that celebrate the glorious ladies of wrestling. Other notable absentees in the list are Stephanie McMahon, Madusa and Miss Elizabeth.The list takes a look at the Top 5 female wrestlers ( in no particular order) who revolutionised womens’ wrestling by adding an extra dimension to the industry when it was needed the most.

#1 Sable

Sunny might have been the first ‘Diva’ in the WWE, but it was Sable who brought mainstream exposure to women's’ wrestling.

Debuting in the then WWF in 1996, Sable’s first major angle was managing her real-life husband Marc Mero. However, Mero got injured in 1997 and Sable’s charm and sex appeal was so irresistible to the fans that she broke out as a singles star of her own.

So much that when Mero returned, WWE put him in an angle where he became jealous of Sable’s popularity with the fans.

The angle was a success and Sable became the most sought after female wrestler in all of wrestling in 1998 and 1999. The bikini contest she had with Jacqueline at the 1998 Fully Loaded PPV where she only displayed impressions of hands on her exposed breasts became one of the most searched videos of that year.

Sable soon became the Women’s champion and had a six-month long reign, feuding with the likes of Jacqueline, Luna Vachon and Debra. The April 1999 issue of Playboy with Sable on its cover became one of the highest selling editions of all time.

Sable would leave the WWE in 1999 and file a lawsuit against her former employees alleging sexual harassment, but the most popular Diva of the Attitude era would return to the company in 2003.

Sable’s second run was more subdued with her becoming Vince McMahon’s on-screen mistress and mostly feuding with Torrie Wilson. She would leave the company for good in 2004.

Sable’s 2003-04 run was not a complete waste, though. She met her future husband Brock Lesnar during that time and the couple tied the knot in 2006.

#2 Chyna

No doubts here - Chyna was the most dominant female wrestler ever in the WWE. A true pioneer, ‘the Ninth Wonder of the World’ regularly competed with and against male wrestlers, winning the prestigious Intercontinental title on two occasions.

Chyna was such a physical specimen that it was not unfathomable for wrestling fans to believe that she could beat up men – and beat them up, she did. During her four-year career with the WWE, Chyna enjoyed pinfall victories over multiple World Champions including Triple H and Chris Jericho.

Following her debut in the WWE in 1997, Chyna would become a founding member of DX and alongside Triple H, became an integral part of the main event story line involving the then WWE Champion Shawn Michaels.

She would later branch out on her own, winning the Intercontinental title from Jeff Jarett and feuding over it with the likes of Jericho and Hardcore Holly. She would also appear nude on the cover of Playboy during the time.

She would win the Womens’ title from Ivory in a squash match at Wrestlemania X8 and would enter into an entertaining feud with Lita over the title.

However, Chyna’s real life boyfriend Triple H would begin a relationship with Stephanie McMahon and the ensuing love triangle would end Chyna’s WWE career.

Her personal life would sink to new lows after her emotional release from the WWE. She would battle depression, drug issues and would even try out a career in pornography.

#3 Trish Stratus

You cannot talk about women's’ wrestling of the 2000s without mentioning Trish Stratus.

Trish had it all – looks, curves and most importantly, wrestling skills.

Initially making her mark as a heel - managing the likes of Test, Albert, Val Venis and Kurt Angle – Stratus was portrayed as a vamp who had no qualms about using her ‘booty’ to entice and distract the opponents of her team of wrestlers during their matches.

Her sexy dresses and proclivity to show off her assets ensured that the WWE fans were more than excited to see her make an appearance. Trish’s first major angle saw her become the on-screen mistress of Vince McMahon ( wow, if there was a count on the number of Divas who were in that role!!!) and she turned face at Wrestlemania 17 when she finally double crossed an overbearing McMahon.

While Trish had rarely wrestled during her initial stint as a manager, she decided to concentrate on her in ring skills following the turn. She had already shown the willingness to take nasty bumps – the most spectacular being a top rope powerbomb through a table at the hands of Bubba Ray Dudley in 2000.

Confounding critics’ expectations of failure, Trish became one of the greatest women to ever step foot inside the ring during her in-ring run from 2001-06. Displaying a vast array of exciting manouevres, the Canadian won the Womens’ title seven times during that period.

