Wwe Diva
Trish Stratus WWE Divas Career
As 2003
progressed in the WWE, so did the skills the divas possessed in the
ring. The term diva lent more on aggressiveness and assertiveness rather
than beauty and looks. This was all too apparent as Stratus went up
against matches more based on ring skill than beauty alone. After a
bitter rivalry with Victoria, which pitted Stratus in several hardcore
matches, Stratus was met with a bitter nemesis from the past, Jazz. Now
Stratus was up against two women who had a bitter hate for the Toronto
beauty that would culminate at Wrestlemania XIX in a triple threat match
for the WWE Women's Championship.
At WrestleMania XIX on March 30, Stratus won her fourth WWE Women's
Championship in a triple threat match against Victoria and Jazz. Despite
losing her title back to Jazz the following month, Stratus stayed in the
hunt for another championship. Stratus was engaged in a heated feud with
newcomer Gail Kim, who gained the Women's Championship on her first
televised WWE match, by winning a battle royal. A miscommunication
between Stratus and Kim during a tag team match on RAW (in which Stratus
misfired a Chick kick and accidentally nailed her partner) left Kim
embittered.
Two weeks later, the now former Champion Kim, who lost the title to
Molly Holly the previous week, appeared to be saving Stratus from a
two-on-one assault by Molly and Victoria. Kim helped Stratus to her feet
before viciously clotheslining her to the mat. Soon, Molly approached
Kim with the idea of forever ending Stratus's wrestling career, and for
a time, it seemed as though it would happen. Thanks to an assist from
the returning Lita, however, it would be Stratus who gained the last
laugh.
October 2003 would mark the beginning of what would be Stratus's most
emotional WWE saga; the triangle between Stratus, Chris Jericho, and
Christian. One night on RAW, as Stratus was being attacked by Victoria
and Steven Richards, Jericho inexplicably rushed the ring and warded off
the attackers. Even Stratus seemed dumbfounded initially. Soon, however,
Stratus started to slowly warm up to Jericho, seeing a side of him that
many fans and fellow competitors did not see very often. One which
apparently showed warmth, caring, and compassion. Stratus and Jericho
appeared smitten with each other. At the same time, Jericho's friend and
tag team partner Christian was courting Stratus's close friend Lita. To
many fans, neither courtship looked to be on the up and up. As it turned
out, they were anything but. On the December 1 RAW, Jericho and
Christian were overheard in the locker room mocking Stratus' and Lita's
affections, and revealed a bet the two of them had with one another (for
one Canadian dollar) to see which man could sleep with their chosen Diva
first. Stratus, who was to present Jericho with a handmade Canadian
hockey jersey as a gift, heard every word and every laugh from outside
the dressing room, and it brought her to tears.
The following week, Stratus and Lita confronted and assaulted Jericho
and Christian in front of a nationwide viewing audience on RAW, leading
to a "battle of the sexes" tag team match held at Armageddon on December
14. While Christian seemed to take pride in beating down his female
opponents, Jericho seemed to want no part of it. Apparently, Jericho was
starting to develop true feelings for Stratus, and was having a
difficult time going through with the match before him. Stratus seemed
to take a lot more pleasure in beating down Jericho than Jericho had in
facing her in a match. Soon, it became obvious that Jericho was feeling
an enormous amount of guilt for initiating the Canadian dollar bet.
At first, Stratus was unwilling to show Jericho any forgiveness, but
appeared to accept his apologies enough to at least accept him as a
friend. Meanwhile, Christian appeared to be harboring jealousy, accusing
Stratus of driving a wedge into his partnership with Jericho and
labeling her "Yoko Ono." But soon, Christian also appeared to have
something of a change of heart, albeit a very condescending one. To the
face of Jericho, he was very accepting of his feelings for Stratus...but
to Stratus's face, Christian seemed to be courting her affections.
