Perfect 10 of 2010

Credit: Diva-Dirt



It’s that time of year once again: the Perfect 10 is back to count down the top 10 Divas and Knockouts of 2010. Based on their year’s successes, we’ve compiled (as best we can) the ten Divas and Knockouts we feel gave us a 2010 to remember in WWE and TNA. Check back over the next five days to see the countdown unfold, with the #1 being revealed on New Year’s Eve (Friday).


#10: EVE TORRES
LAST YEAR: — 2008: —
From Diva Search to Divas Champion, Eve Torres made history by becoming the first ever Diva Search winner to go on to win gold in the WWE. Sure, other finalists like Michelle McCool had won the belts, but never could a winner of the contest claim to be champion — until April of this year.

Voted ‘One to Watch in 2010′ by Diva Dirt’s readers, Eve’s risky move to Raw from SmackDown in last year’s ‘Diva Trade’ had many fans wondering whether her career was over before it begun. The risk was that she’d get lost in the shuffle on a fully-stacked Raw roster compared to SmackDown where she had begun make strides. The beginning of the year was a dreary start: Eve was stuck with Chris Masters and seldom competed in matches. Though she made it to the semi-finals of the Divas Championship tournament, a loss to Maryse meant her chances of making a splash on Raw were dashed.

Little did we know that that semi-final match with Maryse was a foreshadowing of things to come. After competing in more matches on Raw and picking up victories, Eve soon found herself in a title match with Maryse in London, England in April. Considered the underdog going in, Torres pulled out the victory and shocked the WWE Universe by becoming the Divas Champion.

Her continued storyline with Maryse saw the champion knocked out backstage & featured in a ‘photoshoot’ with her rival, one of the year’s Diva highlights on Raw. The Divas Championship victory would see Eve make her singles debut on pay per view in a match with Maryse in which she was victorious. However, two months after claiming the title, she lost it in a fatal four-way match to Alicia Fox.

With her title reign cut short by the Foxy one, Eve then challenged Alicia to her second singles match on pay per view at Money in the Bank in July, a card that also featured a Women’s Championship bout between Layla and Kelly Kelly. Going into the pay per view, it seemed that it would be the SmackDown match that owned the night for the Divas, but it was in fact Alicia and Eve’s battle over the Divas Championship that impressed, despite Eve losing.

Though her time at the top of the Raw Divas division quickly tailed off after that loss, Eve’s historic — and shocking — Divas Championship victory was certainly one of the highlights of the year.

Eve’s rise as one of WWE’s favorite daughters saw her grow more confident in the ring, and a recent in-ring segment with The Miz showed she can cut a promo too. There’s no doubt that Eve’s star will continue to rise in the Divas division in 2011; though she book-ends our chart at #10 this year… I would count on her ranking higher next year.


#9: ALICIA FOX
LAST YEAR: #10 2008: —
After being one of the breakout Divas of 2009 and ranking at #10 last year on the Perfect 10, Alicia Fox moves up a notch in 2010 after finally accomplishing what many felt was inevitable: becoming Divas Champion.

Since she broke away from ECW and debuted on SmackDown and then Raw last year, it seemed the Foxy one was destined for solo stardom in the WWE. Twice in 2009 she came close to the belt, but proved unsuccessful in tussles with Mickie James and Melina. But 2010 saw Alicia win her first Divas Championship back in June, a win that was surprising yet unsurprising at the same time. There was little doubt that Fox would eventually be champion but given that the storyline at the time was Eve vs Maryse, Alicia didn’t seem like a likely winner when she faced off against the aforementioned as well as Gail Kim in a fatal four-way match at the Fatal 4-Way pay per view.

Despite not being in the title picture for the whole year, Fox managed to stay somewhat relevant. She made it to the semi-finals of the Divas Championship tournament before losing to Gail Kim, competed at WrestleMania at March’s end and then as mentioned, went onto become champion. It was during her championship reign that we saw the Foxy one take to the microphone more, establishing herself as a bratty heel champion — which would later be cemented by her feigning injury during a title defense against Eve.

