Maria Kanellis still considers herself a Diva, and she doesn't agree that this era of WWE history didn't have good workers.
Kanellis has been a trailblazer for women's wrestling in recent years. She notably led the charge with rebuilding Ring of Honor's women's division in 2021. She has also launched Women's Wrestling Army, a new promotion, earlier this year. But she originally arrived in the industry through WWE's Divas Search, and she was later featured throughout WWE's Divas era.
Speaking to Will Washington, Righteous Reg, & Phil Lindsey on Grapsody, Kanellis discussed the misconception of the Divas era not having any "workers." She countered the argument by naming several examples, and she also shared her belief that WWE should bring back the era's butterfly belt.
"There were a ton. Trish [Stratus], Lita, Ivory caught the tail end of that. Victoria, Molly was in that era. You had workers. Down the line, you have Beth [Phoenix], Melina, Mickie [James], Nattie. You had a ton of workers that came from the Indies too. It was a mix at that time. I think they should bring back the Butterfly belt. I do. I know people will disagree with me and that’s fine. That’s why wrestling is great because when you watch wrestling, you don’t see everybody looking exactly the same," Kanellis said.
She went on to describe how she still identifies as a Diva sometimes. Kanellis noted that, overall, women's wrestling is a balance, as there are extremes on either side of the way it's presented.
"I sometimes write in my Twitter messages, ‘Still a Diva.’ It had to [fluctuate]. You have to go all the way to the right and then all the way to the left and then somewhere in the middle we find what works the best. I still there’s a place for that. I still think if you want to be glamorous and do more girly moves, that’s fine, that’s your style. If you want to be more aggressive and go out there with no makeup and wearing no shorts and t-shirt, fine. Talent comes in all forms. Sexy, there is a whole rainbow of sexy. That’s how society is," Kanellis said.
She elaborated by noting that being a Diva is how she arrived in the business, and she appreciates the way the segments were funny and cute at the time.
"I still consider myself a diva because it gave me the first opportunity in my career. I think some of those segments were funny and cute. We should have a little bit of humor to it. There is a place for everyone," she said.
In the same interview, Kanellis discussed her future in wrestling. You can check out her comments here.
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