It looked like everything became crystal clear on the February 23 RAW,
when Christian was booked to face Stratus in a one-on-one match. In the
dressing room prior to the contest, Christian (feigning friendship with
Stratus) promised her he would allow her to pin him. In the ring,
however, Christian instead plowed Stratus down with a clothesline, and
locked her in Jericho's submission hold, the Walls of Jericho. Stratus
was taken out of action for several weeks with injuries, and Christian
gloated over his actions. A match was soon signed for WrestleMania XX on
March 14, in Madison Square Garden, pitting Chris Jericho against his
former best friend, Christian.
It appeared this long and intense storyline would reach its conclusion
at WrestleMania. Unbeknown to the fans in attendance, it was only just
getting warmed up. Stratus surged toward the ring late in the match,
appearing to be firmly in Jericho's corner. Christian, apparently
disgusted by Stratus' presence, pulled her violently into the ring and
attempted to attack her. Jericho made the save, but when he leaned down
to assist his fallen friend, Stratus thrust forth an elbow, apparently
believing that it was Christian. Her elbow jabbed Jericho's temple, and
Christian scored a roll up pin for the three count. After the match,
Stratus appeared to be all apologies, but as she and Jericho argued in
the ring, Christian came running back down the aisle, to seemingly get
his hands on Stratus in a violent and hateful manner once again. As
Jericho tried to hold her back, the fans witnessed the turn of Stratus.
Stratus suddenly reared back and throttled Jericho with two vicious
slaps to the face, which Christian followed with the Un-Prettier.
Christian and Stratus walked away holding hands, mocking their former
friend who sat in the ring looking on with an expression of disbelief.
Before they departed, Christian grabbed Stratus's hair, pulled her to
his lips, and passionately kissed his new girlfriend.
The following night on RAW, after the two squashed Spike Dudley in an
unprovoked attack, Stratus revealed on how she had never forgiven
Jericho for the Canadian dollar bet, how her feelings of sadness and
hurt ate away at her for months as she plotted her ultimate revenge. She
also revealed to the fans how much she "likes it rough." She ended the
promo by proclaiming to Jericho and to the world, "You can't get no...Stratusfaction."
The Stratus/Christian union continued for several more months, and even
saw the addition of a "problem solver" to their mix, the hulking Tyson
Tomko. As the Jericho/Christian feud reached its conclusion, Stratus
refocused herself on the Women's Championship. At Bad Blood on June 13,
Stratus won the Women's Championship in a Fatal Four Way. Lita appeared
to have victory at hand following a DDT to Gail Kim, but Stratus moved
in for the kill, rolling up Lita from behind for the win and the title.
This win was historic for Stratus, as she became the first-ever five
time WWE Women's Champion. Stratus held the title for the next six
months, fending off all challenges and even tying the record for the
fastest match in wrestling history, pinning Nidia in just three seconds
on the July 5 edition of RAW. One notable feud in her 2004 title run was
with Christy Hemme when Jonathan Coachman was about to announce the
winner of the first Diva Search Contest, and Stratus's music hit and she
came out wearing a short blue dress. She warned the eventual Diva Search
winner that she would be hazing them as part of an "initiation party"
next week on RAW.
Finally, after taunting Lita for months over her marriage to Kane and
the loss of her baby, Stratus defended her title against Lita at
Survivor Series on November 14. Lita viciously attacked her opponent,
smashing Stratus with a steel chair and driving her into the ring steps,
breaking her nose. Stratus did win the match by disqualification, but
several weeks later, Chris Jericho, in his capacity as General Manager
for the evening, booked Stratus for another title defence against Lita
on the December 6 edition of RAW. Lita kept her composure and hit
Stratus with a Twist of Fate and a moonsault to win the championship.
Stratus defeated Lita to win her sixth Women's Championship on January 9
at New Year's Revolution 2005 with Lita tearing her anterior cruciate
ligament in the course of the match. Stratus went on to feud with 2004
RAW Diva Search winner Christy Hemme, retaining her title in a bout with
Hemme at WrestleMania 21. Stratus and the injured Lita feuded throughout
April 2005, with Viscera wrestling Lita's husband Kane on behalf of
Stratus. In May 2005, Stratus was sidelined with a herniated disc; the
storyline explanation for her shelving was that Viscera had injured her
with a big splash after she berated him for losing to Kane.