After declaring that she was the top Diva on Raw (and the ‘Undefined Divas Champion’), Alicia’s title reign came crashing down around her thanks to the return of Melina who defeated Fox for the Divas Championship at SummerSlam in August. Again, Fox moved to the background after her time in the spotlight but did manage to keep herself busier than most with multiple matches on Raw and WWE Superstars.

For the past few months, Fox has most been seen on the third season of NXT where we found out she was a ‘hungry piranha’ as she mentored Maxine. Though her Rookie Diva didn’t last long in the competition, Fox saw regular competition with the likes of Kelly Kelly and Naomi.

Despite her star slipping a little since her rise to prominence in 2009, the Divas Title finally came a-knockin’ for the rising Diva, as did a plum spot on NXT, as well as regular matches with the likes of Natalya, Melina and others.

One could suggest that her Divas Championship reign was prematurely ended by the returning Melina. Could she rectify that by becoming a two-time champion in 2011?


#8: BETH PHOENIX
LAST YEAR: — 2008: #2
Perhaps the most inspirational Diva of 2010, Beth Phoenix went through hell and back with a grueling 6 months on the shelf due to injury, but you wouldn’t know it when you rack up her accomplishments this year.

In January, the Glamazon became only the second woman to compete in the Royal Rumble match and made quite the impact, eliminating The Great Khali in the 30-man match. Over a decade after Chyna first appeared in the Rumble, Beth Phoenix really did prove to be, in the words of Matt Striker, the 21st Century Femme Fatale with her awe-inspiring appearance.

Beth quickly solidified herself as a babyface on SmackDown, the first time in her WWE career, not counting that brief stint in 2006. Showing signs of being a tweener during the Mickie James/Lay-Cool feud, Phoenix eventually made a complete turn feuding with the dastardly Diva duo after a series of snide comments about her femininity — or if you believe Lay-Cool — lack thereof.

Phoenix, along with Michelle McCool, made history in April, competing in the first ever Extreme Makeover Match in which she was victorious and captured her third Women’s Championship. The era of the Glamazon, it seemed, was upon us but disaster struck as Beth suffered an ACL tear during a match with Rosa Mendes on WWE Superstars. In a moment of heartbreak for her fans, Beth dropped the title in front of a hometown crowd in May, saying goodbye to the WWE Universe for six long months.

Fast forward to November and the Survivor Series and we saw the culmination of six months of intense rehabilitation: the Fabulous Firebird returned in fine form, taking out Lay-Cool following their Divas Championship loss to Natalya. In one of the most picture perfect highlights of 2010, Beth and Natalya embraced as tears streamed — not only from the two Divas, but many a Diva fan too.

In December, Beth made more history by competing in the first ever Divas Tag Team Tables Match, where she and Natalya were victorious.

Despite a lengthy absence, 2010 was quite the Glamtastic year for Beth Phoenix; a successful babyface turn, the Royal Rumble, two ‘first evers’ in her match history and of course, a Women’s Championship run.

2011 will no doubt see Beth strive for a new goal, however. One that she has yet to accomplish: Divas Champion.


#7: MICKIE JAMES
LAST YEAR: #5 – 2008: #4
It’s been a strange year for Mickie James. Beginning the year by winning her fifth Women’s Championship, little did we know that we’d see her as a TNA Knockout by year’s end.

Continuing her feud with Michelle McCool and Layla from the end of 2009, there was heartbreak for Mickie as she had a Cake smashed in her face in that infamous ‘Piggie James Going Away Party’ back in January. The powerful segment which aired on SmackDown was without a doubt one of the most compelling Divas segments in quite some time and ran nearly 10 minutes long. James exacted her revenge on McCool at the Royal Rumble, defeating her to win the Women’s Championship and dumped a Cake of her own on both members of Lay-Cool.

The Women’s Title reign was cut short, however, after Mickie lost the belt in a rematch thanks to biased special guest referee, Vickie Guerrero.

