Smark Out Moment

Each week, DIVAS DEBRIEF runs down the events that transpired in women's professional wrestling from the past couple of days. From the WWE Divas to the TNA Knockouts including some other companies as well, Smark Out Moment attempts to keep you up to date on all things going on with the ladies of the ring.


On this edition, the direction of the Divas division takes a bewildering turn, as the Bella Twins turn their attention to the tandem of Naomi & Tamina for a game of 'Who Are The Heels?'. Velvet Sky battles Angelina Love for a chance to rejoin the TNA roster (although they aren't really in a position to refuse her currently), Dana Brooke continues her momentum in NXT and Sexy Star faces the wrath of former friend Superfly.


The Bella Twins vs Naomi & Tamina

If somebody could fill me in on what is happening in the Divas Division these days I’d appreciate it, because I’m as clueless about the booking strategy they are employing as much as anybody else. It is fairly obvious the Bella Twins are the predominant heels, who have aligned with Alicia Fox, and Paige is the popular underdog. But as for the rest of the women in WWE, I do not have a clue, as they all appear to dislike everyone else, which from a creative standpoint is about as lazy as it could get.

Paige was not even on television this week, so the Bella Twins instead turned their attentions to Naomi & Tamina, two Divas who have were heels less than a month ago when the Bella Twins were babyfaces. And people are confused as to why none of them can get over? Maybe if this tag team match was someway decent, some of this wreckage could be salvaged. But it pains me to say they couldn’t even get this part of the equation right. It was clunky, stale, and basically a chore to watch.

Naomi and Tamina are good Divas when it comes to maneuvers, but they did not produce their best work this evening. The daughter of Jimmy Snuka in particular looked poor with strikes and selling. But the worst part of this contest was the booking of the Bella Twins as the babyfaces with the hot tag finish. WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON? Brie Bella played the role of the beaten down combatant with Divas Champion Nikki heroically prevailing with a Rack Attack in the end, only a week after they screwed Paige out of a title win at Money in the Bank.

Okay, I’m just going to attempt to implore to the rational minds of the creative team with regards to Divas, if such a faculty exists within them. When it comes to misjudgments in the ring it will be down to their mistakes. However, fans are not going to become invested in any angle the women produce if you offer them zero coherence on a consistent basis. Some may argue they might still not be able to get it done between the ropes afterwards, but at least give them some ability to show this with meaningful booking.



Superfly vs Sexy Star

A shocking betrayal occurred a couple of weeks ago on Lucha Underground, when Superfly returned from the disgrace of being unmasked to assault former ally Sexy Star. Against her will, she was the one behind Superfly losing his pride, and he has returned with a vengeful attitude towards the Queen of Lucha. And this anger was demonstrated immediately, as he connected with a hard strike across the face of Sexy, to which she responded with a knife-edge chop.

If there is one thing to be said for Sexy Star, although there are many due to her excellent technical ability, is that she is willing to take some serious punishment in a bid to entertain the fans. Superfly throughout this match was unleashing a barrage of kicks and elbows to keep his feisty opponent floored, but Sexy always got back up with a response. Superfly was also not shy in employing strikes and slaps to the face, which some wrestlers seem to relent from when placed opposite Sexy.

Admittedly, there were some misplaced spots, which were either due to Superfly being too cautious or Sexy being too exuberant, which hampered the aesthetic quality somewhat. But Sexy climbing to the top rope over and over again is an exciting sight, as not many female wrestlers, at least on the main companies, take such action. Eventually though, the greater power of her rival came into effect, as Superfly dropped her with two consecutive powerbombs to defeat Sexy. It was the post-match activities that were most telling however, as the crazed Superfly tore at Sexy’s mask before tossing her from the ring, illustrating this feud might not be over until he has evened their score.


Also, not strictly with regards to competition in the ring, which is the usual focus, but how freaking hot is Catarina?