She would perform admirably as both a heel and face champion – her heelish association with Christian in 2005 and her feud with real life friend Lita around the same time were widely appreciated by fans.

She would retire in the best manner possible, winning the Womens’ title from Lita at Unforgiven 2006. Trish is widely considered as one of the greatest female wrestlers of all time.

Trish currently owns a yoga studio and has also hosted various television shows during her time away from the WWE.

#4 Lita

There are no two ways about it – Lita is the greatest high flying Diva of all time.

Making her debut in the WWE as the manager of Essa Rios, it was her stint with Matt and Jeff Hardy that brought her universal acclaim. Named ‘Team Xtreme’, the trio became widely popular for their high-risk moves and Lita became an essential part of the tag team revolution of the early 2000s.

The Hardys vs The Dudleys vs Edge and Christian became the staple tag team feud for nearly three years and what differentiated Lita from other female managers was her ability to execute aerial manoeuvres just like the Hardys.

Many male wrestlers felt the brunt of Lita’s moves – most notably, the dizzying hurricanrana and moonsault in addition to the Twist of fate.

Lita was chosen by the WWE brass as the Diva to end Stephanie Mcmahon’s long run as the Women's’ champion and she would get herself physically involved with the top wrestlers of the WWE including the likes of Steve Austin and The Undertaker in the future as well.

Lita’s popularity was so high that she and Trish Stratus once main evented an episode of Monday night Raw in 2005, which is something that is still unheard of for female wrestlers. Lita would injure her neck during the match, though, while executing a suicide dive to the outside.

While Lita was over as hell as a face, WWE made the decision to turn her heel following the news that she had cheated on her real-life boyfriend Matt Hardy with one of their common friends, Edge.

WWE decided to cash in on real life events and the on-screen team of Edge and Lita was born. This brought out another great dimension to her character and Lita became the dominant heel in the WWE’s female division.

She was by the side of Edge during his initial WWE championship runs and more often than not, got involved physically during Edge’s matches with John Cena, regularly taking heavy bumps in the ring.

She would even take a hit from a barbed wire baseball bat from Mick Foley during Wresltemania 22. Lita would remain a heel till her retirement from the ring in 2006 with a Divas’ title match at Survivor Series being her last.

Lita would start her own punk rock band ‘The Luchagors’ following her in ring career.

#5 A J Lee

AJ Lee might have spent only a short time with the WWE – but she finds a mention in this list owing to her huge fan base and the very fact that she made women’s wrestling relevant again following the retirements of Lita and Trish Stratus in 2006.

Many Divas have played the ‘unstable wrestler’ gimmick, but nobody had come close to success until AJ arrived on the scene in 2011. While she was initially booked like any other Diva, she proved in a short while that she was someone truly special.

The Kiss of Death that resulted in Daniel Bryan losing the World title at Wrestlemania 28 in mere seconds might have been intended by the WWE Creative to develop Bryan’s character as an oppressive egoist, but it was AJ’s persona as the ‘mentally unstable Diva’ that took flight.

She was soon inserted into the WWE Championship feud involving CM Punk, Bryan and Kane and played her ‘crazy’ persona to perfection. After a stint as RAW GM, she would begin an angle with John Cena and Dolph Ziggler, remaining the most dominant Diva in the division.

But it was her run as the Divas Champion in 2013 that brought her to superstardom. Her entertaining antics during the feud with Kaitlyn saw fans cheer for the heel AJ than the face Kaitlyn.

Still working as a heel, she would hold on to her title for a record 295 days which saw successful title defences over the likes of Brie Bella and Natalya. AJ would win the title on two more occasions and would raise the prestige of the title during her much-acclaimed rivalry with Paige.

AJ’s promos have been acknowledged to be the best ever in women’s wrestling with her ‘ talent is not sexually transmitted’ barb at the Bellas ( who were dating John Cena and Daniel Bryan) a prime example of the same.

Like her husband CM Punk, AJ would speak out against the injustices in the company and would famously raise the issue to WWE management of how female wrestlers were paid only a fraction of the salary of their male counterparts despite high merchandise sales and top rated segments.

Punk’s departure from the company in acrimonious terms would raise question marks over AJ’s future with the company and she would announce her retirement the day after Wrestlemania 31.

Edited by Staff Editor