Mickie briefly disappeared due to a staph infection but that didn’t hold her back as she was part of the 10-Diva tag team match at WrestleMania. Shortly after ‘Mania though, James was shockingly released despite being the most popular Diva in WWE. The move was met with intense backlash, with one fan even calling WWE’s headquarters, threatening to bomb it.

During her downtime, Mickie pursued another passion: singing. Releasing her debut album ‘Strangers & Angels’ earlier this year, Mickie went about establishing herself in a new career-path, while continuing to ply her trade in independent matches with the likes of Mia Yim and Mercedes Martinez.

But the bright lights of national television soon called once again. Mickie James returned to TNA Wrestling in October, making her debut on a live episode of Impact and she hasn’t looked back since.

Getting straight into the thick of things, Mickie has been front-and-center in the Knockouts division since her debut, showing us a new side to her and even helping rejuvenate the division. Her feud with fellow former WWE Diva, Tara, spanned three months and included several knock-down brawls all over the Impact Zone.

In November, James made her pay per view debut in a match with Tara that quickly disseminated into chaos but the kept viewers on the edge of their seats. The following month, it was much of the same as the two brawling Knockouts competed in a Falls Count Anywhere match. After Tara stole the victory with the help of Madison Rayne, there was only one thing for it…

Within the confines of a steel cage, Mickie and Tara headlined Impact in December, putting an end to their extremely physical feud. As James leapt from the top of the cage with a Thesz Press on her rival, it was almost a metaphor for James’ own leap this year. A year of dramatic change, but Mickie certainly landed on her feet and continues to be one of the most popular women in the industry today.

We are guaranteed to see James in the title picture in 2011, as she will cash in her #1 Contendership on the first pay per view of the year in January. It’s almost inevitable that the ‘Hardcore Country’ Knockout will win the gold at some point next year, solidifying her place in history as the first — and only — woman to hold the TNA Knockouts, WWE Divas and WWE Women’s Championships.


#6: NATALYA
LAST YEAR: — 2008: –
2010 was the culmination of a dream for Natalya. Having worked her way through the independents, it’s been a long road to the top for the first ever third generation Diva. Her family lineage has long been touted, she of course is the daughter Jim ‘The Anvil’ Neidhart and niece of Bret Hart. But it was in 2010 that Natalya began creating her own legacy as the first lady of the Hart wrestling dynasty.

Though it was in the last quarter of 2010 that Natalya came to prominence in the Divas division, she has been in the thick of things since the start of the year. With her uncle returning to WWE television for the first time in over a decade, Natalya and the Hart Dynasty (DH Smith and Tyson Kidd) found themselves caught up in an epic WrestleMania-sized storyline as the feud between Bret and WWE Chairman, Vince McMahon unfolded on Monday nights. It all culminated at ‘Mania 26 when Bret scored a sweet victory over Vince. Natalya perhaps scored the best spot of the night for any Diva (and yes, we’re aware there was a Divas match!) as she delivered an almighty slap to the man that writes her checks.

With the Hart Dynasty now babyfaces, the next stop was guiding her team to tag team gold. In April, the Dynasty scored the Unified Tag Team Championships and though Smith and Kidd were the ones technically involved in the matches, Natalya was as much part of the team & as much a champion as her boys. This was never more evident than when we saw the debuts of the Uso brothers and Tamina to Monday nights.

The feud between the Usos & Tamina and the Dynasty spilled over several months and featured six-person tag team matches, including one at Fatal 4-Way in June. Natalya owned the night by scoring the pinfall with her powerful discus clothesline to Tamina.

By September, the Dynasty had lost their Tag Team Championships, causing friction between Smith and Kidd. Meanwhile, Natalya found herself moving on too — she won a Divas battle royal to become the #1 Contender to Lay-Cool’s Divas Championship.

In a feud that spanned four months, Natalya proved unsuccessful against Michelle at Hell in a Cell, and then again against Layla at Bragging Rights. In her final shot at the title, the odds were stacked against the Hart Dynasty Diva as she faced both members of Lay-Cool at Survivor Series. Instead of succumbing to Lay-Cool’s antics, which including making fun of her for having a beard like her legendary father, Natalya overcame her obstacles and realised her dream.