Stratus returned to WWE television in September, turning face once again
by siding with Ashley Massaro against Vince's Devils. In the course of
the feud, Stratus was saved from a beating at the hands of Victoria by
the debuting Mickie James, who was quick to introduce herself as
Stratus's "biggest fan". All six women took part in a "Fulfill Your
Fantasy" Diva battle royal for the Women's Championship at Taboo Tuesday
2005, with Stratus retaining her title for a second consecutive year.
The match ended when Mickie James sacrificed herself in order to
eliminate Victoria, leaving Stratus the only woman standing.
On the November 14 Eddie Guerrero tribute show, Stratus took part in an
interpromotional Diva battle royal that was won by SmackDown! Diva
Melina. Following her victory, Melina challenged Stratus to a match for
the Women's Championship. The two fought one another at the 2005
Survivor Series, with Stratus narrowly defeating Melina, once again with
the assistance of Mickie James.
Stratus and James teamed together throughout late 2005, with James
becoming increasingly obsessive. On the December 26 episode of RAW,
James initiated an "intimate" kiss with Stratus under a sprig of
mistletoe, causing a surprised Stratus to flee the locker room.
The unusual partnership between James and Stratus continued into 2006,
with Stratus defeating James in a Women's Championship bout at New
Year's Revolution 2006. Despite the defeat, James continued to be
enamoured of Stratus. Her fixation with Stratus led to a rivalry between
James and Ashley Massaro, who dubbed the lovelorn James a "psycho". At
the same time, James continued to pursue Stratus, on one occasion having
her "date", Jack, arrested on false grounds. In early March, Stratus
confronted James, telling her that she needed space. The duo briefly
reconciled on the March 18 episode of Saturday Night's Main Event,
teaming together to defeat Candice Michelle and Victoria. However, James
turned on Stratus after the match, attacking her with a Mick Kick and
the Stratusfaction. James went on to defeat Stratus for the Women's
Championship at WrestleMania 22, where despite the fact that she was the
face, was booed with every offensive move she made, whereas James was
cheered for every move against Stratus.
Stratus and James engaged in mind games throughout April, with James
dressing like Stratus (complete with dyed blonde hair) and vice-versa.
On the April 17 episode of RAW, Stratus (dressed as James) brought a
tied-up Jack to the ring, telling James that "the real Trish Stratus"
would attempt to save him. A confused James chased Stratus from the
ring, then attacked Jack for "betraying" her. The rivals fought one
another for the Women's Championsip at Backlash 2006, with Stratus
winning by disqualification after James refused to relinquish a
chokehold. In the course of the match, Stratus dislocated her right
shoulder, necessitating six weeks of rehabilitation. She continued to
feud with James by proxy throughout May, managing the newly debuted Beth
Phoenix until Phoenix suffered a broken jaw.
Stratus returned to the ring in late June, joining forces with Carlito
against Melina and Johnny Nitro. Stratus and Carlito went on to Saturday
Night's Main Event to score a win over them in a Mixed Team Tag Match.
Carlito and Trish have entered a (kayfabe) relationship and shared their
first kiss on the August 7 edition of RAW, which caught Carlito by
surprise. On that very night, Stratus teamed up with Carlito to team up
against Edge and long time enemy Lita, who earlier in the show insulted
her. The match ended after Edge speared Stratus accidentally when he was
going after Carlito, allowing Lita to pin her for the win.
Wwe Diva
Trish Stratus' Personal Life
Stratus's mother
Alice is a teacher of Polish descent, and her father John is
a real estate agent of Greek descent.
Stratus's trademarked catchphrase is "Stratusfaction
Guaranteed," with "True Stratusfaction" being the feeling of
constantly being challenged and subsequently meeting those
challenges. Her motto is "Preparedness meets opportunity."
Stratus is due to get married to her longtime boyfriend on
September 30, 2006 |