Dana Brooke vs Cassie

NXT is a wonderful place, because even their least capable female wrestlers are quickly outshining the ladies on the main show. Strangely enough, the combination of strong training and creative direction seems to be beneficial. Who’d have thought? Dana Brooke has come into developmental full of charisma and confidence, promoting herself as the ‘Total Diva’. Whilst her in-ring skills certainly haven’t reached that level yet, the way she carries herself has benefited her early months on the roster.

With her focus fundamentally on usurping the spot of Charlotte as the alpha female in NXT, Brooke was accompanied by her friend Emma to battle a newcomer in Cassie. The Australian redhead has shown some strong wrestling potential in her first encounters in an NXT ring with Sasha Banks and Charlotte, and would have seen Brooke as more among her rookie level. The blonde felt differently though, repeatedly patting on her opponent’s head in a condescending manner, until being forced to take Cassie more seriously after enduring a headscissors.

Brooke whipping Cassie against the ropes handed the powerful Diva the advantage. I will say that I would like to see her develop a greater range of heel maneuvers, as she appears restricted to hair pulling and stomps currently, which definitely requires expansion. In fact, it is something of an indictment that Cassie appeared a far more polished performer in her short flurry of offense towards the conclusion. This didn’t stop Brooke scoring the victory with her Samoan Driver, and her form remains strong. Just a bit more time in the Performance Center and she will be pushing for a top spot on the roster soon.



Velvet Sky vs Angelina Love

With names coming and going from TNA on a weekly basis these days, it is good to see the Knockout Division not only retaining the services of quality performers, but bolstering their numbers as the return of Velvet Sky displays. Sky has reemerged with a rougher attitude and a chip on her shoulder, and has placed targets on the backs of her former Beautiful People cohorts Angelina Love and Madison Rayne. The battle between the original members took place on this show, and it was set to be a physical confrontation.

Following an immediate slap to the face by Love, Sky used this to fuel her aggression, spearing her former teammate to the canvas and taking control of the match. This domination was the tale of the opening exchanges, as Sky took the fight to ringside and sent Love hurtling into the ring post, and then the steel steps. The crowd were definitely enjoying this newfound aggression in Sky, but she maintained her focus on dishing out punishment on her opponent, until Love managed to kick her to the floor.

With their numerous years of tag team competition and previous rivalries, Sky and Love had strong chemistry and flow throughout this match, trusting their abilities in creating a solid bout. Love used her greater height and strength to gain a foothold later on, but was thwarted by some excellent kicks by Sky that sent her reeling. Love was not able to even that score with her own lethal kick, the Botox Injection, as Sky dodged that and connected with a stunner to beat her old partner and reinstate herself on the Knockouts roster. All the other ladies better keep an eye out for this ferocious returnee.



Alicia Fox vs Naomi

The confusion of the WWE Divas division continued, but at least this had some promise of being a good match. Alicia Fox and Naomi are certainly two of the top female performers in the company currently, but they remain deeply entrenched in this confusing booking scenario. Frankly, I would be very understanding of fans turning off their screens for the few minutes this contest took place, simply over the bewilderment of picking a side to root for. Once again though, it was the Bella-backed Fox who was treated as the ‘babyface’.

Naomi took control early on with a nice hurricanrana, followed by her running bulldog drilling Fox’s face into the turnbuckle. She was very much keeping up with the brash arrogance that cemented her heel turn a few months previously, as she gradually wore down Fox. That was until the action spilled out to ringside, as both combatants crashed through the bottom rope, following a nice tilt-the-world backbreaker by the Foxy one. Naomi pushed Fox hard against the ring apron, sending her back into the fray before getting up in the grills of the Bella Twins.

Nikki and Brie exchanged words back, until Tamina stuck her foot in, quite literally, as she superkicked Brie to the floor. Nikki speared her against the barricade in response, but then was held in place by Naomi for another kick by the Samoan. The confident Naomi was ready to celebrate then, but the smirk was wiped off her face when she returned to the ring. Fox had been given enough time to recover, connecting with the Foxy Buster faceplant to win. A better match, but the creative direction makes this situation no clearer whatsoever.


So there you have it, the breakdown for the week in women's wrestling. What were some of your favorite and least favorite moments from these women? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!