The new Divas Champion added an exclamation point to her golden year, leaping off the turnbuckle and crashing through Lay-Cool and a table to win the first ever Divas Tag Team Tables Match at TLC in December.

After working hard for years and waiting patiently on the sidelines for her turn, Natalya goes into 2011 as the reigning Divas Champion and adds a new chapter to the already legendary Hart family lineage.


#5: TARA
LAST YEAR: #2 – 2008: –
After a career rejuvenation in 2009 when she made the jump from WWE to TNA, 2010 saw Tara with her feet firmly under the table in the TNA Knockouts division. Beginning the year as Knockouts Champion, Tara has gone onto hold the belt on two more occasions during the past 12 months. More importantly, perhaps, is Tara’s relationship with Madison Rayne as the duo have teamed up to dominate the Knockouts division in the last quarter of the year.

After defeating ODB for the Knockouts Championship in December, Tara put her belt on the line on the first Impact of 2010 — losing the title in shock fashion due to ODB cheating. However, she would regain the belt just over a week later, defeating ODB in a ‘best of three’ falls match.

Her longest Knockouts Title reign to date, Tara next found herself in the cross-hairs of the deranged Daffney. The ‘Zombie Hot’ Knockout targeted the Knockouts Champion over several weeks before things came to a head at March’s Destination X pay per view. Tara successfully defended her Knockouts Title in the match but Daffney got the last word, stealing Tara’s pet tarantula, Poison. Their next encounter was a First Blood Match that went all over the Impact Zone. Though Tara once again defeated Daffney, she didn’t get her pet Poison back.

The infamous Lockbox Showdown in April saw Tara lose her Knockouts Championship without even defending it in a match, though she did earn back her petnapped tarantula. This resulted in bad blood between Tara and the new Knockouts Champ, Angelina Love. The pair were forced to team up at LockDown in April, with Tara effectively costing Love the Knockouts Title when she was pinned by Madison Rayne.

In late April, Tara announced that she would be leaving TNA due to contract negotiations stalling over a pay increase. In storyline, she was booked into a ‘Career vs Title’ match against Madison Rayne at May’s Sacrifice pay per view, which she lost. We thought that’d be the last we saw of Tara… but how wrong we were.

Making her return as the Mystery Biker Chick in July, Tara attempted to aid Madison Rayne in her title defense against Angelina Love at the Victory Road pay per view by attacking Love. Instead, the referee spotted the attack and awarded Love the belt by DQ. Aligned with Rayne and hiding under a helmet, Tara was eventually unmasked in September as the Beautiful People imploded. Velvet and Lacey had turned on Rayne, and re-aligned with Angelina Love.

Now a heel and aligned with the woman who ended her career five months back, Tara returned to action and at Bound for Glory she won the Knockouts Championship in a fatal four-way match involving then-champion Angelina Love, Madison Rayne and Velvet Sky with newcomer, Mickie James as special guest referee. The reign didn’t last though. The very next week on Impact, Tara laid down for Rayne — who felt she was responsible for Tara’s comeback & felt Tara should aid her career — allowing her to become the Knockouts Champ.

Despite losing the Knockouts Title, Tara has been front-and-center for the past several months, however, feuding with her fellow former WWE Diva, Mickie James. Claiming that Mickie was one of the reasons she left WWE, Tara had an axe to grind and took every opportunity to grind it. Their brawls backstage, on the ramp-way and in the ring filled weeks of television. Two much-buzzed about pay per view matches at November’s Turning Point and December’s Final Resolution still couldn’t get the job done in settling this bad blood.

It would take a main event steel cage match on Impact to settle the score between Mickie James and Tara. In perhaps the most personal and hard-fought Knockouts bouts of the year, James squared away her rival. Though Tara lost the match, both Knockouts earned the applause of fans and industry peers — Tara particularly for finishing the match with an injured elbow.

Though she took more of a backseat to Madison Rayne this year, and on yet on another two occasions lost the Knockouts Title under less than ideal circumstances, Tara proved to be one of the most consistent Knockouts in TNA. Turning heel for the first time during her TNA run, Tara added new layers to her character — incorporating her love of motorcycles and in recent months, even displaying a more playful ‘cougar’ side. It is perhaps her feud and matches with James that will most be remembered this year though, as she helped reinvigorate the Knockouts division, capturing a buzz about the women in TNA in the same way that Gail Kim and Awesome Kong did some years ago.

What does the future hold for Tara? Perhaps next year she will finally hold the Knockouts Title and not lose it in silly fashion i.e. having her reign cut short, losing it in a Deal or No Deal scenario or by having to lay down. There’s also the possibility of her and partner Madison Rayne becoming the Knockouts Tag Team Champions — or even imploding. Or perhaps both? One thing is for sure: Tara will continue to be one of the centerpieces of the Knockouts division.


#4: ANGELINA LOVE
LAST YEAR: #3 – 2008: #10
When Angelina Love was abruptly released last September due to visa issues, she vowed to return and return she did in January. Since making her comeback, Angelina has gone onto become a record 5-time Knockouts Champion, with three runs in the past 12 months and is now one half of the Knockouts Tag Team Champions also.

It all started in January when Love returned, sitting ringside for a match between The Beautiful People and Hamada & Awesome Kong. She was seen hugging her former cohorts as they made their way down to the ring, but after the match it was a completely different story. Turning babyface, Angelina attacked all three members of the group including her ‘replacement’, Lacey Von Erich. This set in motion a running storyline in the Knockouts division that would last nearly an entire year.

As Angelina’s feud with the beautiful ones, particularly her former BFF Velvet Sky, continued over the coming months, Love found herself back in a familiar spot: the Knockouts Championship picture. Having already held the belt twice in 2009, in April she found herself to be the biggest winner in that infamous Lockbox Showdown when she unlocked the box containing the Knockouts Championship. The reign wouldn’t last long however, as just a couple of weeks later she lost the belt in a ‘Winner Take All’ tag teal steel cage match in which the Knockouts Tag Team Championships were also on the line. In the match, Madison Rayne pinned Love’s tag team partner — the former Knockouts Champ, Tara, costing Love the belt. With tensions already high between Love and Tara, the latter attacked Angelina after the match and we saw the start of a feud between the duo. However, before things could escalate, Angelina suffered a bicep tear during a match with Tara and Madison Rayne putting her on the sidelines for six weeks.

Upon her return, Love focused in once again on the Knockouts Championship and her former friend, Madison Rayne. Vowing to pick apart The Beautiful People one by one, she defeated Lacey Von Erich and Velvet Sky before challenging Madison Rayne to a title match at Victory Road in July. With the stipulation that the belt would change hands via disqualification if either Von Erich or Sky interfered, Love won the Knockouts Championship after a mystery figure (believed by the referee to be one of the two) attacked Love. Once again, however, Love’s reign was cut short as the belt was given back to Madison Rayne the following week on Impact as there was no proof the Mystery Biker Chick was either Sky or Von Erich.

Undettered, Angelina went onto win the Knockouts Championship once again just weeks later defeating Rayne on a special episode of Impact in August and this time, would hold onto the belt for three months.

As tensions rose within the beautiful camp due to Rayne’s alignment with the Mystery Biker Chick, Angelina soon found herself reunited with former BFF, Velvet Sky and the original Beautiful People were back together. With Tara unmasked as the Biker Chick, the Beautiful People did battle with Rayne and Tara for the rights to the ‘Beautiful People’ name and music which they won. Love then defended her Knockouts Title in a four-way match involving Rayne, Sky and Tara at Bound for Glory in October, in which Tara picked up the victory.

Over the final few months of 2010, Love has been involved in a mysterious new storyline with newcomer Winter (former WWE Diva, Katie Lea), who appeared to Love in backstage segments — yet no one else could see her. Telling Love what a big fan she is and telling her that they were destined to be together, Winter saved Angelina from a beatdown at the hands of Sarita on the Thanksgiving episode of Impact.

In December, Love and Sky had qualified for the finals of the Knockouts Tag Team Championship tournament but due to an attack from Sarita, Velvet was unable to compete in the match. With Angelina in a two-on-one situation, Winter ran down to the ring mid-match and de facto became Love’s tag team partner, pinning Madison Rayne to win the Knockouts Tag Team Championships for herself and Love.

From start to finish in 2010, Angelina continued to show that she was TNA’s golden girl and showed no signs of letting up following her four month absence last year. With three runs as Knockouts Champ added to her two runs from last year, and now one half of the current Tag Team Champs, Angelina is perhaps the most decorated Knockout in the division. And going into 2011, the Love train is showing no signs of halting anytime soon.


#3: LAYLA
LAST YEAR: — 2008: –
No Diva has seen her stock rise quite in a 12 month period quite like Layla. The rise and rise of the London-born Diva has to be considered perhaps one of the greatest success stories of the year. While Divas like Eve and Alicia were touted ‘the next big thing’ in the Divas division, it was Layla who truly proved to be the next top Diva in WWE, joining the ranks of Michelle McCool, Melina and Beth Phoenix. By associating herself with McCool last year, Layla shot to the top of the Divas division and became one half of the duo that defined 2010 in female wrestling: Lay-Cool. She now defines herself not as ‘former Diva Search winner’ but as ‘former Women’s Champion’.

Beginning the year by continuing her feud along with Michelle against Mickie James, Layla memorably donned a fatsuit on an episode of SmackDown, mocking James. At January’s Royal Rumble, again she donned the fatsuit but this time she was attacked by Mickie, who then went onto defeat Michelle for the Women’s Title and dumped a Cake on both members of Lay-Cool just as they had done to her some weeks prior.

Despite being humiliated, the year would get a lot better as Michelle regained the Women’s Championship just a month later and the duo of Lay-Cool turned their attention to the Glamazon, Beth Phoenix. Mocking her for her lack of femininity, Lay-Cool dubbed her the ‘Manazon’ and ‘Glama-man’. After Beth defeated McCool in an Extreme Makeover match in April, Lay-Cool would then team up in a two-on-one handicap match on SmackDown against the injured Beth who had torn her ACL just a week prior. In the match, Beth dropped the belt to Lay-Cool and much to the surprise of fans, it was Layla who picked up the pin and officially won the Women’s Championship, making her the first Diva Search winner to do so.

A first in Diva history, Lay-Cool declared themselves co-Women’s Champions, first holding a title each and then sharing half of a belt. Over the summer, the duo feuded with Kelly Kelly (who they dubbed ‘Smelly Kelly’) and Tiffany (‘Skirt Tiffany’). Layla found herself in the mix of things in this feud, defending the Women’s Championship on behalf of Lay-Cool at Money in the Bank in July. The flawless one was victorious in retaining the belt.

Following Melina’s return to Raw in August, the two SmackDown Divas made their presence felt following a Raw Divas Championship match at SummerSlam, laying out Melina. Lay-Cool then challenged Melina to a title unification match at Night of Champions. Tension soon arose in the Lay-Cool camp as they tried to decide who should face Melina: it ended up being Michelle McCool, despite Layla being the official champion. Though she teased that she wasn’t in Michelle’s corner at the pay per view, at the end of the match Layla distracted Melina, allowing Michelle to pick up the win. The duo then declared themselves co-Divas Champions as Layla defended the belt the next night on Raw successfully against Melina.

The co-Divas Champs then found themselves with a new challenger: Natalya. Having won a battle royal to become #1 Contender, Natalya was unperturbed by Lay-Cool’s antics including mocking her for looking like her father (saying she had a beard) and even dressing up as her. Layla defeated Natalya, successfully defending the Divas Championship at October’s Bragging Rights, but the duo eventually lost the belt to Nattie at Survivor Series.

In November, the Diva duo were memorably humiliated by Mae Young who defeated them in a match at 87-years-old. That moment won Lay-Cool a Slammy for ‘Knucklehead Moment of the Year’.

In December, Lay-Cool made history by being two of four Divas involved in the first ever Divas Tag Team Tables Match which was won by Natalya and Beth Phoenix, who finally gave Lay-Cool their comeuppance.

It’s safe to say that no two Divas have had quite the visibility of Lay-Cool in the past 12 months. Layla has risen within the Divas division, showing much improvement in the ring and perhaps showing that she is the most charismatic Diva on the entire roster. Her comedic ability second to none, Layla is often the life of Lay-Cool segments. Picking up the Women’s Championship and being considered the last ever Women’s Champ etches Layla’s name in WWE history.

Many have called for Lay-Cool to take a backseat in 2011 and now out of the title picture, perhaps they will. But with no gold in sight, could Lay-Cool implode in the coming year? And if so, can Layla continue to sustain herself as one of the top Divas in the division with her flawless BFF?


#2: MADISON RAYNE
LAST YEAR: — 2008: –
Much like Layla’s rise in the Divas division, 2010 was the year of the Rayne in TNA. After Angelina Love’s release in September 2009, Rayne found herself becoming the leader of The Beautiful People going into 2010, despite Velvet Sky being one of the group’s founding members. Finding her feet in TNA, Rayne has gone onto become a three-time Knockouts Champion within the span of 12 months and pretty much the queen bee in the company.

Rayne’s ascension to Knockout glory began in January when Angelina Love returned to TNA, turning babyface and feuding with Rayne and her Beautiful cohorts. Rayne led her group to victory in March as she, Velvet and Lacey won the Knockouts Tag Team Championships. Not content with just that, Rayne pinned Tara in a ‘Winner Take All’ tag team cage match in April, becoming the Knockouts Champion effectively allowing The Beautiful People to hold all the Knockouts gold. Rayne made history as the first Knockout to hold both belts simultaneously.

In May, Madison became known as the ‘Career Killer’ when she put her belt up on the line against Tara at Sacrifice with the stipulation that if Tara lost, her TNA career would be over. After ending Tara’s career, she also eliminated on-off Knockout, Roxxi from the company in June at Slammiversary in a second ‘Title vs Career’ match.

But it would be her constant rival Angelina Love that put an end to Rayne’s reign of terror at Victory Road, when she defeated Madison for the belt via disqualification due to interference from a mystery figure who the referee believed to be Velvet Sky or Lacey Von Erich. As per the rules of the bout, should either interfere, the belt would change hands. As the referee couldn’t prove that it was either Velvet or Lacey under the mysterious biker helmet, the belt was handed back to Rayne for her second championship run. That run would only last a mere three weeks however, as Love pinned Madison fair and square for the title on a special episode of Impact in August.

With her new alignment with the Mystery Biker Chick, tensions mounted within the Beautiful camp as Velvet and Lacey claimed she had developed an attitude and were wary of her friendship with the mysterious biker. After calling a truce, things came to a head as Madison and the biker inadvertently cost Velvet and Lacey the Knockouts Tag Team Championship.

Soon the original Beautiful People reunited and teamed to face Rayne and the biker, who were victorious. In an unmasking, it was revealed that the biker was none other than Tara, the woman that Rayne had retired months back. Rayne had brought her back to TNA to benefit her own career, it was revealed. This was none more so evident than when Tara won the Knockouts Championship at Bound for Glory in October, but then laid down and allowed Rayne to win the belt from her just a week later on Impact as she ‘owed her career’ to Rayne.

The reign of Rayne continued right throught the end of the year, as she ends 2010 as Knockouts Champion. After aiding her partner, Tara, in her feud with Mickie James, James’ sights are now set on the champion going into 2011.

In 2010, Madison Rayne proved to the world that she is the top Knockout in TNA. Her metamorphosis from Angelina and Velvet’s lackey into bratty, shouty heel queen has made her into the success story of the Knockouts division in TNA and perhaps one of the top success stories in TNA as a whole.

Going into 2011 with her belt firmly around her waist and a feud with the world-famous Mickie James in effect, it’s good to be Madison Rayne.


#1: MICHELLE MCCOOL
LAST YEAR: #1 – 2008: #1
For the third year in a row, Michelle McCool tops the Perfect 10 and really… is it any surprise? Love her or hate her, the controversial Diva has had continued success in the WWE Divas division over the past 12 months. After becoming the first ever Divas Champion in 2008, the first ever woman to hold the Divas and Women’s Championships in 2009, the question was, ‘Just what more could Michelle accomplish in 2010?’ It seemed nothing. How wrong we were.

In the past 12 months, Michelle has held both the Women’s and Divas Championships and became known as the ‘Flawless History-Maker’ by unifying the two belts in September. The cherry on the Cake? Being crowned ‘Diva of the Year’ at the Slammys in December.

Continuing her feud from 2009 with Mickie James, Michelle and ‘flawless BFF’ Layla continued their mockery of James into 2010. In January, the pair held a ‘Piggie James Going Away’ party for the multi-time Women’s Champion, splattering a Cake in her face in what proved to be one of the most powerful Diva segments in some time. Michelle got her comeuppance, however, at the Royal Rumble when James took the Women’s Championship from her and added insult the injury by dumping a Cake of her own all over Lay-Cool.

But that was only the beginning of Michelle’s year. With SmackDown’s official consultant and friend of Lay-Cool, Vickie Guerrero, as special guest referee in a rematch, Michelle regained the belt after Vickie slapped Mickie distracting her long enough for Michelle to hit her devastating big boot.

Lay-Cool turned their attention to Beth Phoenix next, dubbing her the ‘Manazon’ and ‘Glama-man’. In April, McCool and Phoenix made history by competing in the first ever Extreme Makeover match in which the Glamazon was victorious. After suffering an ACL tear injury, Michelle and Layla managed to defeat Beth in a two-on-one handicap match in May when Layla pinned Beth. Though she was the official Women’s Champion, Lay-Cool introduced a second Women’s Title belt and declared themselves co-Women’s Champions.

While finding the time to successfully mentor Kaval to victory on NXT season two, Lay-Cool also found themselves in a tag team feud with the Blondetourage: Kelly Kelly and Tiffany. Layla successfully put away Kelly Kelly in a Women’s Championship bout at Money in the Bank in July, while Michelle successfully pinned Tiffany for the belt in a quasi-rematch.

Next up, having defeated all the Divas on SmackDown, Michelle and Layla turned their attention to Raw’s new Divas Champion, Melina, just moments after she won the belt at SummerSlam. Laying her out and making a statement that they were the top dogs in the Divas division, Lay-Cool then challenged Melina to a title unification match at Night of Champions. Despite Layla being the official Women’s Champ, it was Michelle that did battle with Melina and made history once more. This time, she had successfully unified the Divas and Women’s Championships, earning the title ‘Flawless History-Maker’ at WWE.com.

Once again sharing their newly won title, Lay-Cool became co-Divas Champions and faced off against Natalya. Michelle successfully retained the belt against the third-generation Diva at Hell in a Cell, as did Layla at Bragging Rights, but they lost the belt to Natalya at November’s Survivor Series. Adding insult to injury, that same week, Lay-Cool were humiliated on Raw by 87-year-old Mae Young who pinned them in a match which earned them a Slammy award for ‘Knucklehead Moment of the Year’.

It was also as the Slammys that Michelle won a Divas battle royal to become ‘Diva of the Year’.

Continuing to make history just in time for the holidays, Lay-Cool, Natalya and Beth Phoenix took part in the first ever Divas Tag Team Tables Match.

With the Women’s Championship and Divas Championship around her waist, two ‘first ever’ matches, and a Slammy award, it’s no surprise that Michelle McCool is once again at the top of the summit on the annual Perfect 10. As they say, good things come in threes. Can anyone knock Michelle off the top spot next year?